India's Eros International has signed a co-production, marketing and distribution deal with local production company White Feather Films (WFF).

The Mumbai production house is owned by director-producer Sanjay Gupta and actor Sanjay Dutt, who was recently released from prison pending his appeal of a conviction for arms possession.

Under the terms of the deal, the two companies will jointly produce 15 films with combined budgets of more than $60m (Rs2.5bn).

The line-up includes Dus Kahaniyan (Ten Tales), comprising a series of short films from different directors; Pankh, directed by Sudipto Chattopadhyay, and The Great Indian Butterfly, directed by Sarthak Das Gupta. Eros will also co-produce Sanjay Gupta's Alibaug which is currently under production.

Sunil Lulla, president of Eros International, India, said: 'One can expect the unusual and out-of-the-box from Sanjay Gupta.'

Gupta said: 'Our collaboration with Eros International is aimed at creating a synergy of creative talent and market leadership. The past year has seen a major leap in our film production activities and we have successfully produced and released Shootout At Lokhandwala.'

WFF's previous films also include Kaante and Musafir. The company has also recently formed White Feather Arthouse Films which will cater to niche audiences and showcase new talents.

Hansal Mehta, COO of WFF, added: 'We are trying to cater to an audience that has seen brilliant independent cinema emerging from China, Iran, Latin America, Korea and many Eastern European countries. With Eros marketing and packaging expertise, we not only aim to attract traditional Indian audiences to these films but also expect these offerings to exist and succeed in the global independent cinema space.'

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