Salman Khan's Hollywood film 'Marigold' release on Aug 17

Mumbai, July 18 (UNI) Salman Khan's first Hollywood venture ''Marigold'' is set for a worldwide release on August 17.

''Marigold'' is directed by Willard Carroll, who produced and directed Hollywood stars like Sean Connery, Angelina Jolie, Dennis Quaid and Gillian Anderson in his last film ''Playing by Heart'' (1999).

Very unusual for a Hollywood film, 'Marigold' has song and dance sequences and the director is excited about his new experiment.

Speaking at the music launch of the film last night, Willard said 'Marigold' is a musical romantic film about a young American woman, who travels to India and finds her life transformed in the most unexpected ways by her experiences and adventures.

Willard has also plans to make more films with Indian actors. He said that he was determined to make a movie with the best of Indian and western cultures and film making styles. ''I have watched more than 100 movies of DVD. The best of them have a spirit and energy that reminded me of the great Hollywood musicals of 40s and 50s,'' he added.

He said Salman Khan was his first and only choice. ''I have always felt that he has unpredictability, sincerity and charm to appeal to the American and international audiences. His commitment to this film was unwavering. Much of the screenplay's accuracy in portraying contemporary Indian family life and the Bollywood film industry is due to his active participation in its development,''the director said.

He said 'Marigold' is an English film with five Hindi and three English songs. ''The film has been dubbed in Hindi for release in the interiors of the country,'' he added.

The music has been released on the BIG Music and Home Entertainment label, which is a Reliance ADAG Venture. This is the second major Bollywood release for BIG Music after Anubhav Sinha's Cash within the first month of beginning its operations.

Salman Khan made yet another style statement by making an appearance in a unshaven look, cap and ear-rings.

Apart from Hollywood actress Ali Larter, the film also stars Vikas Bhalla, Simone Singh, Suchitra Pillai, Kiran Juneja Sippy, Nandana Sen and Vijendra Ghatge.

Willard said music forms an integral component of the film's story. There are seven original songs, composed by Shankar Ehsaan Loy and penned down by Javed Akhtar and American singer-songwriter Truth Hurts.

UNI