Panaji| Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur on Saturday called for transforming India into a world cinema destination and a global hub for post-production of films. Addressing the inaugural session of the 52nd International Film Festival of India (IFFI), Thakur also said that with India’s unique combination of culture and commerce, the country is poised to become the epicenter of the global cinematic ecosystem.
The Minister said, “Our aim is to make India a powerhouse of content creation on regional festivals, especially regional cinema and to make India the post-production hub of the world by leveraging the immense technical talent amongst our skilled youth. The goal is to make India the hub of world cinema, a destination for films and festivals and the most preferred destination for filmmakers and film lovers.”
Goa Governor P.S. Sreedharan, Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant and Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting L. Murugan shared the stage with actress and Mathura MP Hema Malini, noted lyricist Prasoon Joshi, southern actress and politician Khushboo Sundar and Federation of Film Federation of India general secretary Ravi Kottarkara.
The opening ceremony was anchored by Bollywood producer-director and talk show host Karan Johar and TV anchor-comedian Maniesh Paul.
In his speech, Thakur said, “India can captivate the world by telling the story of India. The story of billions of emerging, powerful, vibrant people ready to lead the world the Indian way. Also, employment in the film and entertainment industry.” There are huge opportunities for us as we leap into the digital age of content filmmaking and don’t forget about film collections for generations to come.”
The Minister said that India is in a position to capitalize on the youth engaged in film production. He explained that these young people are “powerhouses for creating fresh content and creating new stories”.
Thakur said, “The media and entertainment sector is based on three unique propositions that India has to offer. Abundant and capable labour, ever-increasing consumption expenditure and a diverse culture and linguistic heritage are with you and largely powered by mobile, internet And there’s digitization.”
The Minister emphatically said, “India is poised to become the epicenter of this cinematic ecosystem with this unique combination of connectivity, culture and commerce. Today, the story of India is being written and defined by Indians.”
