Latest Narnia flick set to release in India ahead of US

Once upon a time, Twilight fans in India could only read the books and rail against the injustice of the absence of the movie in India months after it was released in the US. When the first movie came to India, within a month, so did the second one, soon after its US release.

Now, The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader is the second movie to be released in India ahead of the US. The first time this happened was two years ago, with the Bond flick, Quantum Of Solace. While “The Chronicles Of Narnia” is releasing a week earlier in India, on December 3, Quantum Of Solace released two weeks early.

Says Rahul Singh, an official from a leading multiplex chain, “When such a decision’s taken, the team behind it evaluates everything, from the fan base of the movie to revenue generated earlier, etc. India is an important market. We were very glad to hear that the third Narnia movie would release in India first. With revenues that movies like Avatar and the Harry Potter series have generated in India, international production houses see the country as an important source.”

Kritika Khanna, 26, says, “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse released in India a month after the US, by which time I knew everything about it courtesy the net.” Adds Himanshu Arora, 32, “Most Hollywood movies are available for download on torrent sites within days of their release. So, if it comes later to India, the excitement is not as much. I may go see a movie’s repeat in a theatre if it’s nice, but if it’s a really interesting movie, like Angelina Jolie’s Salt, I’d rather watch it asap.” In fact, Quantum Of Solace was released in multiple languages in India, and so’s the case with the latest Narnia flick.

India release: December 3
US release: December 10

The Narnia franchise features in the top 5 Hollywood franchises in India of all time The second part, Prince Caspian, grossed Rs 27 crore, featuring in the top 10 Hollywood grossers in India of all time India has the second largest fan base on the Narnia international website The Chronicles of Narnia books have sold more than 1,50,000 copies in India

India release: October 31, 2008
US release: November 14, 2008
Grossed: $9,127,201/over Rs 40 crore in India