March 28, 2024
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Reliance confirmed that the company financed 15 percent of the budget of French film, produced by Julie Gayet France’s then President Francois Hollande’s partner the company said in a statement, reported The Indian Express.

According to The Indian Express report, Anil Ambani paid 1.48 million Euros indirectly through one of its partners, French financing firm VisVires Capital, for the production of the film Tout La-Haut. According to the Reliance Statement :

Reliance Entertainment had paid the aforesaid EUR 1.48 million to VisVires Capital on 5 December 2017, as customary, only about two weeks before the release of the film on 20 December 2017.

On 24 January 2016, Anil Ambani made an announcement that his company was partnering with the then French President’s partner, Julie Gayet and her production house, Rouge International, to produce a French film.

The announcement came on the same day that French President Francois Hollande arrived in Delhi for a three-day visit. And later that year, Ambani’s Reliance Defence became a partner in the Rs 59,000 crore Rafale deal, reported The Indian Express.

Here’s what followed the 24 January announcement by Ambani :

  • On 26 January, 2016, India and France signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the procurement of 36 Rafale jets. The deal was called Inter-Government Agreement. However, the deal was signed on 23 September, 2016.
  • On 23 October, 2016, the joint venture between Reliance and Dassault was announced, with Reliance Defence being part of the offset programme and holding a 51 percent stake in Dassault Reliance Aerospace Ltd.

A year later, the film that Ambani had partnered with Gayet for, was released and the foundation stone for a production facility was laid by Reliance and Dassault.

  • On 27 October, 2017, the foundation stone for a production facility was laid by Dassault’s Eric Trappier and Anil Ambani, under the joint venture in October 2017, two months before the release of Julie Gayet’s film, reported Scroll.
  • On 20 December, 2017, the film that Ambani helped produce was released. But according to a report in Mediapart, the French news website, Reliance’s name wasn’t mentioned in the financing details of the film.

According to Mediapart, the film was funded through VisVires Capital, an investment fund with offices in Paris and Singapore, and which had already provided services to Anil Ambani.

VisVires Capital had already invested in French films. Speaking to Mediapart, Ravi Viswanathan of VisVires Capital said that they were approached by Kev Adams, the film’s actor. Viswanathan says he pitched the idea of contacting Reliance.

Viswanathan further added that they asked Reliance if it was interested and Reliance said yes. Speaking to the French journal, a production teammate of the film said, “One day, the Indians came and the film could be made.”

Now, the first announcement of Rafale deal came in the year 2016, when Hollande was the President and Gayet was his partner, reported The Indian Express.

 

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