Jackie Chan will star in "Kung Fu Yoga" with Aamir Khan and Katrina Kaif. (Photo : Reuters)
China’s film regulators recently announced that the country and India will be co-producing films that will feature the Kung Fu idol Jackie Chan and award-winning director Wong Kar-wai.
Both Jackie and Wong Kar-wai are popular household names in India, with their respective films "Dragon Blade" and "The Grandmaster" reaping success in the country.
One of the film titles in this undertaking is "Kung Fu Yoga," which aims to blend the Chinese martial arts and the rich Indian culture. The movie will be top-billed by Jackie alongside Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan ("Three Idiots").
A film centering on Xuan Zang, a renowned Buddhist monk (Tang dynasty, 618-907) who sojourned to India to study Buddhism, is also included on the list. Wong Kar-wai will serve as the title's executive producer.
"Da Nao Tiang Zhu" ("Causing Havoc in India") is yet another co-production from the two countries. This project will be the directorial debut of China's movie star Wang Baoqiang.
All the mentioned films are commissioned under a joint filmmaking venture between China and India, which was inked in 2014 when Chinese President Xi Jinping visited India. This week, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi pays a reciprocal trip.
The film partnership is seen as beneficial to both countries, with India gaining access to China's huge movie market via film importation.
Though Bollywood still has a long way to reach a Hollywood-like stature, its films have also gained attention from Chinese audience in recent years. Since last year, four of its titles were released in Chinese theaters and 14 are being aired over the state-run China Central Television.
The Indian Embassy in China and the country's State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television jointly announced the co-productions.
