Straight to digital: Amazon Prime to globally premiere seven movies

Straight to digital: Amazon Prime to globally premiere seven movies

Amazon Prime Video

MUMBAI: Amazon Prime Video today announced that an additional six highly-anticipated Indian films will be premiering directly on the streaming service. This follows the announcement of the upcoming premiere of Shoojit Sircar’s Amitabh Bachchan (Black, Piku) and Ayushmann Khurrana (Shubh Mangal Zyaada Saavdhan, Andhadhun) starrer Gulabo Sitabo.

Spanning five Indian languages, the Direct-to-Service line-up features additional releases such as Anu Menon’s Shakuntala Devi with Vidya Balan (Dirty Picture, Kahaani) in lead, legal drama Ponmagal Vandhal starring Jyothika (Chandramukhi) in addition to Keerthy Suresh (Mahanathie) starrer Penguin (Tamil and Telugu), Sufiyum Sujatayum (Malayalam), Law (Kannada) and French Biryani (Kannada). The movies will premiere exclusively on Prime Video over the next three months and will be available in 200 countries and territories worldwide.

“At Prime Video we believe in listening to what our consumers want and working backwards from there. This belief is the genesis of our latest offering,” said Vijay Subramaniam, director and head, content, Amazon Prime Video, India. “Over the last two years, Prime Video has become the destination of choice for our customers to watch new releases, across the languages, within weeks of their theatrical release. Now we’re taking this one step further, with seven of India’s most-anticipated films premiering exclusively on Prime Video, bringing the cinematic experience to their doorstep.”

“Indian audiences have been eagerly awaiting the release of these seven  highly anticipated films and we are delighted that Amazon Prime Video will now be premiering these movies for our customers - who can enjoy watching these from the safety & comfort of their homes and on a screen of their choice. Prime Video with its deep penetration in India, with viewership across over 4000 towns and cities, and its world-wide reach in more than 200 countries and territories, will give a large global release footprint to these films. We feel truly excited about this initiative and are confident of delighting our Prime Members with this offering” said Gaurav Gandhi, director and country general manager, Amazon Prime Video India.

Amazon Prime Video’s direct-to-service slate:

Ponmagal Vandhal (Tamil), from 29 May

Starring Jyothika, Parthiban, Bhagyaraj, Prathap Pothen and Pandiarajan, Ponmagal Vandhal is a legal drama. The movie is written and directed by J.J. Fredrick and produced by Suriya and Rajsekar Karpoorasundarapandian.

Gulabo Sitabo (Hindi), from 12 June

Starring Amitabh Bachchan and Ayushmann Khurrana, Gulabo Sitabo is a quirky family comedy depicting day to day struggles of the common man. The movie is written by Juhi Chaturvedi, directed by Shoojit Sircar and produced by Ronnie Lahiri and Sheel Kumar.

Penguin (Tamil and Telugu), from 19 June

Starring Keerthy Suresh, Penguin is written and directed by Eshavar Karthic. The film is produced by Stone Bench Films and Karthik Subbaraj.

Law (Kannada), from 26 June

Starring Ragini Chandran, Siri Prahlad and veteran actor Mukhyamantri Chandru, Law is written and directed by Raghu Samarth and produced by Ashwini and Puneeth Rajkumar.

French Biryani (Kannada), from 24 July

French Biryani features actors Danish Sait, Sal Yusuf and Pitobash as leads. The movie is written by Avinash Balekkala, directed by Pannaga Bharana and produced by Ashwini and Puneeth Rajkumar and Gurudutt A Talwar.

Shakuntala Devi (Hindi), release date to be announced

Featuring Vidya Balan in the lead, Shakuntala Devi is a biographical drama on the extraordinary life of Shakuntala Devi, mathematics genius, writer and astrologer who was popularly known as the human computer. Also featuring Sanya Malhotra and Directed by Anu Menon, the film is produced by Sony Pictures Networks Productions and Vikram Malhotra.

Sufiyum Sujatayum (Malayalam), release date to be announced

Starring Aditi Rao Hydari and Jayasuruya, Soofiyum Sujatayum is written and directed by Naranipuzha Shanavas and produced by Vijay Babu’s Friday Film House

The new releases will join the thousands of TV shows and movies from Hollywood and Bollywood in the Prime Video catalogue. These include Indian-produced Amazon Original series like Four More Shots Please!, The Family Man, Mirzapur, Inside Edge and Made In Heaven, and award-winning and critically acclaimed global Amazon Original series, including Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, The Boys, Hunters, Fleabag and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, all on Prime Video, which is available at no extra cost for Amazon Prime members. The service includes titles available in Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Punjabi and Bengali.

Prime members will be able to watch all titles anywhere and anytime on the Prime Video app for smart TVs, mobile devices, Fire TV, Fire TV stick, Fire tablets, Apple TV, etc. In the Prime Video app, Prime members can download episodes on their mobile devices and tablets and watch anywhere offline at no additional cost. Prime Video is available in India at no extra cost with Prime membership for just ₹999 annually or ₹129 monthly, new customers can find out more at www.amazon.in/prime and subscribe to a free 30-day trial.