Deepa Mehta`s `Midnight`s Children` to release in India

Mumbai: `Midnight`s Children`, Deepa Mehta`s cinematic adaptation of Salman Rushdie`s Booker prize winning novel, is getting an India release this December. During the premiere of the film at the Toronto International Film Festival last month, Mehta had raised doubts about the film getting a screening in her country. However, PVR Pictures is quite upbeat about releasing the film in India. "Every film comes with its own risks. Actually we have been in talks with producer David Hamilton since last year but things did not work out at that time. We reconnected during the film`s Toronto premiere. It is a very important film, so we have decided to give it a shot," Sanjeev Bijli, MD, PVR Pictures told reporters. When asked whether they feared any trouble with the screening, Bijli said they were hoping to get a smooth release. "It remains to be seen. We are taking our best foot forward and will cross the bridge when it comes. We are looking forward to release the film by December or January. It will have a relatively wide release. It is a special film and has created a lot of buzz internationally," he added. Mehta, who was forced to cancel her shooting of `Water` in Varanasi in 2000 after protests by fundamentalist, shot the film in Sri Lanka under the title of `Winds of Change` to avoid unwanted attention. The film is about a two children born at the same time that India was born, August 14, 1947 and a special ability ensures that their destinies are closely related to that of the new nation. Rushdie has narrated the film and written the screenplay. PVR Pictures has also acquired the distribution rights of Mira Nair`s `Reluctant Fundamentalist`, also an adaptation of Pakistani author Mohsin Hamid`s novel of the same name. Bijli said they were planning to release Nair`s film by January next year. PTI