Saavn Brings Bollywood To Hulu

The World’s Largest Distributor of Bollywood Entertainment Releases Five Films for Free Online Streaming

NEW YORK, May 7 /PRNewswire/ — Saavn, the world’s largest digital distributor and marketer of Bollywood entertainment and Hulu, an online video service that offers hit TV shows, movies and clips at Hulu.com and other online destination sites — all for free, anytime in the U.S., have teamed up to stream Bollywood films. The initial launch will include five contemporary hits from India, including Sarkar, Bollywood’s homage to the Godfather. All films include English subtitles and can be found at Hulu.com in the Feature Film category.

“Making some of the best Bollywood films available on Hulu is very exciting to us,” said Vin Bhat, co-founder and chief executive officer of New York-based Saavn. “One of Saavn’s goals is to make Bollywood more accessible for everyone and by having these films on Hulu, we believe that more people in the U.S. will open up to the genre that is revered by billions around the world.”

At launch, Hulu and Saavn will offer these Bollywood hits:

• Sarkar (2005) The family politics of an Indian mafia family play out on a large scale in this critically acclaimed drama. Known as the Godfather of Bollywood, this film stars beloved actor Amitabh Bachchan; in a BBC poll, Bachchan was voted as the most important star of the millennium — beating Charlie Chaplin, Marilyn Monroe, and Sir Lawrence Olivier, among others.
• Hera Pheri (2000) Three unemployed friends accidentally intercept a ransom demand and try to make a quick buck off the misunderstanding in this rip-roaring comedy hit. This classic Indian comedy was so successful, it spawned one of Bollywood’s first sequels. It stars Ashkay Kumar, Bollywood’s golden boy whose films earn more money in the industry than any other star.
• Deewana (1992) This dramatic classic was the “king” of the Bollywood’s first release, Shah Rukh Khan. Khan is arguably one of the world’s most recognized figures; recently, he was the only actor named to the TIME 100, a list of global influencers. The film follows a promising singer who soon is thought to be murdered by his greedy uncle and cousins. Years later, he suddenly reappears and creates confusion for those he left behind.

Other films are romantic comedy Hulchul (2004) and Dhaai Akshar Prem Ke (2000), starring global icon and former Miss World Aishwarya Rai. More films will be released throughout the year.

About Saavn

Saavn brings the best of Bollywood and Indian entertainment to the world. As the largest digital distributor in Bollywood, Saavn owns the digital rights to thousands of movies, music tracks, music videos, ringtones and graphics. Saavn programs, packages and distributes its exclusive catalog and new Bollywood releases to more than 75 global media companies including Time Warner Cable, Cablevision, Verizon Wireless and Apple’s iTunes. Saavn is a joint venture of [212]MEDIA and Hungama Mobile, and the company has offices in Mumbai, London, New York, Los Angeles, and Toronto. To find out more, visit: http://www.saavn.com.

SOURCE Saavn