Bollywood finds its way on London map

As Bollywood's love affair with London continues with films being shot at various locations there, British film authorities have now unveiled a new map that lists venues where recent blockbusters were shot.

So the next time tourists from India come visiting, they can visit locations where popular films such as Kabhi Khushie Kabhi Gham, Mujhse Dosti Karoge (Starford Station) were shot.

The new movie map is eighth in a series of maps designed to encourage tourists and cinema-lovers alike to discover the Capital through films. More than 40 Hindi films were shot in London last year.

Some of the most popular locations for Indian films have been Trafalgar Square, Natural History Museum, Tower Bridge, The Royal Albert Hall, Millennium Dome, the Houses of Parliament, Nelson's Column and the London Eye.


Some of the better-known films shot at London locations are:

* Southall is home to one of the largest Indian communities in London and was the setting for Kajol's home in Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995).

* Hyde Park was one of one of the locations for a song in Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham. The song culminates with an early morning dance sequence shot at the British Museum.

Several cinemas in London screen Bollywood films, including the Himalaya Palace, Southall; Safarai Cinema, Harrow; Belle-Vue Cinema, Willesden Green, and the Boleyn Cinema, Upton Park. Cineworld Cinemas in Wood Green, Wandsworth and Feltham also have regular Bollywood screenings.

To celebrate the partnership between the Indian and British film industries, the International Film Academy is coming to Yorkshire for a weekend of film premieres, festivals, special events and awards June 7-10.