Aamir Khan Raises Concern Over THIS Problem In India At WAVES Summit 2025
Mumbai: On the second day of the World Audio Visual Entertainment Summit (WAVES), superstar Aamir Khan participated in a panel discussion titled "Studios of the Future: Putting India on World Studio Map" at JACC in Mumbai.
In the panel discussion, Aamir expressed his disappointment at the lack of theatres in India when compared to the population of the nation.
The 'Lagaan' actor compared the number of theatres in India with the US and China. With the help of estimated data, the actor highlighted the problem of movie screens in the nation.
"I have always believed that we have very few theatres for the size of the country and the number of people living in India. In India, we have around 10,000 screens. In the US, which is one-third of our population, they have 40,000 screens, and China has 90,000 screens compared to our 10,000. And even in this 10,000, half are in the South and half in the rest of the country. So, for a Hindi film, you have a maximum of 5,000 screens," said Aamir Khan.
The actor further underlines the fact that the biggest hits of the Indian cinema have a theatrical footfall of only 2 per cent of the entire population.
"Our biggest hits over the years, no matter what language, have had a theatrical footfall of three crore people. That's only 2 per cent of our entire population. Only 2% of our population in a country that is recognised as a film-loving country watches our biggest hits in theatres."
The 'Lagaan' actor calls for investing in the theatres in several districts and towns of India.
"I think that one of the biggest issues that we faced over the decades is that we just don't have enough screens, and according to me, that is what we should be investing in. My belief is that we need to have a lot more theatres in India and theatres of different kinds. There are districts and vast areas in the country that don't have a single theatre," said Aamir.
The 'Lagaan' actor believes India has huge potential in entertainment, but it can only be utilised if it has more theatrical screens in India.
"India has huge potential, but that can only be realised when you have more screens across the country. If you don't, then people won't watch the films, I can only hear about it," added Aamir.
WAVES 2025 will witness participation from over 90 countries, with more than 10,000 delegates, 1,000 creators, 300+ companies, and 350+ startups.
The summit will feature 42 plenary sessions, 39 breakout sessions, and 32 masterclasses spanning diverse sectors including broadcasting, infotainment, AVGC-XR, films, and digital media.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Mint
34 minutes ago
- Mint
Housefull 5 Box Office Collection Day 3: Akshay Kumar's comedy movie finishes ‘excellent' weekend run with ₹87 crore
Housefull 5 Box Office Collection Day 3: Housefull 5 starring Akshay Kumar finished its opening weekend with an 'excellent' run of over ₹ 87 crore at the Indian box office. The movie is the fifth instalment of the successful Housefull series. With its opening weekend collection of ₹ 87 crore, Housefull 5 is now Akshay Kumar's biggest first weekend after the COVID-19 pandemic, beating Sooryavanshi ( ₹ 77 crore). Trade analyst Taran Adarsh said the movie's weekend collection is 'an excellent result by all standards.' He also said that Housefull 5 has a 'loud and clear' audience approval is loud and clear, despite poor critic reviews. 'Most importantly, the Housefull franchise continues to be critic-proof – no amount of negativity or trolling has impacted its Box Office.' According to industry tracker Sacnilk, Housefull 5 minted a whopping ₹ 32 crore on Sunday, June 8. This was 3.23 per cent more than what it earned on Saturday. The comedy movie with a dash of thriller had earned ₹ 24 crore on its release day on Friday, June 6. Thanks to the Bakrid holiday, Housefull's Saturday earnings were 29.17 per cent higher at ₹ 31 crore. The Akshay Kumar movie has amassed a total of ₹ 87 crore in three days, concluding its opening weekend with a box office success. Sacnilk reported that Housefull 5 earned ₹ 87 crore gross at the worldwide box office within 3 days, with ₹ 22 crore coming from the overseas market. Raid 2's India gross stood at ₹ 65 crore. Housefull 5 saw an overall 39.52% occupancy on Sunday. Regions like Lucknow, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, and Jaipur saw the highest occupancy and the highest number of screenings for the film. Housefull 5 stars Akshay Kumar, Abhishek Bachchan, Riteish Deshmukh, Jacqueline Fernandez, Sonam Bajwa, Nargis Fakhri, and Soundarya Sharma in lead roles. Sanjay Dutt, Jackie Shroff, Nana Patekar, Chunky Panday, Johnny Lever, Shreyas Talpade, Dino Morea, Ranjit, Nikitin Dheer, Chitrangda Singh and Fardeen Khan are the other cast members. IMDb describes the plot of Housefull 5 as, 'In this murder mystery comedy, several imposters claiming to be the son of a recently deceased billionaire compete for his fortune aboard a luxury cruise ship.'
Time of India
36 minutes ago
- Time of India
Ektaa Kapoor REACTS to Anurag Kashyap's ‘saas bahu' dig; calls it ‘classist' and ‘dumb': ‘Artists who talk of...'
