After multiplexes, J&K govt’s next target is to come up with Film City

Buoyed by the success of the opening of the first multiplex cinema in Srinagar, the Jammu and Kashmir government’s next target is to come up with Film City, land for which has already been identified.

After J&K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha-led administration accorded sanction to the implementation of the Film Policy-2021 of the Union Territory, more films are being shot in Kashmir now.

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“A lot of movies were shot in Kashmir recently and more are in the pipeline. Film City will also be set up soon and we will give a lot of incentives to young filmmakers under the new film policy so that local employment is generated,” the L-G said.

The Film Policy-2021 aims to incentivise owners to reopen closed cinema halls, upgrade the existing ones and encourage the setting up of multiplexes, besides offering a slew of subsidies to establish the UT as the first choice for filmmakers as a shooting destination.

The Policy sets the vision up till 2026, with the aim of maximising the potential of both the Jammu & Kashmir film servicing industry as well as the promising local film sector. The policy strives to create a nationally competitive infrastructure in Jammu & Kashmir.

It assures administrative assistance to ease filmmaking in the UT by setting up Single Window Cell to grant permission for shooting films, preferably within two to four weeks.

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Owing to its natural beauty, Kashmir was an integral part of Bollywood films till militancy erupted in the late 1980s and the latter lost its connection with the Valley. However, as the situation improved over the years, Bollywood again returned to its choice of locations in Kashmir. Legendary Bollywood filmmaker Yash Chopra shot his last film Jab Tak Hai Jaan in Kashmir in 2012.

However, civilian unrest which broke out in the Valley after the killing of Hizb-ul-Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani in July 2016 and later the situation arising due to revocation of Article 370 in 2019 and subsequent Covid-19 pandemic in 2020-2021 not only dropped the arrival of tourists to Kashmir, but Bollywood crews too avoided the Valley.

The J&K government believes that the return of Bollywood to Kashmir this time will encourage tourism and send a message of peace in the UT, especially in the Valley.