The State has always attracted the various film industries from across the country. Some of the more popular movies from Bollywood were filmed in the State. Then the virus came through and stopped everything for two years. It was really bad with jobs being lost here in Goa as well as in Mumbai and other centres. Now with the situation having eased up, film crews are a common sight across various parts of the State.
Sanjay Shetye said there was without a doubt an increase in the number of film shoots in Goa. He said this trend commenced in the month of March. He said, “I expect this to change now with the monsoons expected to commence shortly. It will be difficult to have outdoor shoots. But yes, indoor shoots will take place. There are a lot of advertisements and feature films being shot. There are several queries being generated. The Tamil and Telugu film industry are doing a lot of work here in Goa. They are recruiting local vendors.’ He went on to say that several production houses from Mumbai had parked their equipment in Goa. This meant it was possible to access the equipment at a cheaper rate in the State. He however bemoaned the fact that Goan line producers had not invested in such equipment.
Dilip Borkar, another major line producer in the State, said films from Bollywood and the Telugu industry were shooting in the state. He said “Today I am shooting for a music video with several Goans hired. With regards to the pandemic I am willing to say this; my last two years were busy. There were several shoots that happened. Crews would come, stay single and we would provide sanitizers and even facilities to conduct tests. Business was very good. No one should complain.”
Tapan Acharya, an actor and now also involved behind the camera said the Information and and Broadcasting minister Anurag Thakur visited Cannes and said India would be the next destination for content creation. He said “Goa has the weather, the beaches, the hills and the basic infrastructure. All this is ideal to make a film. It is also well connected to Mumbai and South India. And yes the mentality of the people is in sync to make it a viable destination. It has the city as well as the village vibe all in a seventy kilometre radius. And yes the ease of doing business is boosted by the fact you get all your permissions in quick time. And then you take a line producer and get the quotations in place. Then you can start to shoot. All this makes it obvious why all the shootings are taking place in Goa.”
Milroy Goes who is a director and is called to assist said there was a lot of work taking place in the State. He said “Locals are employed as extras and yes some technicians which is quite rare because they usually all come from Mumbai. I worked on an assignment as an art director and they had taken local equipment like cameras and lights. We have good equipment suppliers for the Netflix series which were shot in Goa. They prefer to hire locals because it is easier and economical. We have Goan personnel who are talented and who are hired when outstation crews come over. Work will continue to come to Goa because of the locale as well as the talent”.
Sai Pananeikar of Sai Films said a lot of advertising films and series were being shot in Goa. This situation he felt would continue because of the beauty of Goa.
Danny Gomes who provides lights and grips amongst other equipment said there was working coming from domestic as well as international crews. He said, “We just supplied equipment to a Moroccan crew and yes business has increased dramatically after Covid. I have nothing to complain about.”
The film industry in Goa has experienced very hard times and it is now heartening to see business has increased and people have work and are earning money.
