MANAN VATSYAYANA/AFP/Getty ImagesNamaste, India!
The nonstop global promotional tour for Mission: Impossible—Ghost Protocol has officially kicked off, and you know what that means: the barrage of shots of Tom Cruise Tom Cruising it up in a string of exotic locales has begun! First up: the Taj Mahal.
Sans better half Katie Holmes and their fashionista daughter (and thus depriving the world of some oh-so-clever Suri/sari wordplay) Cruise touched down in India over the weekend for the Mumbai premiere of his globetrotting movie. And where better to drop by on his travels—and his first-ever trip to the country—than the Taj Mahal.
"I wanted to come to India my whole life, so I am very excited," he said during a press conference Saturday.
Cruise was shown around town in advance of yesterday's red carpet screening and Wednesday's world premiere by Bollywood heavyweight Anil Kapoor, who also has a role in the action film.
In addition to his visit to the Taj Mahal, Tom reportedly stayed at the nearby Taj Hotel while in town, and also served as the guest of honor at a VIP party hosted by Kapoor.
"Stunning," Cruise told reporters of his reaction to seeing the love shrine. "I love being here, I've always wanted to see the Taj Mahal."
So, has Tom been bitten by the Bollywood bug? You might be surprised!
"I love watching Hindi movies," he told reporters. "There are many Hindi movies that come out every year, but I do watch a few of them. [If offered a role] I would never say no. I would love to do it."
So what's Cruise's next stop? Barring any unforeseen pit stops (always a possibility with the fan-pleasing star), Cruise is expected to touch down in Dubai, where he will reunite with the MI4 cast for the world premiere.