FRANCE: Indian entertainment group Reliance to invest one billion U.S. dollars in film industry over the next year

Record ID: 379272

  • Title: FRANCE: Indian entertainment group Reliance to invest one billion U.S. dollars in film industry over the next year
  • Date: 22nd May 2008
  • Summary: EXTERIOR HOTEL MARTINEZ
  • Embargoed: 6th June 2008 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: France
  • Country: France
  • Topics: Entertainment,Industry
  • Reuters ID: LVA3UWB5WMZE43A3L8KOUIC5VKJM
  • Story Text: Indian entertainment group Reliance announces one billion U.S.
    dollar-investment in Indian film industry by the end of 2009 and plans to expand to Hollywood.
    The Cannes Film Festival on Friday (May 16) was the platform for one of the biggest announcements in the movie industry. Indian entertainment group Reliance is to spend one billion U.S. dollars over the next year to expand Bollywood and take on Hollywood. The company has finalized 69 feature films in 9 languages for production and distribution over the next two years and has signed big Indian household names, such as Shah Rukh Khan and Vinod Chopra.
    There are plans to expand outside of India into Hollywood but Reliance spokespeople were not giving away whether there were any big Hollywood A-listers already signed up for some movies. Bollywood is traditionally conservative cinema and when asked whether the new films would also tackle issues of sex and violence, Reliance said they would not steer away from music and dancing, joking that they would want Hollywood to dance with them instead.
    Earlier this year Reliance made its foray into the US film market with agreements to operate a 250 screen cinema exhibition chain with a nation-wide footprint covering 28 cities including key markets in the east and west Coast.
    Also in Cannes, was Indian actress Aiswaria Rai who is one of the faces of L'Oreal and is herself at the heart of Bollywood,
    "With the growing market and I say growing because cinema is just getting smaller and the cinema is one of those experiences where you actually see global community in the audience out there . It's just such a mixed audience in terms of nationality that being recognized with the world getting smaller it's just opened up world cinema so much Festivals like this provide fo the perfect opportunity to supply cinema on a global scale."
    There may be further announcements on Bollywood at Cannes.
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