Narnia sequel to be released in India ahead of US

The third movie instalment of the "Chronicles of Narnia" will release in India on Dec. 3, a week before its US screening.

The movie titled 'Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader' will come out in 3D format with around 800 plus prints and in four languages including Hindi, Tamil and Telugu, making it the biggest-ever release for a Hollywood film in India.

Directed by Micheal Apted, the movie is based on Christian scholar and author CS Lewis' fantasy novels.

"We are delighted to offer our Narnia fans this unique opportunity and that too in 3D and multiple Indian languages. It's great entertainment which will appeal to a wide cross-section of demographics across the country. The buzz that is building up for 'The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader' is very encouraging," Vijay Singh, chief executive officer, Fox Star Studios India, said in a statement.

The Narnia Christian-themed fantasy series feature in the top five Hollywood franchises released in India, with the previous instalment Prince Caspian collecting 270 million rupees, putting it among the top 10 highest-grossing Hollywood films in India of all time.

The third "Narnia" reunites Lucy (Georgie Henley) and Edmund (Skander Keynes) with King Caspian (Ben Barnes) for a journey aboard the ship Dawn Treader to stop the evil White Witch (Tilda Swinton)

In 2005, the first Narnia film, "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe", raked in $745 million in ticket sales worldwide. The second, released two years later, pulled in only $419 million.