The unassuming town of Leicester in Britain with a large number of Gujarat-origin residents is fast becoming a focus for the Indian film industry for shooting, distribution and post-production.

Authorities in the East Midlands town and the University of Leicester have undertaken several projects to promote the region as a destination for the Indian film industry.

One of the recent films shot in Leicester was actor John Abraham’s first film, “Is Pyar Ko Kya Naam Doon”.

Now Dipesh Majithia, a local film promoter who opened a Raj Kapoor-themed restaurant recently, has secured the British distribution rights of “Fight Club”, a new film produced by Salman Khan and Sohail Khan Productions.

Majithia has organised a premiere for the film when leading actors, including Dino Morea, Suniel Shetty and Dia Mirza, will be present. The film will be released in Britain Feb 17, with premieres planned in Feltham, Birmingham and Leicester.

The move will strengthen Leicester’s credentials as the Bollywood capital of Britain. The East Midlands Development Agency (EMDA) funded the Leicester: European Capital for Indian Cinema project to explore partnerships that organisations in Leicester and the East Midlands region could forge with India’s film and creative industries.

Research carried out at the University of Leicester, where the first Bollywood film was shot in the East Midlands, has highlighted the potential of the city and region to cater for Bollywood.

Dipesh said: “This is a thrilling opportunity to watch a much-awaited Bollywood film and to meet with the stars themselves. It will place Leicester firmly on the Bollywood map as a city where films are loved and promoted.

“Indian films have done very well in Britain - in many instances exceeding box office takings in India and have climbed into the UK top 10 on many occasions.

Send Fight Club Ecards”‘Fight Club’ is a lavish musical extravaganza with action and romance and has an all star cast so expectations are high that it will do well at the box-office.”

Other stars in the film include Zayed Khan, Rahul Dev, Ritiesh Deshmukh, Aashish Choudhary, Sohail Khan, Amrita Arora and Neha Dhupia.