Adivi Sesh opens up on Dacoit's box office clash with Yash's Toxic: 'Have made a career being the underdog' | Exclusive

IT has been o'er a yr since Adivi Sesh’s bilingualist shoot, dakoit, was announced. The action entertainer, co-starring Mrunal Thakur, was set to release this December. But an injury to Sesh meant that the shoot was postponed, and the film will now release in March 2026. This puts it in direct conflict with Kannada superstar Yash’s pan-India film Toxic, which is also releasing on the same date. In an exclusive conversation with Hindustan Times, Adivi Sesh addresses Dacoit’s delay, the choice of release date, and why the ‘clash’ does not stress him.On Dacoit's delayDacoit will spend nearly two years in production before it finally releases. Addressing that long gestation period, Sesh says, “I have always taken a long time to make films. Earlier, no one knew me, so it didn’t matter. With Major, people felt it (the delay) was due to Covid-19. I have always taken up to 2 years to make a film. But this, a little delay happened because I injured myself. That set a situation where I couldn’t do the remaining heavy-duty action scenes for 2-3 months. I am still healing. I'm on the mend.”Dacoit’s original release date was 25 December this year. The injury postponed the shoot, and last week, the makers announced that the film will now release on 19 March, 2026, coinciding with Ugadi. Toxic, Yash’s first film since the KGF franchise, is also releasing on the same day. Reports of the so-called clash have already circulated.‘Clash is for the media’Sesh says, “At the end of the day, films releasing on the same day can work. As a kid, I remember Lagaan and Gadar released on the same day and both films are classics. I think clash is something that we use in the media. For the audience, it’s all about going to the theatre to watch a film. It doesn’t really matter. My own film, Major, clashed with Samrat Prithviraj, and still did well. If a film is good, it will find its audience. With Ugadi, Gudi Padwa, and Eid coming together on the same weekend, it will be quite a moment of celebration.”While Sesh might downplay the significance of the clash, he recognises that going up against Toxic is no easy task. It is one of the most anticipated films of recent times, particularly since it marks Yash’s return to the big screen after four years. Talking about being the underdog in this fight, he says, “I remember in 2018, when KGF (Chapter 1) was releasing against Shah Rukh Khan’s Zero, it did quite well and changed the culture of filmmaking. But KGF was the underdog then. I am now. I have happily made a career being the underdog. My whole career has been about surprising people. I guess it has become a bit of a habit.”On Dacoit being a bilingual filmSesh admits that there was a momentary thought of finding another date, before he and the makers felt that an Ugadi release gives the film its best chance of success. “We did think (about another date),” says the actor. “Dacoit is a true-blue Hindi film and a true-blue Telugu film. We shot every scene in both languages. Ugadi is the Telugu New Year, just like Gudi Padwa is in Maharashtra. It’s when students finish their exams. Eid is a moment of celebration. So, there were so many positives for that date that we thought it would be the best possible moment for the film.”As Sesh mentions, Dacoit is being shot simultaneously in Hindi and Telugu, which is a time-consuming task. Talking about it, he says, “It is very tough because getting the cultural nuances right is a challenge. It’s very important to me that the scene resonates in its native language. It should not feel translated. There are several scenes where we changed the entire content and dialogue. The humour is completely different.”Dacoit is directed by Shaneil Deo and also stars Anurag Kashyap and Prakash Raj in pivotal roles, apart from Sesh and Mrunal. Toxic, on the other hand, is directed by Geetu Mohandas and stars Yash alongside Tovino Thomas, Nayanthara, Kiara Advani, Tara Sutaria, and Huma Qureshi. Both films release on March 19, 2026.