Bollywood's Return To J & K

(MENAFN- Kashmir Observer)
Representational Photo

Testifying to the improvement in the situation in J&K over the past five years, over 350 films and web series have been shot in J&K in the past five years, as revealed by Lieutenant General Manoj Sinha. This shows re-emergence of the union territory as the favourite site for Bollywood shoots. In recent years, the big Bollywood names including the megastar Shah Rukh Khan have shot their movies in the Valley. Last time Khan visited the Valley in 2023 to shoot some sequences of his blockbuster movie Dunki. Similarly in 2024, the top Bollywood film director Rohit Shetty shot his film 'Singham Again' in Kashmir, featuring Ajay Devgn in the lead role. The director later took to Instagram to share his experiences and express his gratitude towards the people of Kashmir.

A big reason for the increasing number of Bollywood shoots is the 2021 film policy, which has made it easier for filmmakers to shoot in J&K. The policy offered incentives, simplified permissions, and ensured security to the production houses, persuading more and more film markers to shoot in the UT.

Kashmir has historically been a location of Bollywood movies. Beginning with Raj Kapoor who introduced to the world the Valley's fabled beauty when he shot Barsaat here in 1949, Kashmir became a favourite Bollywood haunt through the successive decades being primarily sought after for its breathtaking locales. However, the advent of militancy in 1989 changed all that. The deteriorating security situation forced Bollywood out of the Valley. Though films with connection to Kashmir continued to be made but now Kashmir was more of a subject for the movies than the location. About a dozen movies were shot in the Valley through the nineties, but a number of them reflected Kashmir either as an abode of violence, or an unremitting battleground between India and Pakistan.

Bollywood's return to the Valley – and followed by the opening of a multiplex at Shivpora in Srinagar in 2024 – again portrays more than peace. Unlike in the past, Bollywood's relationship with Kashmir is no longer spontaneous and natural. Like everything else in the Valley, it has also become political. Movie-making in Kashmir is about peace, about reinforcing Kashmir's image as a paradise on earth, and also about reflecting the turmoil in the region.

It is also true that the Bollywood shoots have helped change the image of Kashmir as a troubled place. One result of this has been an unprecedented rise in tourist flow to J&K. Last year alone, over 2 crore tourists visited the UT. But Kashmir can also be an unpredictable place. Here's hoping that the situation stays peaceful for more Bollywood shoots to take place and more tourists to arrive.

Read Also More Than 350 Films, Web Series Shot In J&K In Past 5 Yrs: LG Aamir Khan, Mansoor Khan Recall Making”Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak”, Want To Team Up For Another Movie

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