Chinese film regulators announced three China-India co-production films that will involve kungfu star Jackie Chan and award-winning director Wong Kar Wai.
"Kung Fu Yoga", a perfect combination of Chinese martial arts and Indian culture, will star Jackie Chan and Bollywood star Aamir Khan.
Wong Kar Wai be the executive producer of a film on Xuan Zang, a noted Buddhist monk during the Tang dynasty (618-907), who made an arduous journey to India to study Buddhism.
Jackie Chan is highly popular in India. His latest film "Dragon Blade" and Wong's "The Grandmaster" have been released in India.
Another co-production, "Da Nao Tian Zhu" (Causing havoc in India) will become the first film directed by Chinese film star Wang Baoqiang.
All the three films are commissioned under a ground-breaking filmmaking agreement between China and India in 2014, established when Chinese President Xi Jinping visited India. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting China this week.
Co-production films will help Indian film gain access to China by circumventing a quota system for import films. It is also expected to benefit Chinese films.
Though no match for the success of Hollywood, Bollywood films have also gained popularity in China in recent years. Since 2014, four Indian films were released in Chinese cinemas while another 14 were shown on the movie channel of state broadcaster China Central Television. China also has imported more than a dozen Indian TV series.
The three co-productions were jointly announced by China's State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television and the Indian Embassy in China.
