Current government supportive of entertainment sector, says Aamir Khan at WAVES summit

Bollywood actor Aamir Khan speaks at the session ‘Studios of the Future: Putting India on World Studio Map’ at the World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit (WAVES) 2025, in Mumbai, Friday, May 2, 2025
| Photo Credit:
SHASHANK PARADE

The present government at the centre was the first to pay attention to the problems and opportunities of the media and entertainment sector, said actor Aamir Khan at the ongoing World Audio Visual Entertainment Summit in Mumbai. 

“It is the first time that any government at the centre has thought about us….it is a huge opportunity for Indian filmmakers across languages,” he said during a panel discussion on ‘Studios of the Future: Putting India on World Studio Map’.

“This is the first time that such dialogues have been started,” he said in reference to the conference.

The discussions and deliberations at WAVES would find its way into policy making for the sector. “We can come out with policies that have far reaching consequences,” he added. 

The 60-year old actor also made a case for investing in infrastructure and building more theatres for the vast cinema-going audience. India needed more and different types of theatres, he said. 

“I feel that whatever issues we have faced over the decades is just about having more screens. And according to me that is what we should be investing in.”

However he admitted that over-the-top platforms were having an adverse effect on the earnings of theatrical releases. The time between public releases and OTT releases had decreased and in some cases viewers already had access to the films on such platforms. 

“The window between theatrical and OTT is too small,” he said pointing out that filmmakers were killing their own businesses. 

In the context of taking Indian films global, Khan said that films made by Indian filmmakers were made for a local audience and still lacked the global appeal that, for instance, Hollywood films had. 

While Indian films releasing overseas sometimes do good business, it is largely to the Indian diaspora overseas who consume the content. 

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Published on May 2, 2025