The Minister for Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur on Monday said India’s aim is to build an enriching filming ecosystem in India and a future-ready industry where digital innovations would further help local talent and stories to be pitch-forked into the international arena.

“Our goal is to build an enriching filming ecosystem in India and a future-ready industry that will have the full support of the government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” Thakur said at the closing ceremony of the 53^rd edition of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI).

Referring to talents and trends in cinema, Thakur said that the world of Indian cinema is bustling with raw talent, finding its voice from theatre schools, small independent production houses and the country’s hinterland.

“The platforms are new, whether its short films made on your mobile devices, movies on the go or binge watching on OTT. We are seeing incredible talent being recognised, enthralling audiences and being loved by fans and doing great business too,” the minister exulted.

The Minister, according to an official statement released in the evening, hinted that what is happening now in cinema is similar to what great sports leagues did to raw talent in cricket, kabaddi, hockey, etc.

“India has always had talent. It just needed an opportunity to be seen without gatekeepers where the audience determines their success,” he asserted.

On innovations spurred by Digital India, Thakur highlighted that the advent of different streams of cinema —propelled by digital India’s affordable handsets and cheaper data — is leaping ahead on sheer individual talent, to showcase powerful and captivating stories to the world.

While felicitating the acclaimed Israeli global hit ‘Fauda’s team, the Minister said that India and Israel share a very special relation. “We have conflict in the neighbourhood. At the same time, we have thousands of years of history, we work together in many areas, especially in the area of security.”

The fourth season of ‘Fauda’ premiered on Sunday at the 53rd IFFI much ahead of its global launch. In India, it’d start streaming on Netflix from January 2023.

According to the MIB Minister ‘Fauda’ has been a hit in India and the premiere of its fourth season received a thunderous reception during the IFFI.

Raising a toast to Israel’s start-up ecosystem, the Minister expressed confidence in forging new partnerships with Israel in the area of cinema and filmmaking.

“There has to be co-production and collaboration with Israeli counterparts. India will be the content hub of the world in the near future. This is the right time to collaborate and reach out and make films around those stories, which are not told to the world. India is the place and Israel is the right partner.” he added.

Meanwhile, in his valedictory address, Thakur reiterated his commitment to give a strong emphasis to Indian regional cinema and provide a platform for its growth, adding that regional cinema was no longer regional and has gone from being national to international.

“This year we have seen many films like ‘RRR’, ‘KGF’ and others gaining international rise.  Recently, we had a delegation from Bangladesh and from Central Asian countries consisting of more than 80 youth. All they wanted was to listen to Hindi film songs and regional film songs. They talked about movies from the era of Mithun Chakraborthy to Akshay Kumar and Chiranjeevi, which cut across boundaries. If content is strong, it does not stay in the limits of a particular region,” the Minister said.

 He also congratulated Telugu actor Chiranjeevi for being conferred with the ‘Indian Personality of the Year’ award. “Chiranjeevi had an illustrious career spanning nearly four decades and over 150 films that have left audiences spellbound,” he said.