Category: Press Release

3 films from Reliance BIG Pictures at 6th Dubai International Film Festival

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Mammootty, Boman Irani, Minissha Lamba, Indraneil represent their respective films, part of the
largest Indian contingent at festival
Shyam Benegal’s ‘Well Done Abba’ to compete at the festival.

Mumbai, December 4, 2009: – Well Done Abba, Kutty Srank and Janala from the stable of Reliance BIG Pictures will travel for the 6th Dubai International Film Festival. The festival will be held in Dubai from December 9 – 16, 2009 during when the directors and principal cast of all these films will travel to Dubai for the screening of their films and address a press conference.

Hindi film Well Done Abba is competing in the Muhr Asia Africa Section alongside 14 other films from across the world, with only one more Indian film in that section. Actors Boman Irani, Minissha Lamba and Sameer Sattani will be present at the festival. The film is being screened on December 11 & 12.

Malayam film Kutty Srank is being screened in the Celebration of Indian Cinema Section and director Shaji N Karun along with actor Mammootty will be present at the festival. The film is being screened on December 11 & 13. Bengali film Janala is being screened in Cinema of Asia Africa section where director Buddhadeb Dasgupta and lead actor Indraneil Sengupta will be represent the film. The film is being screened on December 12 & 14.

According to Mahesh Ramanathan, COO, Reliance BIG Pictures, “It’s a great way to round off the year. The worldwide release of Paa and 3 Idiots &these festival selections add luster to a successful year where Reliance Big Pcitures have made the world take notice of the talent and growing reach of filmmakers from India.”

All these films are expected to release theatrically in 2010. After the stupendous response generated from audiences around the world and over 40 international film festivals such as Pusan Film Festival, London Film Festival, Mumbai Film Festival and International Film Festival of India- Goa Reliance BIG Pictures’ Well Done Abba, Kutty Srank & Buddhadev Dasgupta’s Janala are all set to enthrall the Dubai audiences.

Bollywood witnesses star studded premiere of Paa

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Bollywood witnesses star studded premiere of Paa

Mumbai, December 3, 2009: – The much awaited Bollywood premiere of the film AB Corp & Reliance BIG Pictures Paa transpired on December 3 on the eve of the film’s worldwide release at BIG Cinemas Wadala.

Welcoming the guests were Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan and Vidya Balan at the green carpet entrance of the venue built like King Edward School, in which Auro studies. Their spouses Jaya Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai along with Amar Singh were present at the premiere.

Anil Ambani came in with wife Tina and son, Shahrukh Khan made it to the premiere with wife Guri and two kids, Aamir Khan walked in with his Idiot Family comprising Vidhu Vinod Chopra and Rajkumar Hirani.

Amongst the young breed of actors Hrithik Roshan with wife Sussane, Ranbir Kapoor, Imran Khan with fiancée Avantika, Kunal Kapoor, Sharman Joshi, Shreyas Talpade, Ritiesh Deshmukh, Harman Baweja, Minissha Lamba, Sonu Sood, Kangana Ranaut, Jacqueline Fernandes amongst many others were spotted at the premiere.

Yash Chopra, Randhir Kapoor, Yash Birla, Hema Malini, Jaya Prada, Prasoon Joshi, Karan Johar, Anil Kapoor, Ajay Devgan, Kajol, Akshay Kumar with wife Twinkle Khanna, R. Madhavan, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra and wife, Govinda, Sonali Bendre, Dia Mirza, Madhur Bhandarkar, Shamita Shetty, Arshad Warsi and wife Maria too were present at the premiere.

AB Corp’s presentation Paa in association with Reliance BIG Pictures released in 700 screens worldwide on December 4, 2009

Auro to visit over 700 screens worldwide on Dec 4 with release of ‘Paa’

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Brands Idea Cellular & Bajaj Allianz join Auro’s ‘Paa’ brand wagon

Mumbai, November 30, 2009: Directed by R. Balakrishnan aka Balki, ‘Paa’, an AB Corp Ltd. presentation in association with Reliance BIG Pictures is all set to cast an Auro spell worldwide. Come 4th December, Reliance BIG Pictures will release ‘Paa’ in 700 screens worldwide, including print and digital. It will release in 20 countries worldwide including India, UK, US, Canada, UAE, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and many others

Idea Cellular had tied up with ‘Paa’ for an activity based on ‘Talk to Auro’ concept, wherein callers can leave messages for Auro on an Idea number and in return receive calls from Auro on a pre-determined date. This will be promoted through a co-branded TV advertisement. Apart from this, ring back tones in Auro’s voice and other value added services too will be available on Idea network. Bajaj Allianz has tied up for an integrated TV advertisement on Child Plans which has been interspersed with the film’s promos and is currently on air on 24 prime television channels. BIG FM is on board as the film’s radio partner.

