Reliving The Magic Of Filmistan Studios, One Last Time
As the iconic Goregaon studio makes way for luxury towers, we look back at the legends, films, and memories it gave Indian cinema.
Another piece of Bollywood history is making way for real estate.
Filmistan Studio in Goregaon, established in 1943 and once a powerhouse of Hindi cinema, has been sold to Arkade Developers for Rs 183 crore. The developer plans to launch a premium residential project on the site in 2026, featuring two 50-storey towers with 3, 4, and 5 BHK homes and penthouses. It has a projected Gross Development Value (GDV) of Rs 3,000 crore.
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This marks the third iconic film studio in Mumbai to be sold for redevelopment. Earlier, RK Studios in Chembur and Kamal Amrohi's Kamalistan Studios in Jogeshwari were transformed into multi storey buildings.
"This place that we could not enter had an arch with Filmistan Studio ' written on it. It's gone," said film historian Amrit Gangar, standing near what was once the main entrance.
A Final Glimpse
We tried to enter the studio one last time to step inside the space where Hindi cinema once breathed. But the gate, once crowned by the iconic Filmistan Studio arch, was shut. Now private property, we were turned away. Just as we were about to leave, a man living in a house right next to the compound overheard our conversation. When he learned we were working on a story about the studio's past, he invited us in.
Inside his modest home, he led us to a back room his bedroom. From the window, we got an unexpected, uninterrupted view into the heart of Filmistan. The same stages where Tumsa Nahin Dekha and Jagriti were shot, the space where countless wedding processions and funeral scenes were filmed was now eerily still. And there it stood, the abandoned temple set, instantly recognisable from so many Bollywood films. Cracked, dusty, and quiet... but unmistakably there.
It was like seeing a piece of Indian film history frozen in time, forgotten but still holding on.
Where Stories Were Born
Filmistan was founded by Sasadhar Mukherjee, grandfather of actors Kajol and Rani Mukerji along with his brother-in-law Ashok Kumar, Gyan Mukherjee, and Rai Bahadur Chunilal, after a split with Bombay Talkies.
"The birth of Filmistan is very fascinating. I believe the Nizam of Hyderabad helped fund the land," said Gangar.
The studio went on to produce iconic films like Shaheed, Jagriti, and Tumsa Nahin Dekha, and gave music legends like SD Burman and Madan Mohan their big breaks.
Even after it stopped producing films in the late '60s, its 7 shooting floors, temple, jail, and village sets remained active for decades
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