Ektaa Kapoor has fired back strongly at filmmaker Anurag Kashyap for his recent remarks about 'saas bahu' TV dramas. The producer, known for creating some of India's most popular family soaps, called Kashyap 'classist' for looking down on these shows. Ektaa defends her daily soaps Ektaa responded strongly to Anurag's dig. Taking to her Instagram stories, she wrote, 'Ur so dumb... saying this put u on an advantage 'I'm smarter cooler' but naaaaaaaa! Darling how about gracious!!! N self aware?????? An art a lot of artists don't have!' She added, ''Saas bahu' n their impact on Indian masses (how women got a voice in mass India) is well documented by a prestigious Chicago research! But artists who talk of an inclusive world are actually more classist.' Ektaa didn't stop there. Without naming anyone, she wrote, 'We must do away with this 'U can't sit with us we r better' attitude for democracy n fair play! Love n light to all (sic).' What started it all? The entire row began after Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos appeared on Nikhil Kamath's podcast and spoke about launching Netflix in India. Reflecting on the decision, he said he would have done things differently. According to Ted, starting the platform in India with the series 'Sacred Games' may not have been the right move, and something 'more populist' might have worked better. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 오스템 임플란트 받아가세요 임플란터 더 알아보기 Undo Anurag Kashyap lashes out Anurag Kashyap, who directed and produced 'Sacred Games', did not take the comment lightly. In a fiery Instagram post, he criticised Ted's remarks and took a swipe at him. He wrote, 'He should have started with Saas Bahu.. he would have done well. Which he is doing now (sic).' Taking it a step further, Anurag added, 'I always knew the tech guys are dumb when it comes to storytelling but @tedsarandos is the definition of dumb is what I didn't know. Good to discover that. This explains everything now (sic).' Check out our list of the latest Hindi , English , Tamil , Telugu , Malayalam , and Kannada movies . Don't miss our picks for the best Hindi movies , best Tamil movies, and best Telugu films .
NDTV
40 minutes ago
- NDTV
Did You Know Astronaut Rakesh Sharma's Son Is A Filmmaker?
New Delhi: Did you know that Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma, the first Indian to fly to space, has a son who chose a very different career path? His son Kapil Sharma is a filmmaker who directed the 2013 movie I, Me Aur Main, starring John Abraham, Chitrangda Singh and Prachi Desai. Kapil Sharma may not have followed in his father's footsteps, but space was very much a part of his childhood. In an interview with in 2011, Kapil recalled what it was like growing up as the son of India's first astronaut. "I was 10 and I remember everything. I knew by the age of four or five what a fighter aircraft was and what they did. I knew what my dad did," he said. He shared how fascinated he was seeing his father return from night flying missions: "For me, at the age of four or five, that was terrific when he came home with helmet and oxygen mask. I would wait for him to go on night flights just to see him in his clothes." Kapil said he was already familiar with sci-fi thanks to Star Wars, so when he learned that his father would be going to space, it felt surreal. He added, "For a kid, it was like going to an amusement park." While Rakesh Sharma was training for his space mission, the family lived in Moscow for a year-and-a-half. "The main launch took place in Kazakhstan. The family stays in Moscow, and when there is an opportunity to speak, mom would be taken to mission control in Moscow and she would speak to dad," Kapil recalled. When they returned to India, Kapil realised the scale of his father's fame. He shared, "In school, I was a star. I didn't always want that attention, but I got it by default." But it was cinema, not aviation or space, that captured Kapil's imagination. From a young age, he was drawn to theatre and backstage work. "In school and college, I was always interested in theatre and plays. I loved watching movies and everything about it, and somewhere in my middle teens, I wanted to know about the process of filmmaking," he said. Kapil studied environmental science at St Joseph's in Bangalore, but eventually pursued a master's in mass communication from Pune University, with a specialisation in video production. He began his career working in television, creating news features and fiction shows. Wanting to break into films, he then went to the US to study at the International Film and Television Workshop in Maine, where he learned skills like cinematography, direction and scriptwriting. Kapil returned to India in 2001 and, in 2013, made his directorial debut with I, Me Aur Main. Interestingly, before becoming a director, Kapil also had a brief stint in acting. He appeared in films such as The Legend of Bhagat Singh, Ab Tumhare Hawale Watan Saathiyo and Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro. Kapil's sister, Krittika Sharma, is a media artist. Meanwhile, Rakesh Sharma, now retired, has expressed his desire to be part of India's future space missions. Speaking to NDTV, he said he would like to fly in India's own manned mission Gaganyaan. The Gaganyaan mission, expected to launch in 2025-2026, is a key part of India's human spaceflight programme. Launched from Sriharikota on the Human Rated Launch Vehicle Mark-3 (GSLV Mk III), the Gaganyaan mission will send up to three astronauts into low-Earth orbit for up to three days. As the country waits for its next big leap in space, another Indian Air Force officer is getting ready to make history. Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, selected as one of ISRO's four astronauts for the Gaganyaan mission, is set to launch aboard the Axiom Mission 4. He and three other astronauts will travel aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station, scheduled for launch on June 10 at 8:22 am ET from NASA's Kennedy Space Centre. The Axiom 4 crew will orbit the station and carry out science experiments, outreach and commercial tasks, marking yet another milestone in India's growing space legacy, one that started with Rakesh Sharma's historic journey four decades ago.
