Bild: Titlis in Engelberg as a key Bollywood-inspired destination for Indian tourists (taken by Hania Janta)

FilmInd. The Indian film industries as a driver of new socio-economic connections between India and Europe

About the Project

FilmInd is an international research project funded by EqUIP (EU-India Platform for Social Sciences and Humanities) which aims to support collaboration between Europe and India. The research consortium consists of University of Basel (Switzerland), Jawaharlal Nehru University (India), Novia University of Applied Sciences (Finland), Adam Mickiewicz University (Poland), Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts (Slovenia) and is coordinated by the University of Basel. The project lasted from January 2019 to December 2022.

This unique project that explores the relationship between film productions and the impact of film circulation by bringing together scholars across disciplines including film studies, geography, cultural studies, and tourism studies as well as various methods of primary data collection. Set against the background of the unprecedented rise in film incentives globally and in Europe, the project examined five destinations, with a different history of exposure to the Indian film industry: Switzerland, Poland, Slovenia, Portugal and Finland. 

Research Objectives

1. to scale and analyse the specific locations across Europe where Indian films are being shot,
2. to identify the nature of the infrastructure that allows for easy mobility of film crews to these European locations,
3. to investigate the construction of place through the use of European locations in Indian cinema,
4. to analyse the socio-economic impact of the Indian film industry in Europe and in India, and,
5. to promote and support local and regional development in Europe and India through the Indian film industries.

Overview of the methods

For the purpose of the project, various qualitative and quantitative research methods were employed: i) a statistical analysis of IMDb data of 580 Indian films shot in Europe; ii) a quantitative analysis of 594 film scenes provided a detailed overview of geographical and cultural representations of European locations in Indian cinema; iii) over 100 in-depth interviews with location stakeholders and film industry professionals conducted in Switzerland, Poland, Slovenia, Finland, Portugal and India; iv) six focus groups with European and Indian audiences, allowing us to understand the changing nature of the European locations in film; v) an eye-tracking method (based on tracking the movement of the eyeballs) to study cultural differences in the perception of Indian films; vi) location analysis of 100 films shot in European locations, and; vii) four stakeholder workshops leading to the development of a Workshop Concept. 

Results

Our project findings underscore the changing character of the use of European destinations in Indian cinema, with Western Europe losing its appeal in favour of Eastern and Northern Europe due to the availability of competing incentives schemes. Europe is portrayed as an inspiring, prestigious and exotic film destination, chosen for both creative and practical reasons. Indian productions result in new socio-economic connections between India and Europe; the arrival of large production crews from India to Europe as well as film-induced tourism flows appear to be important aspects of filming in Europe. Non-academic outputs include resources for various groups: students, teachers, cinema fans, and industry persons:

• A Geoatlas of European locations
• Workshop Guide and Concept