Hrithik
Roshan
proved
a
real
and
literal
traffic-stopper
in
New
York
on
Sunday
night
when
all
traffic
was
halted
for
him
to
sprint
across
42nd
Street
to
meet
his
fans.
Amidst
heavy
security
bandobast
at
Times
Square,
the
New
York
premiere
of
Kites
concluded
on
Sunday
evening
to
a
roaring
ovation.
There
were
some
heart-
stopping
moments
of
security
hazard
caused
mainly
by
Hrithik
Roshan's
fan-concern
when
breaking
all
protection
protocol,
the
star
made
a
dash
across
the
bustling
42nd
Street
from
the
venue
of
the
premiere
to
eager
fans
across
the
road.
His
considerate
gesture
towards
fans
at
the
Times
Square
venue
of
the
Kites
premiere
on
Sunday
evening
created
panic
for
the
tensed
and
anxious
Kites
team.
The
story
goes…at
around
5
in
the
evening
when
Hrithik
along
with
his
co-star
Barbara
Mori
and
wife
Sussanne,
Dad
and
Mom
-
Rakesh
and
Pinky
Roshan,
director
Anurag
Basu
(with
wife)
and
other
members
of
the
team
reached
the
42nd
street
at
Times
Square,
he
was
told
to
wave
out
to
hordes
of
Indian
fans
who
had
been
standing
on
the
other
side
of
the
super-board
street
since
early
morning
waiting
for
a
glimpse
of
the
star.
Sanjeev
Lamba
of
Reliance
Big
Pictures
confirms
the
incident,
"Hrithik
did
indeed
dash
across
the
42nd
Street
from
our
red
carpet
to
waiting
fans
across
the
road.
And
we
aren't
about
crossing
just
any
busy
street
at
peak
hour.
42nd
Street
is
a
gigantic
universe.
Hrithik
ran
across
a
good
half
a
mile
to
get
to
his
fans."
The
elaborate
security
was
obviously
in
a
panic.
Says
Lamba,
"We
had
to
halt
all
traffic
on
42nd
Street
for
Hrithik
to
cross.
So
we
can
finally
say
Hrithik
Roshan
is
the
first
traffic-stopper
from
Bollywood
to
make
the
crossover."
Not
just
a
dash
across
the
busiest
street
to
meet
his
fans,
Hrithik
and
his
dad
also
made
impromptu
arrangements
for
about
500
fans
to
be
accommodated
in
an
extra
screen
at
the
AMC
Empire
theatre.
Hours
after
the
exhausting
and
exhilarating
experience,
Rakesh
Roshan
said,
"What
could
we
do?
There
were
400-500
of
Hrithik's
fans
who
wanted
to
see
the
film.
There
were
women
crying,
girls
tearing
their
hair
and
threatening
to
commit
suicide."
In
addition
to
the
700-seater
at
the
AMC
Empire
theatre,
smaller
500-seater
screener
was
rented
for
extra
fans
at
the
last
minute.
"We
had
no
choice.
The
fans
wouldn't
have
allowed
us
to
have
the
New
York
premiere,
if
we
refused.
We're
glad
Hrithik's
fans
returned
happy.
At
the
after-party
at
the
Grand
Park
Ville,
everyone
was
talking
about
the
new
grammar
of
filmmaking
in
Kites."
Story first published: Tuesday, May 18, 2010, 16:36 [IST]