Director-producer Karan Johar has slammed the makers of an upcoming movie for choosing to release the film on the day his Sidharth Malhotra-starrer Yodha hits theatres without making a courtesy call to the filmmaker.

“Clashing on a date without the courtesy of a phone call is hopefully not the way forward for the studios and producers …. If we don’t stand united in these tough and challenging theatrical days then calling us a fraternity is futile,” he wrote on Threads, minutes after Sriram Raghavan and Ramesh Taurani’s Merry Christmas got a release date.

Both Yodha and Merry Christmas will now hit theatres on December 15.

Headlined by Sidharth Malhotra, Yodha is an action thriller film helmed by Sagar Ambre and Pushkar Ojha. It also features Disha Patani and Raashii Khanna in important roles. Karan is producing the film under the banner of his Dharma Productions.

On Monday, Tips Films dropped the first poster and announced the release date of Merry Christmas, its upcoming bilingual (Hindi and Tamil) film starring Katrina Kaif and Vijay Sethupathi.

“We decided to cut short the wait for the Christmas cheer! #MerryChristmas releasing in theatres near you ON 15th DECEMBER 2023,” the makers of the film wrote on Instagram.

Karan is currently gearing up for the release of his upcoming directorial venture Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani starring Alia Bhatt and Ranveer Singh in the lead roles. The romantic drama film is all set to arrive in theatres on July 28.