1. Saif Ali Khan shooting for his upcoming film Hunter at Goregaon’s Filmistan studio 2. Alia Bhatt filming an ad in Wadala 3. Huma Qureshi seen preparing for a reality TV show 4. Manoj Bajpayee at Elphinstone Technical College during the making of Satyamev Jayate

Several factors are compelling Bollywood to look beyond Mumbai to make its movies
Hiren Kotwani (MUMBAI MIRROR; September 16, 2019)

Mumbai’s connection with movies dates back more than 100 years to Raja Harishchandra (1913), the first film made in India. Though Bollywood has shot innumerable movies in the city it’s synonymous with, filming in Mumbai has declined significantly in the past few years. Several factors have led filmmakers to increasingly scout for locations outside of Maharashtra.

For starters, the island city, the commercial capital of India, is an expensive place to live and work in. A day’s shoot can cost upwards of Rs 10 lakh, and that doesn’t include payments for the cast and crew.

One major reason for the increase in the cost is payments to various unions. A director, not wishing to be named, tells Mirror: “Earlier, most associations of various departments were affiliated to one political party’s union. Now, there are dozens of them. Whenever a shoot is underway, their representatives frequent the set to check if any non-member is working on the film.”

Director Ashwini Chaudhary agrees: “Typically all unions are against each other, but internally they are all connected. Suppose you’re shooting in one place and a group from one union comes to check and fines you for hiring a non-member, after some time, another union’s group will come, and then another. When shooting outside in daylight, time is crucial and wasting even half-hour costs a lot of money. The production team has to be ready to make all types of payments, whether it’s to unions or the police or other authorities who stop by to check whether the team has the required permissions to shoot in a public place. Sometimes goons halt the shoot and assault crew members. This is what happened at Mira Road a few months ago.”

Mirror had reported on June 20, 2019, that a crew working on a project backed by Ekta Kapoor was attacked while filming at Gaimukh on Godbunder Road, Thane. Cinematographer Santosh Thundiyil sustained injuries to his forehead and got seven stitches. Apart from the crew, also present were director Soham Shah, Tigmanshu Dhulia and Mahie Gill.

Filmmakers blame all the unnecessary expenditure on the absence of a single-window system for permissions. Sanjay Gupta, who began shooting his next, Mumbai Saga, in the city, says, “If I have to shoot around Worli sea face, I have to get permission from the coast guard, police, BMC, traffic, environment and other departments too.”

And sometimes, permissions can be cancelled without notice. “We had all the permissions needed to shoot in Worli village. But a day before the shoot, we were told that owing to some tension in the area, the permits had been revoked. Thankfully, we had a plan B. In Mumbai, you can’t shoot without a Plan B.”

Who’s to blame?
On the flip side, the film industry is also partially responsible for the poor state of affairs. Sushant Tungare, executive producer of Uri: The Surgical Strike, concedes that the fraternity bends and breaks rules on a whim. “Permissions take time, so we sometimes end up shooting without permits because the nature of the business is such that everything can’t be planned,” Tungare says. “If we get an actor’s dates, but don’t have permissions for the locations, we still go ahead with the shoot.”

Another reason why there’s a shift underway is because locations in Mumbai have been exploited to the hilt. “Whether it’s the Gateway of India, Marine Drive, CST, or other such spots that identify Mumbai, they have all been seen too many times in films,” Tungare says. “Not many stories are set in Mumbai nowadays, or really need to be shot here. Andhadhun, for example, is set in Pune. There’s too much red-tapism in Mumbai and we don’t want to get into that hassle. Even after paying, the problems persist.”

Suniel Saini, co-producer of the upcoming Pal Pal Dil Ke Paas, says that a single window for permissions needd to be expedited. “Suppose I have the actors’ dates and I want to finish a shoot, I can’t, because it takes a week or two to get the permissions.” Also, many locations in south Mumbai are available for shooting only on weekends, when most offices are shut. For a filmmaker who needs to shoot for more than two days at, say, Marine Drive, Ballard Pier or Colaba, this adds to the cost. “If I have to shoot at Marine Drive for six days, I will have to keep breaking, and stretch it over three weekends. In such situations, some filmmakers even end up compromising on their work,” he says.

