Ripley’s to entertain in Bangalore

A wax museum featuring Indian as well as international stars will soon be part of three main attractions Ripley Entertainment Inc is planning to bring to Bangalore.

To be established at a 50-acre film city at Bidadi on the outskirts of Bangalore, the wax museum will be alongside Ripley’s Believe It Or Not and Guinness Book of World Record museums.

While the wax museum will display authentic wax models of around 100 Indian and international figures, the Believe It Or Not museum will showcase a mind-boggling array of weird, but true stories from across the world. The Guinness Book of World Record Museum will bring to the visitors the world’s amazing feats.

Speaking to reporters, President of Ripley Entertainment Inc Robert E Masterson said the wax museum coming up at the Innovative Film City complex on the outskirts of Bangalore will be called Louis Tussaud’s.

Louis Tussaud’s was not the same as the Madame Tussaud’s in London, which also features wax statues of world famous personalities, Masterson sought to clarify. But, Ripley’s Louis Tussaud’s will also depict amazingly realistic models, he said. Ripley’s Louis Tussaud’s in Copenhagen, Denmark, which was opened in 1974, attracts large crowds.

The Innovative Film City complex, a Rs 1.5 billion project, will be ready by the end of this year. “We are aiming to attract a large number of visitors by keeping the a low entry fee of $ 1. We want India to be the biggest market”, Materson said.

The Bangalore museum of Ripley Entertainment Inc will be its first foray into South East Asia. “India was the first choice among the South East Asian countries due to its increasing popularity among global audience and we see a huge potential for our industry”, Materson said.

Though Ripley first considered Mumbai, but eventually settled on Bangalore for reasons of climate and space constraints.