The latest Bollywood blockbuster film, No Problem, is currently shooting in Cape Town. The film set was visited by Western Cape Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Tourism, Alan Winde and the CEO of the Cape Film Commission, Laurence Mitchell on Monday 3 August.
According to the Western Cape Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Tourism, Alan Winde, “the successful hosting of the IPL earlier this year gave us massive exposure in India as it beamed images of our country into the homes of millions – this provided the Western Cape with a wonderful opportunity to access this significant tourism and film market. We are now actively targeting the Indian and the Middle Eastern markets, as both have huge potential”.
No Problem is a Bollywood police action movie that stars major names, such as Anil Kapoor (Slum Dog Millionaire), Sanjay Dutt and Suneel Shetty.
“The fact that Cape Town and the Western Cape has been able attract these influential and leading men and women of Bollywood is to a large extent due to the fact that we are truly recognized as a global film industry destination”, Minister Winde said.
He added that the abundance of both Bollywood and Hollywood A-list actors and big budget productions coming to the Western Cape was a signal that the Cape Town film industry was well on track to become a key contributor to the province’s economy. “In order to ensure that we grow this contributor even further, we need to make sure that our service offering, whether in tourism or film, is exceptional”.
Mitchell said, “The Cape Film Commission has over the past five years worked tirelessly to attract big Hollywood and in particular Bollywood productions to Cape Town, and we are pleased that our efforts have proved successful.”
The production of No Problem has employed at least 80 local people as crew and cast members. “The service industry has been able to provide catering, transport and security services, and the housing of crewmembers and the cast has contributed over 2,000 bed nights to our hotels in the space of less than one month. Indeed, the spin-offs have benefitted our entire tourism industry,” said Mitchell.
The Cape Film Commission will undertake a mission to India later this year to cement the Western Cape’s relationship with Bollywood and directly present the film industry’s service offering to the huge Indian film market.
