File photo of huge crowd at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus. file | Photo Credit: Emmanuel Yogini
With the Central Railway likely to earn a record Rs 2.32 crore from film shoots in its premises in 2022, up from Rs 1.17 crore in 2021, an official said on Thursday, with the iconic Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus being the preferred destination for filmmakers.
He said that this amount is the highest for a film shoot for Central Railway for any calendar year, the feat being achieved by introducing various sites and rail coaches as locations.
“A total of 14 films were shot, including eight feature films, three web series, one documentary, one short film and one advertisement. The highest earning of ₹1.27 crore was from the feature film ‘2 Brides’, which was shot in took place at Yeola in Kanhegaon. Station with ‘Shooting Special’ train for 18 days. Another feature film shot with a special train for three days at Apta railway station near Panvel grossed ₹29.40 lakhs .
According to the release, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus continues to be the most preferred film shooting location as five films were shot at the UNESCO World Heritage railway station, including an advertisement for a Fast-Moving Consumer Good (FMCG).
Other popular destinations were railway stations like Apta, Panvel, Lonavala, Khandala, Wathar, Satara and railway yards like Turbhe and Wadi Bunder, it said, adding new emerging locations include Yeola, Kanhegaon station and Narayan Doho between Manmad and Ahmednagar. Newly constructed Ahmednagar-Ashti section.
According to officials, many box office hits including Slumdog Millionaire, Kaminey, Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, Ra-One, Raavan, Prem Ratan Dhan Payo, Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Dabangg, Darbar, Rang De Basanti, Baaghi , Khaki etc. have already been shot in CR premises.
The release said that a single window system has been introduced recently to expedite the granting of film shooting permissions.
“Central Railway, with its seamless process, attracted production houses to use its location for film shoots and it earned record revenue,” the release said.