PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) organized the 5th Global Film Tourism Conclave (GFTC) with the theme ‘Unleashing the Power of Cinematic Tourism’ on 1 July 2022 in Mumbai.
Inaugurating the Conclave, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Cabinet Minister for Minority Affairs, said, “It is a pronounced initiative to make India the most attractive filmmaking destination globally. India has everything that the industry needs to thrive: diversified landscape, resources and immense potential.”
Films are an important pacesetter for the society, and they should have a local approach to reach out to local audiences easily; this could lead to a transformative and more acquainted society, Naqvi added.
He also urged the industry members and other stakeholders to work together with the government in this journey to build up a strong and resilient environment for Film Tourism to grow at a faster pace.
Arvind Singh, Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, said that the Indian film industry is progressing dynamically with double-digit growth and producing more than 1200 films every year in multiple languages. The industry was valued at 183 billion rupees in the financial year 2020.
“In view of the above, Ministry of Tourism is placing great emphasis on the promotion of Film Tourism and is enabling the States to prepare suitable policies to facilitate shooting permissions with single-window clearances for film projects and provide necessary incentives to attract filmmakers. Ministry also recognizes such efforts through the National Tourism Award given each year under the category ‘Most Film Tourism Friendly State,” Singh added.
He also spoke about the importance of Indian films which has received international recognition and has played an active role to promote travel to India. “Today, many countries and their tourism boards are targeting Indian filmmakers to showcase their destinations and attract tourists. India also needs to step up its efforts to attract foreign filmmakers as it is an ideal destination to shoot movies with its diversity of locations, lower costs, skilled yet inexpensive manpower and plenty of local talent,” he said.
Renowned veterans of the Indian film industry and leading Filmmakers –Randhir Kapoor, Anees Bazmee and Rahul Rawail were felicitated during the programme for their contribution towards the Indian Cinema.
Ravinder Bhakar, CEO, Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) & Managing Director, National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) mentioned that films play an important role in the society. Contribution of the industry is immense in the country’s economic growth.
“Permission is easily granted to both domestic & international filmmakers to make the shooting process easier. The government is working on incentives and packages for the film industry for increasing distribution bandwidth and promotion of tourism. The only concern is exploitation of the destination which should be treated more sensitively,” said Bhakar.
Dr. Sujit Kumar Dutta, Secretary, Animal Welfare Board of India, talked about the rules and regulations made to make process and shooting easier and convenient for the Filmmakers. “We have a committee for the same to support the industry to facilitate ease in film making. Movies have a great impact on society, so cruel and harsh scenes are avoided so that society is less impacted. Government is working in this direction by significant initiatives and schemes for the industry,” said Dutta.
Several other Film and TV personalities –Manoj Joshi, Nandita Puri, Ranbir Pushp, Ruhan Kapoor, Mickey Singh Narula and Hasleen Kaur were felicitated during the programme.
Mukesh Gupta, Chair – Entertainment, Media, Art & Culture Committee, PHDDCI, shared his perspective in promoting Film Tourism while having synergies between Production Houses, Film Commissions and Tourism Boards.
Rajan Sehgal, Co-Chair – Tourism & Hospitality Committee, PHDCCI, said, “Several destinations have gained in terms of tourist influx by being the location of popular domestic and international cinema. A major issue that Filmmakers face in India is non-availability of a single window clearance facility towards all filming permissions. A few Indian states have started a single window clearance system; however, all state governments must consider setting up of online portals for single window clearance facility.”
Panel Discussions for promotion of Film Tourism in India as well as in other countries were conducted during the Conclave. In parallel to the Panel Discussions, there was an Exhibition Platform for destinations and private organizations to showcase their locations, tax incentives and other services.
