Mumbai & Maharashtra, as a filming location, the popular locations and challenges faced.
Mumbai is the financial capital of Mumbai and also the capital of Bollywood. Its home to the film city and this is where the biggest Bollywood stars live.
While the state government may not have really exploited the top tourist attractions in Maharashra to the fullest, Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) has come up with a plan to cash in on popular film locales in the region in order to boost tourism.
Scenes from hit movies will be used to ‘brand’ and promote locations where the film scenes were shot, to create an easy connect in the minds of the public.
Popular Filming Locations in Maharashtra
- Octagonal step well or Bhavani Temple in remote Karmala village Inamdar Wada of Indapur — popularised by the hit Marathi film Sairat.
- Bhor Rajwada in Pune, where Bollywood film Bajirao Mastani was filmed
- Necklace Point along Yelwanti River near Bhatghar Dam in Bhor where Marathi film Katyar Kaljaat Ghusali was shot
- Agriculture College in Pune where Munnabhai MBBS was shot.
“Maharashtra has a very rich cultural heritage, which has been sustained over the centuries by waves of settlers. There is much diversity in the state’s geography, biology, communities and customs. Now, we have started identifying such places from each district, including Pune. Here, the cultural capital of Pune city and the rural areas play home to myriad treasures, which are often hidden away in remote locations. Our new initiative will help bring this heritage to the forefront,” said MTDC joint managing director Ashutosh Rathod on World Tourism Day.
Filming in Mumbai & Maharashtra: Govt ‘Intends’ to Give Online Permit in a Day
Although Mumbai & Maharashtra has several scenic locations, suitable for filming, of late, Mumbai has been losing out to other cities when it comes to filming movies. TV serials continue to get filmed in Mumbai (at the Film City) but most filmmakers avoid filming the big movies here.
One major problem is taking the requisite approvals (from several departments) and that is where the Maharashtra government is trying to set things right.
Also read: Filmmakers prefer filming movies in Delhi, than in Mumbai
Also read: Challenges of filming in India
The state government are working out the details so that they can issue online permits to filmmakers, with the aim of providing the requisite permissions within a day. This will encourage more filmmakers & studios to shoot films, short films and documentaries in the state.
The assurance came during a discussion on ‘Shoot in Maharashtra’, at the Maharashtra-International Tourism Mart, organized recently by MTDC (Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation).’
Also Read: Mumbai Tourism: Major Attractions.
Currently producers have to take around 30-32 permissions from departments like the police, the fire brigade, the local BMC ward office and so on, before they can commence shooting for a film or even for a serial.
Lets hope the state government can implement this system at the earliest. Some time back, Maharashtra gvernment had assured that they would be setting up a ‘one window’ system to issue various permissions at Goregaon Film City within a week.
Also Read: Film city: Integrated studio complex in Mumbai.
Bollywood Art Director Designed Swearing-in Ceremony for Devendra Fadnavis in Mumbai
Award-winning Bollywood art director ‘Nitin Chandrakant Desai’ had designed the swearing-in ceremony for BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis, as Chief Minister of Maharashtra, at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai. Mr Desai has created sets for Bollywood blockbusters like Jodha Akbar, Lagaan and Devdas, all big canvas movies.
The mega sets were designed, keeping in mind the high profile politicians and celebrities who were expected to attend the event. The sets showed the way Maharashtra was 350 years ago during the first Rajyabhishek (coronation) in Raigad. Along with the cultural and historical theme, a new modern Maharashtra was also shown.
Fortunately, the audience remembered that it was the swearing in ceremony of Devendra Fadnavis, and didn’t end up shouting ‘Sachin, Sachin’. After all, they have been doing that for years at the Wankhede stadium to salute the batting maestro ‘Sachin Tendulkar’.
