- Title: FRANCE: Bollywood goes Hollywood in Cannes with film "Kites"
- Date: 16th May 2009
- Summary: CANNES, FRANCE (MAY 15, 2009) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) INDIAN ACTOR HRITHIK ROSHAN SAYING:"Now the film is in English, it's got Spanish, it's got a bit of Hindi, there's an English version, there's a Hindi version, so I just think we are trying to cater to a world audience and it's a universal language. But all that apart, a good film runs, a bad film does not, so if the film is good I think we will get what we deserve." "KITES" FILM POSTER VARIOUS OF MORI IN INTERVIEW (SOUNDBITE) (English) MEXICAN ACTRESS BARBARA MORI SAYING: "If the film was just Bollywood, like just Indian and really Indian and Bollywood, I think they would go crazy, if it was Hollywood, you know, nothing to do with India, I think they would go crazy, if it were a Latin film I think they would go crazy, because this story is just the strongest story I ever interpreted. It is a beautiful love story, it has action, it has dance, it has everything, I think it has everything."
- Embargoed: 31st May 2009 13:00
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- Location: France
- Country: France
- Reuters ID: LVAD9CTVJSIK2EGVYYC7NLC6VWUT
- Story Text: Indian superstar Hrithik Roshan, and a high-calibre delegation of Bollywood production giants appeared in Cannes on Friday (May 15th) to present Reliance BIG Pictures' first English language production.
The major Indian production firm are hoping that "Kites" can launch Bollywood into Hollywood, the Chairman of Reliance BIG Pictures, Amit Khanna said.
"India has always been referred to as the country which makes the largest number of films. It is estimated that over 4.5 billion people round the world watch our movies. But it is also a fact that when it comes to global influence, we have not been able to achieve that breakthrough. In "Kites" we see that opportunity."
Although "Kites" is not actually featuring in the film festival programme, indeed, it is not even finished, Reliance and its new sales arm have flown in the film's Indian star accompanied by the Mexican model-turned-actress Barbara Mori, to try and seduce a wider audience.
"The kind of response we have had so far based on some of the talks which we have had with some of the major studios in the US there is a tremendous amount of interest, so we believe this is the film, which will provide India its first truly global film. It is not a film which is trying to cross over, it is a film which is aimed at a global audience," Khanna went on.
The film is in the universal language and plays on universal themes such as love and the love of money and shows how far some Indian companies are prepared to go to shed their stereotyped "Bollywood" image. The $30 million production "Kites" has a much higher budget than other Indian productions and is filmed in several locations in the U.S. and Mumbai.
The idea is to reach a wider audience, it was time to break out of the box we had made for ourselves, the Indian A-liste Hrithik Roshan said.
"Now the film is in English, it's got Spanish, it's got a bit of Hindi, there's an English version, there's a Hindi version, so I just think we are trying to cater to a world audience and it's a universal language. But all that apart, a good film runs, a bad film does not, so if the film is good I think we will get what we deserve."
Hrithik plays J, a mortally wounded man is left for dead in the heat of the Mexican desert. This is J. Once a street smart, carefree young guy, now, a wanted man. As death looms, the only thing that keeps him alive is the quest to find the love of his life, Natasha. A woman betrothed to another man, but surely destined for J. A woman who comes into his life like a bolt of lightning and changes it forever. Reliance says "Kites" is a story of love that goes beyond barriers, boundaries and cultures.
"If the film was just Bollywood, like just Indian and really Indian and Bollywood, I think they would go crazy, if it was Hollywood, you know, nothing to do with India, I think they would go crazy, if it were a Latin film I think they would go crazy, because this story is just the strongest story I ever interpreted. It is a beautiful love story, it has action, it has dance, it has everything, I think it has everything."
A rough cut of "Kites" is to be screened to buyers for the first time on May 16th.
Last year at Cannes, Reliance unveiled a massive $300 million production commitment and a bunch of "Indian-based" movies, of which 18 will be completed this year. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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