Ministry of Tourism, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Gujarat Tourism, Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board and India Tourism Development Corporation joined hands with PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry to organise the 6th GFTC in Mumbai. In the opening session, Dr. Ranjeet Mehta, Executive Director PHDCCI highlighted the contribution of tourism in the fast-paced growth of the country’s GDP; Mr. Anil Parashar, Chairman of Tourism Committee and Co-Chair Mr. Rajan Sehgal spoke about the impact that cinema has on shaping minds and the role it plays in propelling people to visit the places that they see on screen. The session was moderated by Ms Shalini S Sharma Assistant Secretary General PHDCCI. A knowledge report, curated by PHDCCI and written by KPMG on Indian film tourism, was launched on this occasion.
Panel discussions highlighted the role of Central and state policies in promoting tourism; incentives offered by states to promote film shootings which in turn support the ecosystem for tourism; role played by Indian films in promoting tourism globally and how films shoots are shaping tourism itineraries through the confluence of tour operators and line producers of films.
Chief Guest Dr. Vinay Sahasrabuddhe, President, Indian Council for Cultural Relations felicitated a galaxy of filmmakers, singers and scriptwriters for their contribution to promoting Incredible India gobally and boosting tourism. These included filmmaker duo Abbas-Mustan; actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui; scriptwriter Rumy Jafry; ghazal maestro Hariharan and 2024 Grammy winner flautist Rakesh Chaurasiya.
A power-packed audience comprised officials from the Film Facilitation Office (FFO); senior government officials; consul generals; production houses; state and international tourism boards; line producers; tour pperators; hoteliers and aviation companies. Global tourism boards were represented through consulate officials from Argentina, Belarus, China, Finland, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mexico and Sri Lanka.
Among the industry partners of 6th GFTC were Sterling Holiday Resorts, Karma Lakelands and Depioneer Holidays India.
