Rajinikanth blockbuster ‘2.0’ acquired for China release
BEIJING: Chinese production and distribution company, HY Media has picked up mainland China distribution rights to blockbuster Indian film 2.0. Starring South Indian superstar, Rajinikanth, the film was by some measures the highest grossing movie in the world last weekend.
2.0 is understood to be the first Rajinikanth- starring film released in China in recent times. Indian films have made impressive inroads at the Chinese box office in the past couple of years, led by Aamir Khan- starring titles Dangal and Secret Superstar which grossed US$ 193 million and US$ 118 million respectively. Amitabh Bachchan- starring 102 Not Out was released in the past week and has earned US$ 4.09 million in its first six days in China.
Rajinikanth plays four distinct roles in 2.0 and is pitched against Bollywood star Akshay Kumar as the antagonist. Directed by Shankar Shanmugam, the film is a sequel to Shanmugam and Rajinikanth’s 2010 hit Enthiran, which grossed US$ 50 million worldwide.
With a budget of US$ 76 million, 2.0 is India’s most expensively produced film of all time. It was produced by Lyca Productions, an offshoot of mobile telephony company Lyca Mobile.
The film was released globally on Nov 29 in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi language versions and has grossed US$ 70 million to date, according to industry estimates.
HY Media announced the deal via a message on YouTube. It says it is now submitting 2.0 to Chinese censors, with a view to releasing the film in China in May or June, 2019.
HY Media has offices in Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Los Angeles. The company deals regularly with the Hollywood majors. PadMan also starring Kumar, produced by SPE Film India, will be released by HY Media in China on Dec 14.
“We are honoured and very excited to have the opportunity to bring film 2.0, which represents the highest level of Indian film-making, to the Chinese audience,” VP Sophia Xiao Yingying said in a prepared statement. “We believe 2.0 is only the beginning, and we look forward to building long-term collaboration strategies with Lyca Productions.”