Vasan Bala’s cult film Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota goes to China

A dispute with exhibitors saw the RSVP production Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota get just 375 screens in India. The makers, though, will hope to reach out to a much wider audience in China.

The film, directed by Vasan Bala and already something of a cult favourite, was released online in the China market today.

Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota is now streaming on the Chinese video-on-demand platform iQiyi. iQiyi is said to have nearly 500 million monthly active users.

The producers also released a poster for the Chinese audience. 

Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota features high-octane martial arts and is a tribute to martial arts legends like Bruce Lee. The Indian film will not, however, get a theatrical release in China. 

Speaking to Cinestaan, Vasan Bala said, “That would have been a dream. But I am obviously thrilled to have the film released [online] in China. I hope a lot of people there watch and find something to celebrate in the way we tried to celebrate martial arts. Hopefully, we find a common platform to love and remember all the films we grew up on.”

Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota featured first-time actor Abhimanyu Dassani, newcomer Radhika Madan and Gulshan Devaiah in the leading cast. The action drama revolves around the life of Surya (Dassani), a young man with congenital insensitivity to pain.