Source: IBN Live
Date: May 18, 2010
New York: Hrithik Roshan proved a real traffic-stopper when he sprinted across 42nd Street in New York his eager fans gathered for the premiere of his much-talked about film"Kites. On Sunday evening when Hrithik along with his co-star Barbara Mori, director Anurag Basu, wife Sussane, parents Rakesh and Pinky Roshan, and other members of the team reached Times Square, he was told to wave out to hordes of Indian fans who had been standing on the other side of the street since morning for a glimpse of the star.
The star made a dash across the bustling street from the venue of the premiere to eager fans across the road. "Hrithik did indeed dash across the 42nd Street from our red carpet to waiting fans across the road. And we aren't about crossing just any busy street at peak hour. The 42nd Street is a gigantic universe. Hrithik ran across a good half a mile to get to his fans," Sanjeev Lamba of Reliance Big Pictures told IANS. Hrithik's considerate gesture towards fans at the premiere created panic for the tense and anxious Kites team. "We had to halt all traffic on 42nd Street for Hrithik to cross. So we can finally say Hrithik is the first traffic-stopper from Bollywood to make the crossover," said Lamba.
Not just a dash across the busiest street to meet his fans, Hrithik and his dad also made impromptu arrangements for about 500 fans to be accommodated in an extra screen at the AMC Empire theatre. Produced by Rakesh Roshan, Kites is set for simultaneous release Friday on more than 2,000 screens worldwide, including 200 in North America and the film is expected to open the global movie market to Indian films. Reliance Big Pictures is distributing the movie.
Shot on location in Las Vegas, Sante Fe and Los Angeles, Kites has two versions – Hindi and English. A-list Hollywood director Brett Ratner has worked on the English language version that will open May 28. Rakesh Roshan said, "What could we do? There were 400-500 of Hrithik's fans who wanted to see the film. There were women crying, girls tearing their hair and threatening to commit suicide." In addition to the 700-seater at the AMC Empire theatre, a smaller 500-seater screener was rented for extra fans at the last minute.
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Source: Bollywood Hungama
Date: May 18, 2010
By: Subhash K. Jha
Hrithik Roshan proved a real and literal traffic-stopper in New York on Sunday night when all traffic was halted for him to sprint across 42nd Street to meet his fans. Amidst heavy security bandobast at Times Square, the New York premiere of Kites concluded on Sunday evening to a roaring ovation. There were some heart- stopping moments of security hazard caused mainly by Hrithik Roshan's fan-concern when breaking all protection protocol the star made a dash across the bustling 42nd Street from the venue of the premiere to eager fans across the road.
Hrithik Roshan's considerate gesture towards fans at the Times Square venue of the Kites premiere on Sunday evening, created panic for the tense and anxious Kites team. The story goes…at around 5 in the evening when Hrithik along with his co-star Barbara Mori and wife Sussanne, Dad and Mom - Rakesh and Pinky Roshan, director Anurag Basu (with wife) and other members of the team reached the 42nd street at Times Square, he was told to wave out to hordes of Indian fans who had been standing on the other side of the super-board street since early morning waiting for a glimpse of the star. Sanjeev Lamba of Reliance Big Pictures confirms the incident, "Hrithik did indeed dash across the 42nd Street from our red carpet to waiting fans across the road. And we aren't about crossing just any busy street at peak hour. 42nd Street is a gigantic universe. Hrithik ran across a good half a mile to get to his fans." The elaborate security was obviously in a panic. Says Lamba, "We had to halt all traffic on 42nd Street for Hrithik to cross. So we can finally say Hrithik Roshan is the first traffic-stopper from Bollywood to make the crossover." Not just a dash across the busiest street to meet his fans, Hrithik and his dad also made impromptu arrangements for about 500 fans to be accommodated in an extra screen at the AMC Empire theatre.
Hours after the exhausting and exhilarating experience, Rakesh Roshan said, "What could we do? There were 400-500 of Hrithik's fans who wanted to see the film. There were women crying, girls tearing their hair and threatening to commit suicide." In addition to the 700-seater at the AMC Empire theatre, smaller 500-seater screener was rented for extra fans at the last minute. " We had no choice. The fans wouldn't have allowed us to have the New York premiere, if we refused. We're glad Hrithik's fans returned happy. At the after-party at the Grand Park Ville, everyone was talking about the new grammar of filmmaking in Kites."
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Source: DNA India
Date: May 18, 2010
Pounding bhangra beats resonated across neon-lit Times Square, nicknamed The Crossroads of the World, as a gleaming stretch limo delivered Hrithik Roshan and his co-star, Mexican actress Barbara Mori, to the red-carpet premiere of the Hindi version of Kites. The Kites stars were fashionably late for the screening at the AMC Empire in Time Square, but the crowds had enough distractions — Karan Johar in a black bandhgala, director Mira Nair in a flowing kurta and other film royalty. “Two and a half years of blood and sweat, two and a half years of heart and soul finally boils down to two and a half hours of entertainment,” mused Hrithik Roshan, as the lights were dimmed for the screening of Kites, made at Rs150 crore.
The stunt-filled movie was a physical challenge for Roshan who arrived on the sets of Kites in Santa Fe two weeks after he had a knee operation in Los Angeles. The hobbled actor had to ditch his regular gym workouts and said he was nerve-wracked about taking his shirt off in a love-making scene. “I was basically living on egg whites, almonds and peanuts because I had just three weeks (to do the bare-chest scene) and all those days I was shooting and I couldn’t work-out on the sets,” said Roshan. Roshan needn’t worry as the New York audience on Sunday night which saw Kites rhapsodised about his designer stubble, manly torso and fluid salsa dance moves.
If you’re looking for proof that globalisation is transforming the Bollywood film business, look no further than Kites. There are two versions of the Bollywood film produced by Rakesh Roshan and distributed by Reliance BIG Pictures. On Sunday night, the audience in New York saw the 130-minute Hindi version with song-and-dance and a smattering of Spanish and English. There is a crisper 90-minute English version titled Kites: The Remix edited to suit Western sensibilities by Hollywood director Brett Ratner, releasing on May 28. Sanjeev Lamba, CEO, Reliance BIG Pictures, said the film will establish new audiences for Bollywood; “Kites is going to get the biggest global screening of any Bollywood movie. It will play on 2,300 screens worldwide in 60 countries.”
The movie is slated for Indian and world release on May 21. “Kites should resonate with Mexican audiences because Barbabra Mori is a popular Mexican telenovela actress. The part of the film which segues into Mexico will have a big appeal. Mexicans love foreigners embracing their culture and will love Hrithik Roshan dressed as a groom in the traditional Mariachi outfit,” said Mexican Myrna Moncayo, director, corporate development, Tribeca Enterprises, which runs New York’s annual Tribeca Film Festival. Myrna herself is married to an Indian management consultant so she finds nothing far-fetched in the film’s premise — a passionate love story between a Mexican woman and an Indian man. Others say the road movie with hints of Thelma & Louise will sell tickets with its high speed car chases. Both Mori and Roshan did their own stunts which included leaping from cars, hanging from a racing truck and shimming up a rope into a hot air balloon.