Top Durga Puja 2026 releases: DeSu7 to Jailer 2, films for this festive season

Eight major Bengali, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu films are slated around Durga Puja 2026. The line-up spans crime, history, mystery, horror comedy, courtroom drama and action.

In Short

• Four Bengali titles span crime, colonial history, mystery and political romance
• Prahaar revisits legal proceedings following the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks
• Nayyi Navelli blends household tensions with supernatural suspicion in Meerut

Durga Puja is here, and Bengali cinema is ready with a line-up of new films for the festive season. From Dev Adhikari and Subhashree Ganguly's much-awaited DeSu7 to Srijit Mukherji's Emperor Vs Sarat Chandra, this year's Bengali releases offer a mix of action, mystery and historical drama. South Indian cinema is also adding to the festive line-up, with Rajinikanth's Jailer 2 among the major releases.

While Bengali cinema takes centre stage during the festive season, Hindi and other South Indian films are also adding to the theatrical line-up. Rajkummar Rao's Prahaar, Yami Gautam's Nayyi Navelli and Vijay Deverakonda's Ranabaali are among the releases offering audiences a mix of courtroom drama, horror comedy and period action.

Here's a look at the major films releasing during Durga Puja 2026.

Bengali films releasing this Durga Puja

1. DeSu7

Release date: October 1

One of the major Bengali releases of the season, DeSu7 marks actor Dev Adhikari's directorial debut. The film stars Dev alongside Subhashree Ganguly and Anirban Bhattacharya.

The story follows two lovers who reunite after years apart. Their relationship unfolds against a political backdrop, with action, romance and emotional drama forming part of the narrative.

With Dev and Subhashree coming together on screen, the film is among the prominent Bengali titles arriving during the festive period.

2. Bohurupi: The Golden Daku

Release date: October 15

Directed by Nandita Roy and Shiboprosad Mukherjee, Bohurupi: The Golden Daku is the sequel to the 2024 Bengali hit Bohurupi. Shiboprosad returns as Bikram Pramanik, while Jisshu Sengupta plays the police officer trying to track him down.

Koushani Mukherjee also reprises her role as Jhimli, Bikram's wife. The film continues the crime-driven story of a man whose faith in the law is shaken after he is wrongly accused and assaulted. The first film drew inspiration from a series of bank robberies in West Bengal between 1998 and 2005.

3. Emperor Vs Sarat Chandra

Release date: October 15

Srijit Mukherji's Emperor Vs Sarat Chandra takes audiences back to the colonial era. The film is a fictionalised account of Bengali novelist Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's fight against the ban imposed on his novel Pather Dabi in 1927.

Tota Roy Chowdhury plays Sarat Chandra, while Abir Chatterjee portrays Sabyasachi Mallick, the revolutionary character from the novel. Mimi Chakraborty and Kanchan Mullick are also part of the cast. The film explores the conflict between literary expression, revolutionary ideas and British colonial authority.>

4. The Eken: Kerala-e Kurukshetra

Release date: October 15

The popular Bengali detective Eken Babu returns with The Eken: Kerala-e Kurukshetra. Directed by Joydeep Mukherjee, the mystery film stars Anirban Chakrabarti as the eccentric detective.

This time, Eken Babu travels to Kerala after the disappearance of Mihir Sen, a high-profile individual played by Kamaleswar Mukherjee. What initially appears to be a possible kidnapping soon becomes a mystery that the detective must unravel.

Suhotra Mukhopadhyay, Somak Ghosh, Ritwick Chakraborty and Raima Sen also feature in the film.

Hindi films releasing this Durga Puja

5. Prahaar

Release date: October 16

Directed by Avinash Arun, Prahaar stars Rajkummar Rao as public prosecutor Ujjwal Deorao Nikam. The courtroom drama centres on the legal proceedings following the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, with the prosecution seeking justice for the victims.

Wamiqa Gabbi plays Nikam's wife, while the cast also includes Jaideep Ahlawat, Sikandar Kher and Ashish Vidyarthi. The film brings a legal and historical dimension to the festive release calendar.

6. Nayyi Navelli

Release date: October 16

Yami Gautam headlines the horror comedy Nayyi Navelli, directed by Balaji Mohan. Set in a middle-class household in Meerut, the film follows a newly married woman who quickly wins over her in-laws with her pleasant manner.

However, her brother-in-law, Bantu, played by Anurag Thakur, suspects that she is a witch and sets out to expose her. His claims put him at odds with a family that has grown fond of the new bride.

The film combines family drama with supernatural elements, offering a different flavour from the season's action and courtroom releases.

South Indian films releasing this Durga Puja

7. Jailer 2

Tamil | Release date: October 15

Rajinikanth returns as retired jailer Tiger Muthuvel Pandian in Jailer 2, the sequel to the 2023 action blockbuster. Directed by Nelson Dilipkumar, the film brings back the character for another confrontation with a criminal network.

After taking on an idol-smuggling syndicate in the first instalment, Pandian finds himself facing fresh threats as former allies and new enemies come together against him.

The film also stars SJ Suryah, Mithun Chakraborty, Ramya Krishnan, Vidya Balan and Suraj Venjaramoodu.

8. Ranabaali

Telugu | Release date: October 16

Vijay Deverakonda and Rashmika Mandanna star in Ranabaali, a period action drama directed by Rahul Sankrityan.

Set during the Madras famine of 1876–78, the film follows Ranabaali, played by Vijay, as he fights British forces threatening his village. Rashmika plays Jayamma, his wife, who joins the resistance despite being pregnant. Arnold Vosloo appears as British commissioner Sir Theodore Hector.

The historical setting and central conflict give the film a different approach from the contemporary action dramas arriving this season.

More films to watch

Apart from the major Bengali, Hindi and South Indian releases, international films are also part of the wider theatrical line-up. These include Whalefall, a survival thriller starring Austin Abrams and Josh Brolin, and Street Fighter, the live-action adaptation of the popular video game franchise featuring Vidyut Jammwal, Jason Momoa and Noah Centineo.

With Bengali cinema leading the Durga Puja line-up and Hindi and South Indian films adding variety, audiences will have several options to choose from during the festive break.

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