Times Square traffic halts as Hrithik runs to meet fans

On Sunday evening when Hrithik along with his co-star Barbara Mori, director Anurag Basu, wife Suzzanne, parents Rakesh and Pinky Roshan, and other members of the team reached Times Square, he was told to wave out to hordes of Indian fans who had been standing on the other side of the street since morning for a glimpse of the star.

The star made a dash across the bustling street from the venue of the premiere to eager fans across the road.

"Hrithik did indeed dash across the 42nd Street from our red carpet to waiting fans across the road. And we aren't about crossing just any busy street at peak hour. The 42nd Street is a gigantic universe. Hrithik ran across a good half a mile to get to his fans," Sanjeev Lamba of Reliance Big Pictures said.

Hrithik's considerate gesture towards fans at the premiere created panic for the tense and anxious "Kites" team.

"We had to halt all traffic on 42nd Street for Hrithik to cross. So we can finally say  Hrithik is the first traffic-stopper from Bollywood to make the crossover," said Lamba.

Not just a dash across the busiest street to meet his fans, Hrithik and his dad also made impromptu arrangements for about 500 fans to be accommodated in an extra screen at  the AMC Empire theatre.

Produced by Rakesh Roshan, "Kites" is set for simultaneous release Friday on more than 2,000 screens worldwide, including 200 in North America and the film is expected to open the global movie market to Indian films. Reliance Big Pictures is distributing the movie.
Shot on location in Las Vegas, Sante Fe and Los Angeles, "Kites" has two versions -- Hindi and English. A-list Hollywood director Brett Ratner has worked on the English language version that will open May 28.

Rakesh Roshan said: "What could we do? There were 400-500 of Hrithik's fans who wanted to see the film. There were women crying, girls tearing their hair and threatening to  commit suicide."

In addition to the 700-seater at the AMC Empire theatre, a smaller 500-seater screener was rented for extra fans at the last minute.