Bengaluru: Filmmakers can now shoot inside Namma Metro

In what is a positive update for filmmakers and students, the Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) has resumed issuing permits for shooting inside the coaches albeit with terms, conditions and a considerable price. From 2019 onwards, the permissions were not granted. “The previous suspension of permissions for shooting commercial films and advertisements was driven by safety and security reasons. However, we had granted permission for the filming of documentaries related to government schemes and programmes at stations and aboard the trains. Now, we have received numerous requests for filming, and considering it as an additional source of revenue, we have resumed granting permission for film shooting,” a BMRCL official stated. 

A security deposit of ₹6,00,000 in the form of a Demand Draft Banker Cheque or e-Bank Guarantee would have to be made by professional filmmakers in order to avail this privilege. A licence fee (non-refundable) of ₹50,000 per hour that can extend up to ₹ 6,00,000 per day plus taxes as applicable will be charged. Students shooting for non-commercial purposes would be merely charged Rs 5000. Furthermore, Kannada films would be granted a 25% concession on these charges. 

Prospective filmmakers would have to ensure that the permission for this has been sought at least one month before the day of the shoot. For foreign nationals, this time period has been extended up to 2 months.