The film has followed a week on week 360 degree marketing and promotion campaign which kick started with an innovative teaser and progressed to a novel and eye- catching promotion in multiplexes with Auro’s on- screen photo slides which read ‘Please stand up for the national anthem or else I will tell my Paa’, ‘Please switch off your mobile phone or else I will tell my Paa’ and ‘Don’t dirty the theatre or I’ll tell my Paa’ poster on trash cans. On November 14, Paa’s TV promos carried a special message wishing all viewers Happy Children’s Day and a mall activation invited Paa with their children for day long fun filled activities.

Not forgetting the Auro dance that was introduced in the film promos has caught the nation by fire dabbawalas, fishermen, traffic policemen, school and college kids, housewives have all been dancing to the tunes of Auro. To maintain the essence of the central character, the 13 year old Auro, has been speaking as himself to all radio and TV interactions and Abhishek Bachchan has been dressing up in his Paa get- up of a white kurta pyjama for all media interactions.Other than Amitabh Bachchan and Abhishek Bachchan, ‘Paa’ also stars Vidya Balan. The music scored by the maestro Illyaraja with lyrics by Swanand Kirkire and cinematography by PC Sreeram.

Reliance BIG Pictures at the 40th International Film Festival of India, Goa

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Maestro M S Sathyu, Shaji Karun, Rituparno Ghosh visit Goa to promote their films with key cast

Goa November 27, 2009: Indian regional cinema is big! And perhaps, nowhere is it as evident as at Reliance BIG Pictures. Four films Ijjodu, Janala, Kutty Shrank & Shob Charitro Kalponik, directed by the masters in their field and produced by Reliance Big Pictures are part of the Indian Panorama section at the 40th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) held at Goa. Today at a press conference the creative teams behind these films interacted with the press at Goa. M S Sathyu representing his Kannda film Ijjodu, Shaji Karun showcased his Malayam film Kutty Shrank and Rituparno Ghosh with his Bengali film Shob Charitro Kalponik along with the Reliance BIG Pictures team interacted with press.

“We are committed to producing great regional cinema,” says Sanjeev Lamba, CEO Reliance BIG Pictures. “India has a great reservoir of creative talent. Every state, every region has something very special to offer and we are working with an array of very talented film makers.”

All four Reliance BIG Pictures films that will be screened at the IFFI Goa have been made by filmmakers known for their nuanced craftsmanship and deft handling of subjects and themes. They have been feted across the globe and have received international acclaim.

For Ijjodu the prolific director Padamshri M .S. Sathyu with lead actor Aniruddha Jatkar along with cameraman G. Bhaskar were present. Ijjodu talks about the responsibilities involved in helping the less privileged when Ananda, an urban young photo journalist meets Chenni, a ‘Basavi’ girl, pledged to the village deity. “Mostly people expect me to make something political,” says MS Sathyu, the filmmaker who gave us Garam Hawa, which marked a milestone in Indian cinema. “But this film has more to do with social problems rather than political issues. Also, Ijjodu features a very experimental, contemporary dance number set against traditional, devotional architecture”

Buddhadev Dasgupta’s Bengali creation Janala starring Tapas Paul, Swastika Mukherjee and Indraneil Sengupta is the journey of a solitary man against the wrath of circumstances when he decides to pursue his little impulsive dream. The film has been screened at the Toronto International Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival and the London Film Festival earlier in the year and will be part of the Dubai International Film Festival scheduled in Dec 09.

Kutty Srank’s director Shaji N. Karun and lead actress Padma Priya and cinematographer Anjuli Shukla represented the film at Goa. The police find an unidentified body on the beach, and three women turn up, each claiming it is ‘her’ Kutty Srank. And all the women stand poles apart in terms of temperament and social stature. “This is the first time in Kerala, probably India, that a woman cinematographer has handled the camera in a feature film,” says Shaji Karun. “Anjali Shukla has done some very good work.” After being screened at the Montreal World Film Festival & Pusan International Film Festival earlier in the year the film will travel to the Dubai International film festival in Dec 2009.

