Written by new-contact on Nov 16, 2012. Posted in General Interest

Bollywood moviemaking visits to UK drive Mumbai film tourism

Film tourism from the UK to Mumbai is growing, due partly to an increase in the number of Bollywood productions filming in Britain. Virgin Atlantic launched a new daily flight from London to Mumbai in late October 2012 and credits Bollywood for driving demand.

More than 30,000 tickets have already been booked on the new route and Virgin expects to carry around 140,000 passengers a year to Mumbai from London and various cities in the US.

Anna Catchpole is with Virgin Atlantic: “There’s no greater pleasure for Bollywood film fans than to travel to the exact location in Mumbai where some of their favourite films were shot. It’s the equivalent of going to Hollywood to see the great Warner Brothers or Universal studio sets. Many companies in Mumbai now offer Bollywood studio tours.”

There’s no greater pleasure for Bollywood film fans than to travel to the exact location in Mumbai where some of their favourite films were shot.

Anna Catchpole, Virgin Atlantic

Several Bollywood features have shot in the UK and Ireland over the past year - even if only for a few scenes – as Indian producers look for more exotic and unfamiliar locations to showcase to their enormous domestic audiences.

Film tourism is tricky to measure but it certainly has an impact. New James Bond thriller Skyfall filmed extensively in London and featured a Scotland-set finale. The film was used in a major promotional campaign by tourism organisation VisitBritain.

(Main page Mumbai image: Humayunn Peerzaada)