MUMBAI: Sajid Khan’s directorial debut Heyy Babyy gets a weighty boost as The New South Wales (NSW) Government has joined forces with the producer to promote the film that will be previewed in Sydney, Australia on 22 August, ahead of its premiere in Mumbai on 24 August.

Heyy Babyy, starring Akshay Kumar, Riteish Deshmukh, Fardeen Khan and Vidya Balan, is the biggest multi-star Bollywood film production to have come to Australia. The film, set in Sydney, was shot at some of the most famous tourist locations such as the iconic Sydney Opera House, Bondi Beach, The Rocks, Darling Harbour, Botanical Gardens as well as the city streets.

Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment is the first Indian production company to have shot almost an entire film in Sydney. The production house spent about $AUD 2 million and hired more than 450 Australian cast and crew during its five and a half week stay on locations across NSW.

Australian Minister for Tourism Matt Brown stated, “We are pleased that producer Sajid Nadiadwala chose to set and shoot Heyy Babyy in Sydney. The production house, Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment worked with the NSW Government to garner maximum mileage for Sydney and promote our key messages to the Indian audiences. We are very excited about the release of the film and wish the producer, director, cast and crew every success for their movie.”

Tourism NSW, the Department of State and Regional Development and the NSW Film and Television Office (FTO) provided extensive location advice and production assistance to Nadiadwala’s team during the film shoot.

Nadiadwala said, “It was an absolute pleasure to shoot this film in Sydney, Australia. Everything about the city was perfect – the friendly and professional Australian crew, the aesthetic beauty of the natural and manmade attractions and landscapes, the lifestyle of the city and the excellent nightlife, shopping and dining were all key factors in the success of the film shoot in Sydney.”