UK and India announced a new era of cooperation between their respective screen industries on Wednesday, as UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer touched down in Mumbai for a trade visit.
Starmer is leading a delegation of more than 100 entrepreneurs, university vice-chancellors and cultural leaders, including director Gurinder Chadha and British Film Institute (BFI) governors Monica Chadha and Andrew Smith, who is also Corporate Affairs Director at Pinewood Studios.
Measures announced on the trip, aimed at boosting business ties in the wake of the signing of the UK/India Free Trade Agreement signed in July 2025, included a MOU between the BFI and its Indian counterpart, the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC).
In a sign of the new era of film cooperation, Starmer announced that top Indian film and production company Yash Raj Films had committed to shooting three new Bollywood blockbusters in locations across the UK from 2026, after a long absence.
The BFI said in a release, announcing the MOU and three-picture deal, that the productions would create more than 3,000 jobs and boost the economy “by millions of pounds”.
“Bollywood is back in Britain, and it’s bringing jobs, investment and opportunity, all while showcasing the UK as a world-class destination for global filmmaking,” Starmer was quoted as saying by the BFI.
“This is exactly the kind of partnership our trade deal with India is destined to unlock – driving growth, strengthening cultural ties and delivering for communities across the country.”
Yash Raj Films’ CEO Akshaye Widhani, who hosted Starmer in a visit to the company’s Mumbai HQ, noted the deal coincided with the 30th anniversary of its UK-shot hit film Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (DDLJ).
“The UK holds a very special place in our hearts and some of our most iconic films, including Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (DDLJ) were shot in this beautiful and incredibly hospitable country,” he said.
“It is truly special to reignite YRF and UK’s filming ties in the 30th anniversary of DDLJ – a film that is synonymous to UK-India’s relationship. Our company is currently producing the stage adaptation of DDLJ, the English musical titled Come Fall in Love (CFIL) in the UK too.”
BFI Chief Executive Ben Roberts also welcomed the closer ties, saying the MOU reflected a mutual belief in the economic and cultural power of the screen industries.
“Our respective Governments recognise that our screen industries working closer unlocks opportunities to strengthen cultural diversity, support industry growth and expand audience engagement – and our new MOU is designed to help make this happen,” he said.
The BFI noted that beyond Bollywood, the institute already had strong connections with India’s new emerging independent scene.
It detailed that Karan Khandari’s Cannes 2024 Directors’ Fortnight selection Sister Midnight and Shalini Adnani’s upcoming untitled film were both supported by the BFI Filmmaking Fund.
Sister Midnight was also supported by the UK Global Screen Fund, with funding for international distribution, while Payal Kapadia’s Cannes 2025 Grand Prix winner All We Imagine As Light was distributed in the UK by the BFI.
This year’s BFI London Film Festival, which opens Wednesday, features Anuparna Roy’s Songs of Forgotten Trees and the Archive Special Presentation of Sholay, Ramesh Sippy’s 1975 classic.
The BFI added it had been actively collaborating with the NFDC since 2021, with its presence at India Film Bazaar in 2022 as well as a National Lottery-funded delegation of UK producers attending this event in Goa in 2023.
Other joint activities have included the UK-India co-production meetings organised at the Cannes film festival and the Co-production Forum at the UK Asian Film Festival. It said MOU would formalize and provide a strategic direction for this cooperation.
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