Fox Star Studios, the pan-Asian joint venture between Twentieth Century Fox and regional broadcaster Star, has struck a two-picture deal with producer Vipul Amrutlal Shah whose credits include Namastey London and Singh is Kinng.

The deal includes development and production of a visual effects-driven fantasy action movie and a contemporary romantic comedy. The VFX film will be supported by VFX directors from Hollywood and supervised by Fox's in-house visual effects team. There is also a stipulation of a first-look deal on Shah's future projects.

Vipul Amrutlal Shah is currently shooting his next film as director-producer, London Dreams, in the UK. Speaking about the deal, he said: 'I am extremely excited to work with Fox Star Studios India. The deal gives me the opportunity to develop innovative concepts and work with the best talent to create films that will appeal to audiences around the globe.

'This is the future for Indian cinema - we have to partner with the best technical and creative talent from around the world while yet keeping the Indian soul in our films intact.'

Sanford Panitch, president of Fox International Productions, said: 'We are excited about this first step in our growth and are committed to building relationships in Bollywood with like-minded producers and hope to add value to the creative production process - by bringing the latest VFX and animation technology to Bollywood productions.'

The Fox Star Studios joint venture will soon expand into other markets following India, including Greater China and South-East Asia.

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