Great future for kid's films, but need to match world stds:Rahul Bose

New Delhi, June 17: There is a bright future for children films in India but at the same time these cinematic ventures need to match up to international standards to be able to draw in audiences to the theatres, actor, writer and director Rahul Bose said.

''Children films have a huge future in India. But one has to make films that match up to the big Bollywood blockbusters as well as Hollywood films like the 'Harry Potter series' and 'Shrek 3' in terms of their technical quality to be able to draw in the audiences to the theatres to watch these ventures,''the actor said during a press conference in the Capital last evening to promote his new film 'Chain Kuli Ki Main Kuli', a children's film that traces the journey of a 13-year-old orphan boy who dares to dream big and thereby, proves to the world that if you Believe in yourself, the world will be at your feet.

The film, directed by the ad filmmaker-turned film director Ken Ghosh has Rahul along with the child actor Zain Khan in the role of the orphan.

Commenting on the current sorry state of children films in India wherein films targetted solely at kids are few and far between and the few that do get made prove to be loss making ventures, Rahul said,''the problem lies with the lack of enough investment into making of children's films in India. For example, the amount at the disposal of the Children's Film Society of India, which has been entrusted with the task of encouraging children's films in India, is quite meagre compared to the amount that is required for making an international class children film like 'Shrek 3' or the 'Harry Potter series'.

Consequently, we have films made at a cost of, say, Rs 50 lakh, by the CFSI competing with "technically polished" children films from the West or big Bollywood blockbusters like 'Jhoom Barabar Jhoom' which in turn results in most of these ventures failing at the box office.'' It is in this context that, Rahul felt, a film like 'Chain Kuli Ki Main Kuli' could tap the huge market for quality films targetted at children.

'''Chain Kuli Ki Main Kuli' has been made to tap this massive opportunity, so that children have a film they can truly call their own,''Rahul said excitedly.

Produced by Sa Re Ga Ma Pa India, 'Chain Kuli..' revolves around an orphan boy, Karan, who lives in a dilapidated orphanage. Karan has two dreams, one is to have parents and the other is to be a big cricketer. His inspiration is Kapil Dev since he has been brought up on the motivating stories of India's '83 world cup win. Karan's dreams take a turn when one day he lays his hands on an old cricket bat which Karan is convinced is the bat that Kapil Dev used to win the '83 World Cup, and for him the bat becomes a magic bat. One day by the stroke of luck, the coach of the Indian cricket team, spots Karan and is highly impressed by his batting skill. This happens at a time when the Indian cricket Team is going through a rough patch. Karan and his magical bat are inducted into the Indian Cricket Team as the opening batsman along with the captain, Varun.

The little boy marches on to the pitch and wins the match for India, and soon becomes the nation's heartthrob. Once rejected by adopting couples he is now the most sought after kid in the country.

However, at the final fifth one day match between India and Pakistan, events spiral out of control and Karan's magic bat is destroyed. Karan is a nervous wreck, but Varun makes him realise that faith in oneself counts beyond anything else. The magic is in you.

Speaking at the press meet, child actor Zain Khan, who plays the central role of the orphan in the film, said,''Ken Ghosh selected me after seeing me in an advertisement with India's wicketkeeper Dhoni.'' General manager of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa India, Mukul Kansal said,''Chain Kuli.. is a highly engaging film;it has fun, games, jokes and songs dances, naughty rhymes, and some heart-rending emotions.

We are confident children will love the film.'' In this context, Rahul disclosed that the screenings of the film held over the last few days for a few film distributors evoked an overwhelming response from them.

''If 'Chain Kuli..' succeeds, it could well be a pointer to the fact that even children's films could make good business, something which could encourage other filmmakers to invest in making children films,''Rahul said.

''There is a need for a children's film that could show that a cinematic venture made at a cost of Rs five crore could reap a revenue of Rs 50 crore.

But for that, someone needs to take a risk. I feel that this film has the potential to show that a kid's film can make good money,''he added.

The film, which is slated for release sometime later this month, has music by Salim Sulaiman.

UNI