Steven Spielberg's 'Tintin' & Tom Cruise starrer 'Mission Impossible' hitting Indian theatres before US

Gone are the days when people would fervently wait for weeks after a movie had already released in the US and wonder, "Yeh picture India mein kab release hogi?” Today, not only are most Hollywood movies releasing in India at the same time as the US, but some production houses are choosing to launch their ventures on desi shores much before the West.

This year too, two international movies have already released in India before the US, and there are two more to follow. "Man in the Maze" ,the brainchild of Mitesh Kumar Patel – which made waves at international forums like Log Angeles Cinema Festival Of Hollywood 2010, North Carolina Film Awards 2010,and Las Vegas Film Festival 2011 – released in India on September 2, a month before it released in US.

Also, " Transformers: Dark of the Moon" starring Shea LaBeouf and Rosie Huntington Whiteley released in India 12 hours before US. Mitesh Kumar Patel explained, "As a director and distributor, I've to ensure that my film releases at the right time in the right place through the right channel. I feel September is the right time to have a release in India since USA can come after that."

Later this year, Steven Spielberg's "The Adventures of Tintin : The Secret of the Unicorn" starring Daniel Craig, and "Mission : Impossible – Ghost Protocol" starring Tom Cruise will hit theatres before the western audiences will get to see it. Talking about it, Kercy Daruwala, MD, Sony Pictures India, says, "The early India release is motivated by the immense popularity of Tintin comics here.

Research showed that the brand awareness for the character in India is over 90% – a unique situation. It's said, Tintin's creator Herge himself remarked about the number of letters he received from here, and planned to base a story here before he died in 1983." In 2008, "Quantum of Solace" , Daniel Craig's majorlytouted debut as James Bond created history when it was released in India before the US release.

And " The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" soon followed the example. Rahul Singh, operations, PVR Cinemas, explained the funda to DT at that time, "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."

In India Before US

Quantum of Solace (2008)
US: November 14, India: November 7

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010)
US: December 10, India: December 3

Man In the Maze (2011)
US: Late October, India: September 2

Transformers: Dark of the Moon
US: July 1, India: 12 hours before

The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn (2011)
US: December 23, India: November 11

MI - Ghost Protocol (2011)
US: December 21, India: December 16