n November 12, 44 years after its release, Mughal-e-Azam was re-released in a colour version with Dolby/DTS surround sound in Indian theatres. And if the trade response is anything to go by, K Asif�s magnum opus is as relevant in colour in 2004 as it was in 1960, when it was first released in black and white (the original blockbuster was 85 per cent black and white).



The new Mughal-e-Azam was released with 150 prints and grossed over Rs 5.5 crore in its first week. The producer claims the movie is doing extremely well in A-class towns (population 5 lakh and above) where the reach of TV and press is high. There are aggressive plans to promote the movie in B-class towns (3-5 lakh), where the response has been low key till now, and move top gear to C-class markets (2 lakh) later. As things stand today, 175 prints are running across theatres, a subtitled version (in English) is being test run in Bangalore and Chennai and an international release is being worked out for January 2005. ... more