After scrapping Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir and bifurcating the state into two, Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the nation for the first time on August 8. In his 40 minutes long speech, PM Modi urged Hindi, Tamil and Telugu filmmakers to come and shoot their films at the pristine locations of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh which will, in turn, create employment opportunities for people there.
He said, “Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh have the potential to be the biggest tourist hubs of the world. There was a time when Kashmir was the favorite destination of Bollywood filmmakers, I am confident that in future even international films will be shot there. I urge Bollywood, Telugu and Tamil film industries to come to Jammu and Kashmir and shoot your films here.” PM Modi stressed that going forward the region can open its door to International film production houses as well.
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— PMO India (@PMOIndia) August 8, 2019
He further added, “I would urge Hindi film industry, Telugu film industry to give a serious thought to invest in films, theatre here." He also spoke about creating a ‘conducive environment’ for the development of the Union Territory and the film industry.
Bollywood’s tryst and association with Kashmir is a long one. Previously many films were shot in the valley. However, in recent years there was a drastic decrease in the shooting in the region due to political unrest and terrorist activities. Of late many films like Raazi, Fitoor, Fanaa, Haider and many others were shot and set in Kashmir but they all depicted the unrest of the region at its backdrop.
Watch Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address to the nation here:
(Source: YouTube)
