Paan Singh Tomar heads to the Gulf

Even as Paan Singh Tomar continues to impress audiences in India, the Irrfan starrer is set to find a completely new audience. This Thursday, Tigmanshu Dhulia’s film will open in the Gulf region, reports Prashant Singh.

It has clearly been the sleeper success of 2012. Even as Paan Singh Tomar (PST) continues to impress audiences in India, the Irrfan starrer is set to find a completely new audience. This Thursday, Tigmanshu Dhulia’s film will open in the Gulf region.

“I feel great content, superb reviews, incredible word of mouth and a correctly-targeted distribution strategy has played a significant role in the film’s success. And now, thanks to its unprecedented success in India, a film like Paan Singh Tomar — which would usually not get a wide international release — is now releasing in the Gulf,” says Siddharth Roy Kapur, CEO of UTV Motion Pictures, the producers of PST.

The makers are surprised by the demand for the film in the Gulf region. Recently, even Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu and Tere Naal Love Ho Gaya did phenomenally well in that part of the world.

That’s not all. PST, which has already made over Rs 9 crore to date, might find a route to reach Pakistan too but nothing is confirmed as of now. It’s believed that UTV is pondering the possibility of releasing the film in Pakistan. Ask Kapur about it and he remains non-committal: “With such a great demand for PST, we will definitely look at a wider release in other markets too.”

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In India too, PST has gone for a wider release, reaching out to almost 20 new Tier 2 and 3 cities. Kapur adds, “The film’s success vindicates our long-held belief that audiences are open to new styles of storytelling and new genres of cinema, as long as they are engaged and entertained. We have consistently kept faith with new filmmakers who want to tell different stories, and we’re thrilled to see this cinema achieving the sort of commercial success nobody thought was possible.”