The city’s inadequate infrastructure is another reason why filmmakers are increasingly planning shoots outside the city. “It takes more than an hour to drive from Bandra to Film City,” says a filmmaker. “When we’re away, we don’t have the actor’s friends and other filmmakers dropping by to chat or discuss projects. So, that also saves time and increases productivity.”

Who gains?
If Mumbai is seeing a decline in film shootings, where are they headed? Mainly Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. President of Indian Film and TV Directors’ Association Ashoke Pandit says, “Other states are extremely encouraging and supportive. Right now, for instance, locations are not available in Lucknow because they’re all booked.”

Salman Khan, for instance, recently wrapped up a schedule of Dabangg 3 in Jaipur. The Bharat actor commenced his cop drama with a spell in Maheshwar (MP). Ajay Devgn recently shot Bhuj: The Pride Of India in Gujarat, where the film — based on IAF’s Squadron leader Vinay Kartik’s role in India’s victory in the 1971 war against Pakistan — is set. Previously, he filmed a schedule at Hyderabad’s Ramoji Rao Film City, where sets were specifically built for the shoot.

Government apathy
So, why are more films not being shot at Mumbai’s Film City Studios? Apart from the time it takes the actors to travel to and from this Goregaon studio, its facilities are poor. In fact, the state government, which is in charge, has been talking about developing it for years but has done little else.

Long before Bombay came to be synonymous with the Hindi film industry, two other far-flung centres — Kolkata and Lahore — were hubs of Hindi-Urdu films. Mumbai came to the fore after Partition in 1947, and drew the best talent from across the country. But more than seven decades later, propelled by myriad factors, the Hindi film industry is seeking alternative homes.

Sunny Deol found himself bearing the brunt of the inclement weather in Delhi-NCR region following the thunderstorms and heavy rains
Shaheen Parkar (MID-DAY; May 16, 2018)

As Delhi-NCR region came to a standstill on Sunday following the thunderstorms and heavy rains, Sunny Deol too found himself bearing the brunt of the inclement weather. Deol was compelled to call off the shoot of his directorial venture, Pal Pal Dil Ke Paas — which marks the Bollywood debut of his son Karan — in Gurugram over the weekend.

The unit was filming an outdoor sequence in the late afternoon on Sunday when the gusty winds wreaked havoc in Delhi. Co-producer Suniel Saini recounts, "It was sunny in the morning. But by afternoon, strong winds began blowing accompanied by thundershowers. We were shooting at the Cyber Hub footover bridge. The shooting equipment was tossed around. We had to pack up and rush to the hotel to avoid damage to the lights and camera."

Though the unit managed to reach the hotel safely, Sunny Deol's SUV was damaged in the downpour. "It was parked near a wooden structure, which came crashing down on the car. The headlights and the bonnet were damaged," says Saini. He adds that the unit had to stay put in their hotel on Monday as well.

Bharati Dubey (MID-DAY; February 12, 2014)

Karan Deol will be assisting his father, actor Sunny Deol, for the film Ghayal Once Again. The star son has been involved in putting together the creatives for the film.

“Karan will be assisting Sunny on this project. He is involved in the film’s pre-production,” says Sunil Saini, a close associate of Sunny Deol. Saini adds that Karan has a flair for writing and is a rapper as well. The 21-year-old, who is looking to pursue a career in Bollywood, is currently undergoing training to become an actor. He has earlier assisted Sangeeth Sivan for the film, Yamla Pagla Deewana 2. Interestingly, there were media reports that Karan would be launched by Yash Raj Films, and then there was talk about Anil Sharma directing him in his next — both of which have turned out to be untrue.

Saini says that the younger Deol will be launched by Vijayta Films. “Many scripts are being read right now and we will make an announcement as soon as we get the right script and zero in on a director. This should happen by the end of this year or sometime next year,” he says.

Ghayal Once Again is a sequel to Rajkumar Santoshi’s film, Ghayal. Sunny will be playing the main lead in this film that tells a story about the relationship between a father and his daughter.