Shob Charitro Kalponik was represented by Rituparno Ghosh, actors Jisshu Sengupta & cameraman Shomik Haldar. The film has received a lot of critical & box office acclaim during its released in India this August, the film completed 50 days at the box office in West Bengal. The film is about a young woman’s recollection of her marriage post her poet-husband’s death. It stars Bipasha Basu who’s given a stellar performance while Prosenjit the veteran Bengali actor has excelled himself as the exasperating yet adorable husband. The film was screened at the Durban International Film Festival earlier in the year.

Hrithik Roshan- Barbara Mori’s ‘Kites’ set to take the world stage

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Brett Ratner, director of Rush Hour series and X-Men: the Last Stand teams up with Reliance BIG Pictures & Filmkraft to frame the International version of Kites

November 18, 2009: Reliance BIG Pictures and Rakesh Roshan’s much awaited ‘Kites’ is all set to make its mark on the world. Directed by Anurag Basu, starring Hrithik Roshan and the Mexican stunner Barbara Mori, the film has two versions Hindi and English. Brett Ratner, best known for the Rush Hour series, Family Man starring Nicholas Cage and X-Men The Last Stand is currently at work on the English version of Kites and tailoring it to appeal it to an international audience.

In the international markets ‘Kites’ will release with the English and Hindi version simultaneously where as in India, the film will release with the Hindi version. ‘Kites’is expected tocut across national boundaries and sensibilities to achieve a universal appeal. The film will see the widest possible release, both at national and international level. The release dates will be announced soon. The Hindi version is complete and the producers are very happy with the outcome.

About the film

‘Kites’ is a love story with precious moments and unexpected betrayal crossing barriers, boundaries and cultures. Shot in Las Vegas, Mumbai, New Mexico and Los Angeles Kites also stars Kangana Ranaut, Nick Brown and Kabir Bedi in pivotal roles with music composed by Rajesh Roshan. For more on the film log on to www.kites-thefilm.com

‘Paa and I’ campaign kick starts on November 14, Children’s Day

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Three week long ‘Paa and I’ marketing campaign will unfold in malls of Mumbai from Nov 14 – Dec 3

Mumbai, November 12, 2009 – Son Playing Father to Father in Amitabh-Abhishek Bachchan’s ‘PAA’ is all set to make this Children’s Day special! Every father- son, son- father relationship will explore new horizons, starting this Nov 14 till the release of ‘Paa’ on December 4, 2009 as the endearing and innovative marketing strategy with ‘Paa and I’ kick starts.

AB Corp Ltd & Saraswati Creations present ‘Paa’ in association with BIG Pictures and produced by MAD Entertainment Ltd. One of the most awaited films of recent times Paa has generated huge interest amongst film-goers due to the unusual rare and emotional subject of a son playing father a unique role reversal between Amitabh-Abhishek Bachchan, in the film and Amitabh Bacchan’s look in the film.

In phase I in order to make Children’s Day a day of celebration, ‘Paa and I’ relationship activities have been planned at Oberoi Mall, Goregaon and Nirmal Lifestyle, Mulund in Mumbai on November 14 and 15, where fathers and children can get together to engage themselves in various fun filled activities and get lucky with ‘Paa’ merchandise. Those that miss the fun this weekend can catch it on the subsequent weekends till the release of the film at various other malls in the city, on November 21 and 22 at Inorbit Mall and Phoenix Mill and on November 28 and 29 at Infinti Mall.

As a part of its consumer engagement promotion strategy the ‘Paa and I’ campaign aims at going beyond standard hygiene practices of print, media, TV promos and outdoors to break the clutter and grab the audience’s attention by leveraging the concept that the average man will best connect with the relationship of a father and a son.

This bright and cheerful family entertainer has been directed by R. Balakrishnan a.k.a. “Balki” of Cheeni Kum fame. Other than the venerable Amitabh Bachchan and Abhishek Bachchan, Paa also stars Vidya Balan. The music scored by the maestro Illyaraja, the first Asian composer to score a symphony the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, is surely something to look forward to. The film has lyrics by Swanand Kirkire with cinematographer PC Sreeram.

