BIG Cinemas, India’s largest cinema chain, a division of Reliance MediaWorks Limited and a member of Reliance ADA Group, invited Indian superstar Hrithik Roshan – who is currently starring in the eagerly anticipated international Bollywood film KITES, distributed by Reliance BIG Pictures- to present a special screening of his first ever movie at the newly opened BIG Cinemas Manhattan (in Midtown East, New York) to an audience of competition winners.

BIG Cinemas organized a special screening of Hrithik Roshan’s debut movie ‘Kaho Na Pyar Hai’ (Say You Love Me) which was a rage and smash hit in the year 2000, making Hrithik a instant superstar.

Hrithik talked with the audience about his forthcoming film ‘Kites’, which was distributed by BIG Cinemas’ affiliated company BIG Pictures, had its worldwide premiere in NY last night and releases on May 21, 2010. He also spoke of his journey over the years into superstardom before introducing the film to an eager audience.

BIG Cinemas Manhattan strives to bring the best of movie going experience and customer service to its patrons. After undergoing major renovations over the past months, including aesthetic, audio and visual enhancements, the theater now features brand new and comfortable recliner seating, remodeled restrooms, expanded lobby with an updated concession stand, LCD screens and box office, as well as BARCO 2k digital projection in the auditorium.

New York has a large and affluent Asian Indian population with over three hundred thousand Indians having a strong affinity towards Indian movies and BIG Cinemas Manhattan is now an ultimate destination for a luxurious cinematic experience.

Commenting on the occasion, Mr. Anil Arjun, CEO of Reliance MediaWorks, that operates the BIG Cinemas brand of cinema chain world-wide, said, “Kites is a group release and we are pleased to have Hrithik Roshan join us at BIG Cinemas Manhattan, giving us an opportunity to introduce him to our audiences. New York with its fast-growing and prosperous population of Indians, is the epicenter of growth for us and we see considerable opportunity here in the exhibition infrastructure space following the redevelopment of BIG Cinemas Manhattan. The theater has undergone some remarkable changes and we are honored to present it as such a distinguished movie destination with best of amenities, services and film programming.”

Similarly to the strategy in India, BIG Cinemas is setting up standalone properties and cinemas in malls in the US. Also, existing properties are being taken over, renovated and operated by BIG Cinemas while taking advantage of their already considerable infrastructure and brand value.

In US, BIG Cinemas has aggregated a network of over 188 screens in 27 theaters across East Coast, Midwest and West Coast that now regularly screen Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Punjabi movie features, in addition to Hollywood. BIG Cinemas accounts for 30-35% of Hindi films box office collections, and over 75% of Tamil and Telugu box office collections from the US.

BIG Cinemas has been awarded the “Entertainment Retailer of the Year” honor at the India Retail Forum 2009 and has also been awarded ‘International Exhibitor of the Year 2008’ by CineAsia 2008 at Macau.

-Sampurn Wire