Bollywood goes global to sell film stakes

India's Bollywood film business is facing its own version of a horror movie as it reels from a crash in the price of film rights, competition from cricket broadcasts and a dispute with multiplex operators.

India's Bollywood film industry, famous for its lip-synched singing, exuberant dancing and wet sari scenes, is set to stray into unfamiliar dark territory with a film on Adolf Hitler.According to the director's description, the movie appears to have more than a passing resemblance to the critically acclaimed 2004 German film "Downfall" starring Bruno Ganz."The film will recapture the last days of Adolf Hitler, including his life in his Berlin bunker and Germany after his death in 1945," Rakesh Ranjan Kumar, who is directing the movie, told the Mumbai Mirror this week.

Sri Lanka will host top Indian movie stars for the annual "Bollywood Oscars" weekend showcasing one of the world's most ambitious and prolific film industries, officials said Tuesday.The three-day International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) event from June 3-5 will feature premieres, celebrity parties, fashion shows and a Twenty20 cricket match.It will culminate in the glittering 11th annual awards ceremony in Colombo's biggest sports stadium, which organisers say will be attended by 500 guests and watched by 600 million TV viewers in 110 nations.

Hong Kong's beleaguered film industry was a global powerhouse just two decades ago, pumping out 300 movies a year and boasting a fan base that stretched across Asia.Led by up-and-coming action stars Jackie Chan and Chow Yun-fat along with director John Woo, the city's film sector was among the world's most prolific by the late eighties, trailing only Hollywood and Bollywood.

Aamir Khan's latest film, "3 Idiots," has become the highest grossing Bollywood movie of all time, with strong showings at home and abroad raising hopes for further cross-over hits for Indian films.The leading actor-producer-director wrote on his blog that box office takings for the coming-of-age comedy had already surpassed those for his 2008 hit "Ghajini," which was the previous record holder.

For years they performed as backstage dancers or had minor roles, but foreign actresses are moving centre-stage in India's Hindi-language film industry -- and becoming big names in their own right.The latest overseas name to take a starring role is Barbara Mori, a Mexican model and former television soap opera actress who makes her Bollywood debut in the upcoming film "Kites" alongside Hrithik Roshan.

The Bachchans, the first family of Indian cinema, were out in force in London on Wednesday for the world premiere of the Bollywood film "Raavan".Abhishek Bachchan, his wife Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and father Amitabh Bachchan were due to attend, as was the film's director Mani Ratnam and Oscar-winning composer A. R. Rahman.They were given the red carpet treatment at the British Film Institute Southbank complex next to the River Thames in central London.

New stars are emerging in Bollywood, with fresh talent currently more popular with cinema audiences and studios than established names as the industry hunts for a successful formula.Ranbir Kapoor and Imran Khan, both aged 27, have starred in two of the most successful films of 2010 -- "Raajneeti" (Politics) and "I Hate Luv Storys"."Raajneeti" took 320 million rupees (6.8 million dollars) in its first week while "I Hate Luv Storys" took 790 million rupees, leading film critic and analyst Taran Adarsh said on www.bollywoodhungama.com.