Driven by growing audience and an expanding market for international movies, the Indian film and television industry is expected to reach a size of over Rs 600 billion (Rs 60,000 crore) in the next five years, says a report.
According to the report - Economic Contribution of Indian Film and Television Industry by PricewaterhouseCoopers, the combined revenues of the industry were over Rs 350 billion (Rs 35,000 crore) in 2008-09. It created about 1.8 million jobs, while contributing Rs 283.05 billion ( Rs 28,305 crore) to the Indian economy.
Releasing the report, Motion Picture Association of America, Chairman Dan Glickman said: "This report demonstrates the importance of the film and television sector to the overall growth and vitality of the Indian economy."
He, however, cautioned that the industry will be hurt by the ever increasing piracy unless the government acted to impose stricter laws.
"The menace of copyright theft jeopardizes a movie's ability to make money - if at all. This affects the level of investment available for new films and the ability to create new jobs for workers throughout the country," Glickman said.
Citing a study by the US India Business Council and the Ernst & Young, he said piracy cost the Indian film industry $959 million (about Rs 4,364 crore) and some 571,000 jobs in 2008.
He said the main mode of piracy is use of camcorders in theatres and the industry needs government support against use of the device in screening locations.
Despite the piracy issues, the Indian film and television industry is poised to get bigger. "Over the past few years the industry has experienced rapid double-digit growth and it is expected that this trend will continue in future, resulting in increasing contribution to the Indian economy," Time Warner Senior Vice-President Hugh Stephens.
He said Time Warner has been investing in the Indian market and will continue to do is various areas of media and entertainment sector. Besides domestic films and programmes, international and Hollywood presence in India will also grow substantially, it added.
According to it, the international film industry's total contribution in India in 2008-09 was Rs 304 crore, creating employment of 14,000 people.
