Jackie Chan embarks on an Indian adventure

The upcoming Sino-Indian coproduction Kung Fu Yoga features Hong Kong action star Jackie Chan and Indian actress Disha Patani; veteran Indian actor Sonu Sood and Hong Kong actor/singer Aarif Lee. [Photo provided to China Daily]

In September 2014, China and India signed a groundbreaking agreement on coproducing films, in a bid to bring the two major movie powerhouses together.

It yielded results in May the following year, when China's State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television, and the Indian embassy in China announced plans for three jointly produced films.

Kung Fu Yoga is one of the three films. The other two are a biographical feature of Xuan Zang, based on the seventh-century monk's pilgrimage to India, and Buddies in India, comedian Wang Baoqiang's directorial debut. Xuan Zang was released in April and Buddies in India will also premiere during the upcoming Spring Festival.

Of the three films, Chan's movie is expected to make an impression in India as the star's early Hollywood blockbusters－Rumble in the Bronx (1995) and Rush Hour (1998)－made him a well-known name in the country. Also, Chan's profile in India was boosted when his 2005 fantasy epic The Myth was filmed there.

Disha Patani, an Indian actress in the film, says: "In India, most young people have grown up watching Chan's action movies. He is very famous in India. For me, it's like a dream come true to work with him."

The popularity of Chan's action films means that many Indians believe most Chinese can perform martial-arts stunts like the actor, says Amyra Dastur, an India model-actress who also has a role in the film.

Both the actresses－Patani, who plays an India professor assisting Chan, and Dastur, who plays her sister－say that the film is their first Chinese-language movie.

The flick also features veteran actor Sonu Sood, who has starred in more than 60 Bollywood productions.