Since the 2002 film "Devdas", no Bollywood film is said to have hit screens in Israel. Now, Ranbir Kapoor-starrer "Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani" will break the dry spell Friday.
The movie, subtitled in Hebrew for the audiences there, will release in India and Israel on the same day. Eros International is releasing the Ayan Mukerji-directed romantic entertainer in that country.
"There is a huge demand for these movies since Israelis and the local Indian population over there are fond of Indian content," Kumar Ahuja, president (Business Development), Eros International, said in a statement.
"Earlier, Bollywood content was available on DVDs and Indian channels, but this can very well be called the beginning of theatrical age of Hindi movies in Israel," he added.
Ahuja said Israel was devoid of any Bollywood films in the last decade as "there was no solid distributor until now and getting prints of the movie is an expensive process".
Now Shai Motion Pictures, an Israeli distributor, has invested in a portable projector which gives them the mobility to showcase movies at different locations at a lesser cost, added Ahuja.
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The foreign distributors are equally thrilled about the film, which also features Deepika Padukone, Kalki Koechlin and Aditya Roy Kapur.
"We are looking forward to it. It is after a long gap, after 'Devdas', that any Indian movie will release here. This itself calls for celebration and we are anticipating good numbers," said Shai Solomon of Shai Motion Pictures.
In India, the movie is expected to release in over 3,000 screens, tweeted trade analyst Taran Adarsh.