Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting L Murugan will lead an Indian Delegation to the Tashkent International Film Festival at Tashkent, Uzbekistan from Friday to Sunday.

India’s participation in this film festival is aimed at building cinematic partnerships, have an exchange of programmes, nurturing filmmaking and acting as a bridge between cultures.

Known as the “Pearl of The Silk Road,” the Tashkent International Film Festival was started in 1968, and the Indian film “Amrapali” was screened at the opening edition of the festival.

Indian cinema made a name for itself on the world map back in the early cinema days when films of Raj Kapoor received love from across the world, especially in Uzbekistan and the Central Asia region as well.

Indian cinema continues to have a charm to date as India’s cultural way of storytelling and art forms transcend into storytelling and are appreciated not only in India but the world over. A recent example was the song “Natu Natu” from the film RRR by Rajamouli which bagged the award for best song at the Golden Globe, winning the heart of cinema lovers across the world.

Relations between Uzbekistan and India have their roots deeper in history. In recent years, there has been significant intensification in bilateral ties under Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Working on the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to create an enriching filming ecosystem and a future-ready Industry with ongoing growth prospects in India for the world, India has been keen to co-produce movies, exchange understanding and techniques of cinema, and develop ways to make cinema industries inclusive.

During its presidency year of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) this year, India organised the SCO Film Festival at Mumbai in January 2023.

India’s participation in the Tashkent International Film Festival (TIFFEST) is on the theme given by Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur of ‘Showcasing India’s Creative Economy,’ which promises to be a catalyst for exciting and meaningful discussions.

As India paves the way to become a global content hub and create a collaborative filming ecosystem, the Tashkent Festival will provide the platform for cinematic partnerships between Uzbekistan and other participating countries. An announcement of incentives to foreign filmmakers will be promoted to attract more filmmakers to India.

The festival platform will also be utilized to promote this year’s edition of the 54th International Film Festival of India (IFFI), which is scheduled from 20th to 28th November 2023 in Goa, India.