Reliance BIG Pictures films at IFFI, Goa & MIAAC, New York

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~ Shob Charitro Kalponik, Ijjodu, Janala, Kutty Srank to be screened at the 40th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) Goa ~
~ Well Done Abba, Janala ,Shob Charitro Kalponik, & Sikandar to be screened at 9th Mahindra Indo-American Arts Council (MIAAC) Film Festival, New York on November 11-15, 2009~

Mumbai, 10th November 2009:The prestigious 40th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) is all set to screen Reliance BIG Pictures’ four major productions, Rituparno Ghosh’s Bengali film Shob Charitro Kalponik, Padmashri M .S. Sathyu’s Kannada film Ijjodu, Buddhadev Dasgupta’s Bengali creation Janala & Shaji Karun’s Malayalam film Kutty Srank in Indian Panorama Section starting from November 23- December 3, 2009. Also Reliance BIG Pictures’ strong run in the international festival circuit continues as Piyush Jha’s Sikandar & Shyam Benegal’s comedy Well Done Abba in addition to Janala and Shob Charitro Kalponik will be screened at 9th MIAAC Film Festival 2009 to be held between Nov 11- 15, 2009.

Mr. Mahesh Ramanathan, COO, Reliance BIG Pictures said, “The unprecedented success of Reliance BIG Pictures at international festivals has extended to the home turf as well. Our films have been honored in 35 top cities around the globe within last one year. The recognition will inspire the team at Reliance BIG Pictures to catalyze the rapid globalization of Indian cinema”.

Shob Charitro Kalponik that has received a lot of critical & box office acclaim during its released in India, the film completed 50 days at the box office in West Bengal. Directed by Rituparno Ghosh starring Bipasha Basu & Prosenjit, follows the journey of a woman’s recollection of her marriage and her radical steps outside it. Ijjodu directed by the veteran M. S. Sathyu starring national award winner actress Meera Jasmine and Anirudh is a story of young photo journalist’s brief encounter with a woman of substance.

Shaji Karun’s Kutty Srank starring Mamooty, Kamilini Mukherjee, Padmapriya and Meenakumari brings out three distinct personalities of a dead boat-man from the perspective of three women each of whom claims to be his wife.

After the stupendous response generated from audiences around the world and international film festivals such as Pusan Film Festival, London Film Festival & recent 11th Mumbai Film Festival, Well Done Abba, Kutty Srank & Buddhadev Dasgupta’s Janala are all set to charm the Indian audiences.

It’s Pusan and London calling for BIG Pictures’ films this October

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‘Kutty Srank’ and ‘Abohomaan’ will be screened at Pusan International Film Festival ‘Well Done Abba’ and ‘Janala’ will be screened at London Film Festival

Mumbai, October 6, 2009: The prestigious international film festivals of Asia and Europe will experience a flavour of Indian cinema this October through BIG Pictures’ varied slate of films.

The 14th Pusan International Film Festival (PIFF) to be held from 8 – 16 October in Korea will screen Malayalam film Kutty Srank (Sailor of Hearts) and Bengali film Abohomaan (The Eternal) in ‘A Window on Asian Cinema’ section on 9 October. The 53rd London Film Festival to be held from 14 – 29 October will screen Hindi film Well Done Abba on 18 October and Bengali film Janala (The Window) on 27 October in ‘World Cinema Category’.

Director Shyam Benegal will attend the screening of Well Done Abba at London Film Festival. The film was recently screened at Montreal World Film Festival to a full house of audience, who gave the film a standing ovation.

Also, Kutty Srank and Abohomaan were screened at Montreal World Film Festival held from 27 August – 7 September and Janala was screened at Toronto International Film Festival held from 10 – 19 September and at Telluride Film Festival from 4 – 7 September.

Mahesh Ramanathan, COO, BIG Pictures says, “These selections make the Reliance Big Pictures portfolio of best in class world cinema titles the most consistent performer in the festival circuit. Over 30 premium festival selections across our 12 films is a trendsetting & unprecedented success ratio, hitherto not experienced in the Indian film industry.”

Shaji Karun’s Kutty Srank starring Mamooty, Kamilini Mukherjee, Padmapriya and Meenakumari brings out three distinct personalities of a dead boat-man from the perspective of three women each of whom claims to be his wife.

Rituparno Ghosh’s Abohomaan starring Dipankar De, Mamata Shankar, Ananya Chatterjee, Jishu Sengupta and Ria Sen brings to the screen a sensational relationship between a film-director, a young actress and a wife who swears to ruin her husband’s life and career and a son who gets caught in the cross-fire in this extravagant drama.

Shyam Benegal’s film Well Done Abba starring Boman Irani, Minissha Lamba and Samir Dattani is in the comic and ironic vein. It has screenplay by Ashok Mishra.

Buddhabed Dasgupta’s Janala starring Tapas Paul, Swastika Mukherjee and Indraneil Sengupta is the journey of a solitary man against the wrath of circumstances when he decides to pursue his little impulsive dream.

