(Photo : X.com)

• The President of the Producers Guild of India, Shibashish Sircar, met with Spanish President, Pedro Sanchez, marking a significant step in strengthening Indo-Spain film ties.
• The meeting, hosted by Akshaye Widhani of Yashraj Films, included discussions on the unique scale of the Indian film industry and factors influencing Indian producers' choice to shoot abroad.
• President Sanchez expressed interest in strengthening ties with the Indian film industry, seeing the meeting as a start to closer collaborations.
• This meeting promises to open new avenues for collaboration and mutual growth, enriching both the Indian and Spanish film industries.

In a recent development that promises to strengthen the ties between the Indian and Spanish film industries, Shibashish Sircar, the President of the Producers Guild of India (PGI), met with the President of Spain, Pedro Sanchez. This meeting, held in Mumbai on October 29, 2024, marked a significant step towards solidifying Indo-Spain filming ties. Sircar, who led the PGI delegation, expressed his pleasure and honor at meeting President Sanchez. He noted the Spanish President's genuine interest in understanding the Indian film industry and his keenness to deepen the ties between the two countries' film fraternities.

It was truly a pleasure and an honor meeting His Excellency, President Sanchez. The President was extremely receptive and engaging during our meeting, and what came through very clearly was his genuine interest in understanding our film industry and his keenness to deepen Indo-Spain filming ties, Sircar said. The PGI delegation included prominent figures from the Indian film industry, such as Aashish Singh of Red Chillies Entertainment, Ankur Garg of Luv Films, Shiv Chanana of T Series, and Nitin Tej Ahuja, CEO of PGI.

Key Participants and Discussions

Akshaye Widhani of Yashraj Films hosted the meeting at Yashraj Studios in Mumbai. The Indian Ambassador to Spain, Mr. Dinesh Patnaik, was also present at the meeting. President Sanchez was accompanied by several senior dignitaries, including the first lady Begona Gomez, Minister for Industry and Tourism Jordi Hereu Boher, and the Minister for Transportation and Sustainable Mobility Oscar Puente. This visit marked the first by a Spanish President to India in 18 years, highlighting the importance of this meeting.

During the meeting, Sircar shared insights into the unique scale and multilingual nature of the Indian film industry. He also discussed the factors that influence Indian producers when they choose to shoot in a foreign country. This exchange of ideas and perspectives is expected to pave the way for greater collaboration between the two countries' film industries. The meeting also saw discussions on ways to enhance collaboration between the filmmaking fraternities of both countries.

Future Collaborations and Historical Precedents

President Sanchez expressed his government's keen interest in strengthening ties with the Indian film industry. He was satisfied with the free-flowing and constructive dialogue that took place at the meeting and saw it as the start of a process of much closer collaborations between the two filmmaking communities. This meeting is reminiscent of similar historical events where film industries of different countries have come together to foster mutual growth and understanding.

For instance, the Indo-Canadian co-production treaty signed in 2014 aimed at encouraging the exchange of culture and talent between the two countries. Similarly, the Indo-Chinese film collaborations have resulted in successful films like 'Kung Fu Yoga' and 'Xuanzang'. These instances underline the potential benefits of such cross-cultural collaborations in the film industry.