"Kites" Will Release Summer 2010

Rakesh Roshan speaks about "Kites":
Why has Kites been delayed?

Well there are two versions — the Hindi version that is two hours and six minutes, and the international version (English). The Indian version was ready on Sept 30, 2009. However, the English version is being supervised by the Hollywood director Brett Ratner. Ratner is a friend of mine, and he is formatting the English version according to the Western sensibilities.

Is this the first time that a mainstream Hollywood director will be ‘editing’ a Bollywood film?

Yes. Ratner has films like Rush Hour 1, 2 and 3 to his credit. He has directed A Family Man, and has done episodes of the TV series Prison Break. To get someone who is so sought after in Hollywood to step and personally supervise Kites is something very prestigious.

Have you set a release date yet?

We’ve not set a release date. It should come in the summer of 2010. I’m flying to Los Angeles on November 29 for a meeting with Ratner. The mixing and the background score for the English version is also being done there. I will announce a date only after I know what progress has been made. Kites is my most ambitious release. I’m looking at releasing almost 2,500 prints globally.

The buzz is that Hrithik is keen on a Hollywood career ?

Hrithik is very happy with the work he is doing here. He is currently shooting with makers like Sanjay Leela Bhansali (Guzaarish), and he is also committed to make movies with Karan Johar, me and perhaps Vishal Bhardwaj. After watching Kites, Ratner felt that Hrithik has the potential to make it big in the West. So there is a definite possibility of his doing films there. But all that’s for a later date. Right now, Hrithik and I are both obsessed with Kites