The Hindu Business Line : Dev Anand’s The Guide set to regain lustre

Hyderabad, Sept. 7 After ‘Hum Dono’, another Hindi classic, ‘The Guide’ starring Bollywood’s evergreen hero, Dev Anand, is likely to get fresh treatment with digital colour technol ogy to recreate the original screen experience to movie goers in the country.

The octogenarian Dev Anand is willing to offer The Guide, based on the well-known novel of the same name by R.K. Narayan, to be restored and re-colourised with the help of the Hyderabad-based Goldstone Technologies Ltd (GTL).

GTL is already working on the project to digitally colour Hum Dono (1961), the last of the black-and-white movies made by Dev Anand. It should be ready for release in December, according to Mr C. Jagan Mohan, Business Unit Head (Di gital Cinema), Goldstone.

The Guide was made into a film by Dev Anand and Vijay Anand in 1965. It features Waheeda Rehman as the heroine. The company will do the technology intervention to breathe fresh colour into the movie and has held discussions with the veteran actor, Mr Jagan Mohan told Business Line.

The original print of the film made in Eastman colour is in bad condition. GTL will do both the re-colourisation and restoration of the print to extend the life and quality for movie audiences, he said.

Revenue-sharing pact

In the case of Hum Dono, GTL has acquired the rights from Dev Anand to colourise, release and exploit it for commercial purposes. There is a revenue-sharing agreement as well, he said.

GTL has acquired a sophisticated software technology from Legend Films of the US. The artificial intelligence-based software has been used in Hollywood films and DVD formats to give the most appropriate colours and life to ageing movies. Using the technology, colour negative prints of films over 25 years, which normally attain a monotone (dominant pinkish, bluish, orange or yellowish tinge), can be cleaned up to be provided with original colours. Mughal-E-Azam and Naya Daur are some of the other films which have been digitally re-coloured, but by other companies.

Buys rights

Goldstone has bought the rights of 15 Telugu classics and is in advanced stages of negotiation with famous South Indian film production houses.

It is working on colourisation of the Raj Kumar-starrer Raja Harishchandra in Kannada and Sri Krishnaarjuna Yuddham (starring N .T. Rama Rao and Akkineni Nageswara Rao), in Telugu.

The business potential for such projects is quite high and the company is looking at theatre, DVD, IPTV and satellite formats in the long run, according to Mr D.P. Sreenivas, Executive Director.

More Stories on : Cinema | Technology

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page