Session 4: One Window
Clearance
Seen from L-R: Sanjeev
Lamba, CEO, Reliance
Big Pictures;
Abdulla Shafeeg,
Director, Maldives
Film Association;
Vikramjeet Roy, Head
of Production, NFDC;
and Najumulla
Shareef – Senior
Marketing Officer,
Maldives Marketing
and PR Corporation.
There are a plenty of
reasons why tourism boards
must consider setting up a
single window clearance
system to assist filmmakers
in carrying out film shoots
smoothly. Several countries
like New York, Maldives, Sri
Lanka offer one-stop shop
for film crews to obtain all
permissions to shoot
anywhere in the country.
However, in India, in most
states, a production unit
has to take approvals from
at least 8-10 departments
even for a short shooting
schedule. Little wonder then
that India is losing
valuable business to foreign
countries. Speakers in this
session – Sanjeev Lamba,
CEO, Reliance Big Pictures
and Vikramjeet Roy, Head of
Production, NFDC discussed
the issue in details and
presented probable
solutions.
Some of the states in
India such as Gujarat and
Madhya Pradesh have
film-friendly policies.
However, with a country with
so much potential to attract
movie makers from all over
the world, one window
clearance in all states is
the need of the hour.
According to Sanjeev
Lamba, CEO, Reliance Big
Pictures, offering a
beautiful location is not
enough. “It is important to
provide good infrastructure
and easy permits,” he said.
“Goa has set a wonderful
example for rest of the
states. It used to do 200
shooting days a year. Last
year the count has gone up
to 1000 shooting days in a
year. It is increasingly
becoming well organized. The
shoots contribute
wonderfully to the Goan
economy,” he added.
Apart from showcasing
unexploited locations, a
film shoot also boosts the
economy of the location.
They create jobs, brings
business for hotels,
catering, logistic services
etc. Also, over a period of
time the skill sets improve
around that location. “A lot
of countries provide various
incentives that drive
filmmakers to shoot there.
Tourism boards in our
country too need to
understand filmmakers’ point
of view. Also, single window
clearance is needed to
ensure smooth operations
throughout the process of
the movie,” said Lamba.
Vikramjeet Roy, Head of
Production, NFDC brought in
some good news for the
industry. “So far there is
no film commission in India.
However, the good news is
that there are talks of
setting up one. The
objective would be to
attract and support film
units coming to India. The
commission will not only
benefit tourism but will
also generate employment
opportunities. It will be
responsible for marketing of
a locations, management of
the local crew, offering
incentive packages, tax
rebates and boosting inbound
tourism,” he said.
The session ended with a
conclusion that making India
more film-friendly, not just
for Indian film industry,
but also for the
counterparts from across the
globe is most relevant
today. It will be beneficial
for both entertainment as
well as tourism industry to
set up a one-stop shop for
filmmakers to obtain call
permissions to shoot
anywhere in the country. |
