WAVES Summit 2025: Aamir Khan Bats For Cinema Access Across India - "People Hear About Films But Can't Watch Them"

NDTV

02-05-2025

New Delhi:
Actor Aamir Khan recently stated that India is a "film-loving" nation, but most of its population does not have access to cinemas.
Speaking on the second day of the World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit (WAVES), the 60-year-old actor took part in a session titled Studios of the Future: Putting India on the World Studio Map.
He stressed the need for better infrastructure to support the film industry's growth.
He said, "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.
"I feel that whatever issues we have faced over the decades is just about having more screens. And according to me, that is what we should be investing in. 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," he added.
The actor said India lags behind countries like the US and China in terms of the number of cinema screens.
He stated, "For the size of the country and the number of people living here, we have very few theatres. I think we have around 10,000 screens. In the US, which has one-third the population of India, they have 40,000 screens. So they are way ahead of us. China has 90,000 screens.
"Now, even in this 10,000, half of them are in the South and the other half is in the rest of the country. So for a Hindi film typically, it is around 5,000 screens," Aamir shared.
He pointed out that even the biggest movies only reach a small section of the population.
"Only two per cent of the population in our country, which is recognised as a film loving country, watches our biggest hits in theatres. Where is the rest -- 98 per cent -- watching a movie?" he asked.
He also highlighted that some regions, including the Konkan area, don't have any theatres.
"People in those areas will hear about the films, will see the chatter online but there is no way to watch them... that's a very unfortunate situation. So the first thing we need to do is that we must have more screens," he concluded.
On the summit's opening day, actor Shah Rukh Khan had also spoken about the need for more cinemas in India.
"I still believe the call of the day is simpler, cheaper theatres in smaller towns and cities so that we can showcase Indian films in whichever language to a larger majority of Indians for cheaper rates. Otherwise, it's becoming very expensive, only in big towns," he said.
The session also featured producers Ritesh Sidhwani, Dinesh Vijan, Namit Malhotra, PVR Inox founder Ajay Bijli and American film producer Charles Roven.