Reliance Mobile announces Special “Do Knot Disturb” Zone on R-World

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BIG Pictures & Puja Entertainment set to release ‘Do Knot Disturb’ worldwide across 1060 screens worldwide on October 2nd

Mumbai, September 30, 2009: The actor- director Jodi No. 1 of Govinda and David Dhawan, two Miss Universes Sushmita Sen and Lara Dutta and aapla mulga Riteish Deshmukh will create a laughter riot with their forthcoming film ‘Do Knot Disturb’ that releases worldwide on October 2, 2009 across 1060 screens.

Reliance Mobile today announced winners for the special ‘Do Knot Disturb’ contest that is being promoted across various verticals. Reliance Mobile has gone live with special mobile content based on the movie leveraging its VAS platform R-World to allow users to access special content including caller tunes, ringtones, wallpapers and videos related to ‘Do Knot Disturb’. The film is a co-production between BIG Pictures and Puja Entertainment.

Govinda, Sushmita Sen, Riteish Deshmukh and Lara Dutta from the star cast of the film were present at Reliance World at Juhu, Mumbai on September 30, 2009 to connect to press through video conferencing across Chandigarph, Jaipur, Indore, Lucknow, Hyderabd R-World’s. There was also a ‘Meet-and-Greet’ with key RCom distributors and dealers.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Akshay Kumar, Senior Executive Vice President, Reliance Communications said, “We are proud to associate with Do Knot Disturb. We are happy to promote this movie across all platforms offered by Reliance Communications. We are optimistic on leveraging our technology to create a definitive connect of this film with our subscribers across the country.”

Mr. Sunir Kheterpal, COO, BIG Pictures, stated, “We are pleased to partner RCom in this initiative that will take Do Knot Disturb to RCom subscribers. This will considerably broaden the appeal of the film, across audiences.”

Mr. Kulmeet Makkar, CEO, BIG Music & Home Entertainment, stated, “Do Knot Disturb’s music is fast gaining popularity with audiences. The songs in the album are peppy; something that is loved by all generations and I’m sure RCom subscribers will enjoy greater interaction with the movie and music.”

Directed by David Dhawan, the multi-starrer Do Knot Disturb is a comedy of errors. Nadeem Shravan’s foot-tapping compositions have added zing to the music album from the stable of BIG Music.

Log onto www.doknotdisturbfilm.com for more information.

BIG Pictures Unique marketing promotion for David Dhawan’s upcoming release Do Knot Disturb

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Mumbai: Do Knot Disturb a co-production between BIG Pictures and Puja Entertainment is all set to release worldwide on 2nd October, 2009. As part of the marketing efforts for the film BIG Pictures is using an innovative marketing strategy by enacting live trailers of the movie on-ground generating interest to promote Do Knot Disturb.

In this first of kind effort, 24 live skits will be performed by the young actors engaging the audience across different strategic locations such as malls, shopping places, railway stations in Mumbai on Friday 25th and Saturday 26th September as part of ground activation activity for the film.

Just like marketing a consumer product that goes beyond standard awareness creating medium of print, tv, radio and outdoor through consumer engagement initiatives, it is imperative to practice this in film marketing too. Says BIG Pictures COO, Sunir Kheterpal. “To leverage the films hilarious extra-marital plot, we decided to launch film trailers right on the streets of Mumbai performed by theatre actors, thus practising innovation cost-effectively. Weeks before release, the trailers of DKD are being premiered live for Mumbai’s public on their doorsteps. Mumbai is the ideal city for such initiatives to be launched an exciting place with a bustling youth frequenting many high footfall areas especially during holidays and weekends. 24 locations, including colleges, railway stations and shopping areas traversing the length and breadth of Mumbai were chosen for the trailer performances, increasing awareness and curiosity for the film on the roads itself.”

Says Girish Shah, Head Branding Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group and CMO of Reliance Big Entertainment Filmed Entertainment business. “The real challenge for marketers is to use force multiplier ideas like these and further leverage them through PR and interactive mediums such as radio and internet.”

Appointment viewing was practiced, where group company, BIG FM announced locations and timings of the performances for people to witness these trailers live at Fashion Street, VT Station, Andheri West, Lokhandwala Market, National College, Bandstand and Juhu Chowpatty among others. This initiative was further accentuated by posting the live videos into cyberspace, interspersed with clippings from the film. The trailers have already commenced and the excitement on the streets is apparent with students, commuters and shopkeepers alike, dropping their work for a moment or two of live entertainment on the street. They leave with an idea of the Do Knot Disturb storyline, undoubtedly thirsty for more…