Vin Diesel’s India trip packed with fan meets, music and drama

Mumbai, Jan 11 (IANS) Hollywood star Vin Diesel, who will reach here on Thursday morning along with his "xXx: Return of Xander Cage" co-star Deepika Padukone to promote the movie in India, has a packed itinerary full of fan interactions, a glitzy red carpet gala and a star-studded premiere. Plans are in place to give Diesel a "splendid taste of India".

The actors, along with other members of the film's cast and crew, have been on an extensive worldwide promotional spree to promote "xXx: Return of Xander Cage". They are coming to India from London, before which they had visited Mexico.

The movie, a new instalment in the "xXX" series after the 2002 film "xXx" and the 2005 entertainer "xXx: State of the Union", is releasing in India on January 14, before anywhere else in the world. Directed by DJ Caruso, the film also stars Ruby Rose, Samuel L Jackson, Donnie Yen and Tony Jaa.

Caruso will also be a part of the two-day promotional tour in India, and security has been beefed up for the team.

"In order to soak in the love and interact with the Indian audience, Vin and Deepika will be spending a dedicated hour with the fans," said a source in the know of developments.

They will also be addressing the media over a press conference, after which the actors will head to the High Street Phoenix, Courtyard where they would be attending a crowd event.

DJ Nucleya has been roped in to make the stars and their fans groove to his electrifying beats. This crowd event is open to all who are waiting to grab sight of the actors.

From there, the celebrities will head to the red carpet.

"Vin and Deepika were extremely keen to interact with their fans and hence will be dedicating one hour to only fan interactions at the red carpet as well, apart from their crowd event," said the source.

The source told IANS: "Elaborate preparations are being made to welcome them and specially give Vin Diesel a splendid taste of India. Vin will be given a grand experience in the larger-than-life Indian 'band baaja' style.

"After the grand welcome, they would be heading straight to their hotel to get some much-needed rest, grab meals and their work out sessions, following which they would get ready for their press conference scheduled early evening. After this, they would be attending their movie premiere, which is going to be a star-studded event."

According to the source, "detailed security measures are being looked into to ensure that the promotions are undertaken smoothly".

"In order to make arrangements, Vin Diesel's security team visited India earlier to conduct a recce. Apart from his personal security guards, Vin Diesel's security has been beefed up to an additional 50 security guards during the course of his India promotions," the source added.