Last year, Katrina Kaif had announced plans to turn producer with a Hindi remake of the 2006 French rom-com, Priceless starring Audrey Tautou. A little later, though, Kat apparently gave up because the film’s officials were unresponsive.
Now, UTV Motion Pictures has bagged the film’s rights and the movie is set for an Indian remake. “We signed the deal a few days ago. We were very keen on it, so a team was in constant touch with the producer (Philippe Martin) and distributor (Universal Pictures). A major portion of the story will be retained, but it’ll be tweaked to match Indian sensibilities,” says an insider from UTV.
Amar Butala, UTV’S creative head on the remake, confirms: “We think it’ll be one of the biggest rom-coms in Bollywood.” Will Katrina be approached for the part since she too was keen on it? “We are now getting into the casting process. A big announcement will be made soon,” he says.
Rumours have it that other production houses such as Viacom 18, Balaji Motion Pictures and Ratan Jain of Venus were also in the running to acquire the rights, but all three deny it. “I love Priceless but as a company, we were never in any race to acquire its remake rights,” says Vikram Malhotra, COO of Viacom 18. Originally titled Hors de Prix in French, the film was adapted from the 1961 Blake Edwards classic film, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, though it’s believed that the synopsis plays out more like the 1958 novel, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, written by Truman Capote. The film is about Jean (played by Gad Elmaleh), a shy waiter who is mistaken for a millionaire by a beautiful, scheming adventuress, Irene (Audrey Tautou). When she discovers his lowly status, Irene leaves him but Jean pursues her relentlessly before she eventually accepts him.
