Dhanush looking forward to Hollywood debut

Jan 26, 2016 IANS

New Delhi: Dhanush is headed to Hollywood and is excited about his new destination.

The southern star says he is glad to be making his debut in the West with "The Extraordinary Journey Of The Fakir Who Got Trapped In An Ikea Cupboard", in which he will be sharing screen space with "Kill Bill" star Uma Thurman.

The actor thanked his fans and admirers for giving him the strength to tread new creative zones, adding that he hopes to explore and bring forward different "facets" of the character in the film directed by Iranian-French director Marjane Satrapi.

Dhanush took to Facebook to share his views about venturing into Hollywood with the film, which will also star Bandit Queena actress Seema Biswas, Alexandra Daddario, Barkhad Abdi and Laurent Lafitte.

"I am very excited by this opportunity to work in a full length Hollywood film 'The Extraordinary Journey Of The Fakir Who Got Trapped In The Ikea Cupboard' for the first time.

"The director Marjane Satrapi felt I would be apt for this role and I feel there are many facets I can explore for this character. I thank my fans and media for constantly standing by me and pushing me to explore new endeavors and challenges all the time," reads a post on Dhanush's official Facebook page.

After making a mark in southern cinema, Dhanush took a dive into Bollywood with films like "Raanjhanaa" and "Shamitabh", and now the national award-winning star has his eyes set on foraying on the foreign shores. The son-in-law of southern megastar Rajinikanth has also explored the business side of showbiz as a producer.

With a Hollywood project in his account, Dhanush joins the likes of stars like Priyanka Chopra, Irrfan Khan, Om Puri and Anil Kapoor to find a route to the West.

Deepika Padukone is another Bollywood star, who was gearing up for her Hollywood debut opposite action star Vin Diesel.

"The Extraordinary Journey Of The Fakir Who Got Trapped In An Ikea Cupboard" is a comedy adventure tale based on Romain Puertolas's bestselling debut novel with the same name, which came out in 2014 and has been translated into 35 languages.

The novel relates the pilgrimage of a con man from India to an IKEA in Paris which turns into a philosophical odyssey.

The film will follow his journey from New Delhi to Paris where he falls in love with a woman and accidentally gets deported along with a band of African refugees to the far corners of Europe against his will.

Along with foreign locales like Paris, Rome, and Casablanca, the film will be shot in Jodhpur. The shooting of the film will begin in June, reports variety.com.

The film will mark the most ambitious project undertaken by Satrapi, who earlier helmed films like "Persepolis" and "Chicken With Plums". Satrapi made her English language debut with "The Voices" starring Ryan Reynolds.