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 The very latest Bollywood upcoming release is Krrish, starring top actor Hritik Roshan, but 60% of the film was shot in Singapore, and overseas shoots just like this one are increasingly becoming the Bollywood rule, not the exception. What are the factors that pull India's film productions abroad and what advantages do host countries gain from hosting a Hindi song and dance blockbuster. James MacGregor has been abroad with Bollywood to find out.
Bollywood's mainstream produces more than a thousand films every year, but more and more are being shot abroad - Salaam Namaste (Australia), Kal Ho Na Ho (United States), Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gam (United Kingdom), Shaadi Se Pehle (Malaysia), and Kaho Na Pyar Hai (New Zealand), are just a few recent examples. New countries and locations are being constantly added to the list. The recent hit Gangster, was shot in South Korea, one of the very first mainstream Bollywood films to feature that country.
 There is a very important reason for the new trend; the more than 20-million-strong Indian global diaspora, with an estimated combined wealth of more than US$300 billion. Koi Mil Gaya made $10 million in India, $1.9 million from the US market and 1.6 million pounds in Britain; Kal Ho Na Ho made $8 million domestically, $700,000 in the US and 600,000 pounds in the UK; while Chalte-Chalte earned $4.5 million at home, $900,000 in America and 700,000 pounds in Britain. Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge made $5 million abroad. And Rang de Basanti, a recent Bollywood release, has collected $6 million abroad in just six weeks.
One important benefit of overseas exhibitions is that the income earned abroad from films is tax-free, since export earnings of cinema and television programs are tax-exempt.India exported films worth $15 million last year, an increase of about 40% over the previous year. In the early 1990s, the figure was just $125,000 per annum. This year that figure is expected to cross the $25 million marker. Thirty percent of the overseas revenue of Indian films comes from North America.
There are added benefits when filming overseas. Movie producers do not have to grapple with the endless bureaucracy that is the regular staple in India, and can ensure the stars' presence for an extended period at the shooting location. Travel and production costs are sometimes cheaper given the tighter schedules at international locations and foreign governments or film commissioners can generally be relied on to make sure guests are well taken care of, given the revenues earned.
"I captured fresh locations in Singapore for Krrish," said director Rakesh Roshan. "It is tough to get permission to shoot in India. But the Singapore government was very supportive. Asian countries are very Bollywood-friendly."
The trend has a benefit for host nations as well: the locations used tend to become popular tourist destinations for Indian travellers. The European Alps are a popular Bollywood film location, so Switzerland was one of the first countries to experience an increased flow of Indian tourist traffic due to exposure in Hindi movies. Following Switzerland's experience, other countries such as Singapore, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates (Dubai), Austria, South Africa, Egypt and Canada have raced to lure Bollywood by offering incentives.
The Singapore Tourism Board has invested S$10 million (US$6.3 million) under the Film in Singapore! scheme that subsidizes international film productions by up to 50%. Krrish was the first mega-Bollywood film to make use of this fund. A spokesperson for the board has said that Bollywood is the best way to "showcase Singapore to Indians", given Indians' passion for films. Singapore expects 700,000 visitors from India in 2006, compared with just under 600,000 last year.
The Asian-dominated city of Leicester in the English East Midlands region has drawn up elaborate plans to boost film production. Bollywood blockbusters such as Mohabbatein, Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai have been shot in England, Scotland and Wales. The Yorkshire Tourist Board has submitted a bid to the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) to host its 2007 awards in Yorkshire. The awards have been held in Singapore, South Africa and Amsterdam in the past and Yorkshire could be next on the list. This year the venue is Dubai, with one of Bollywood's greatest actors, Amitabh Bachchan, acting as IIFA's brand ambassador.
 While speaking at an IIFA forum recently, Bachchan said: "It's a very interesting phase with the younger generation very keen to prove themselves and aggressively match qualities of world-class cinema, and many of our films this year are so progressive. We used to be criticized for our song-and-dance routine, but have you seen how the world has been lapping it up? It's due to the opening-up of the economy. Once a country progresses, people like everything it does."
Kim Jong-min, chief executive officer of the Korea Tourism Organization, said, "South Korea has just got a taste of Bollywood with Gangster being shot almost exclusively there, and is setting the wheels in motion to promote itself as a destination for [shooting] Indian films"
Poland is the latest Bollywood host, with a major production, Fanaa, featuring top stars Kajol and Amir Khan, being filmed in there. The Polish Tourist Organization has even used the movie to launch its latest campaign to attract tourists. Emilia Engler of the Polish Tourist Organization said in an interview with the Mumbai-based newspaper Daily News & Analysis: "We started with Fanaa and now are on the process of taking some Bollywood producers to Poland for a familiarization trip. Until now, Poland has not been on the itinerary of the Indian going to Europe. But now we want to attract Indians to our country. And what better [way] than showing them the country through Bollywood? We have taken the first step with Fanaa."
Bollywood's budgets and box-office takes still do not compare to Hollywood's, but the scale of the business is not trivial. Financial analysts PricewaterhouseCoopers report India's film business earned $1.12 billion in 2004, up from $617 million in 2001, although that would not cover the global takings from just one Harry Potter film, it is still substantial business. In 2003, the industry earned more than $703 million. Much of this success is driven by global popularity. An average Indian movie's budget is $500,000 (though the major titles can budget more than $10 million), far below the average $14 million spent in the US.
PricewaterhouseCoopers say Bollywood will double its turnover by 2009. Since 2001, the government has allowed financial institutions to cover up to $1 million of a picture's budget or up to 40% of the total production cost. A Rabo India study indicates that the number of films financed through organized sources last year went up 200% against 2002, though the total corporate finance going into films is still quite low and was a little more than $150 million in 2004.
According to another study by KPMG, while India produces more films than any other country, its share of global cinema revenue is a lowly 1%. The US leads with 60%, and India is far behind Japan, the UK and France as well. However, KPMG projects that the revenue of the Indian film industry will cross $2 billion next year and $3.5 billion by 2010.
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