Bollywood UK
Last updated: 09/10/2006 - 10:03
Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell has lead a trade delegation to India, as part of ongoing efforts to encourage the Indian film industry ? the biggest in the world ? to both make more movies in the UK and to use British film talent on both sides of the camera.
Ten Indian films were shot in the UK in 2001, spending around ?2.5 million in the process? but the potential to build on that partnership is enormous. India produced in excess of 1,000 films in 2001 for its vast domestic ? and increasing overseas market. In India, watching feature films in cinemas and theatres has long been one of the most ? arguably the most - popular form of entertainment. There are a staggering 3 billion trips made to the cinema each year across the Indian sub-continent...
Tessa Jowell's visit started with a keynote address to nearly 2000 business delegates at the Frames entertainment festival in Mumbai, where her speech discussed the opportunities and threats facing the global creative community.
Highlighting the need for joint international efforts to tackle piracy and copyright theft she spoke about the UK Government's intention to create a forum - with the creative industries - to consider some of the key issues surrounding the protection of intellectual property rights.
She said: "We have to get the consumer on our side. Theft of intellectual property rights is not a victimless crime. But that's often how it's portrayed. As long as consumers don't see the connection between a cheap pirated video bought in a market and the real threat to the movie making future, we won't make much progress."