Boney Kapoor-led firm signs agreement, work on film city near Noida airport ‘to begin in 4-5 months’

Dr Arun Vir Singh, CEO, YEIDA, said it is a big day for the residents of Uttar Pradesh. “It was envisioned two-and-a-half-years ago and is coming to fruition today. Film city is an integral part of the all-round development of the area, which will also have an airport, Indian Railways, Metro, Expressway, Pod Taxi, Rapid Rail and Orbit Rail. There is also a dedicated freight corridor here. There could not have been a more suitable place for Film City. There is a complete ecosystem here,” said Singh after signing the agreement.

Filmmaker Kapoor said that he wants to give more to the society through the project.

“Recently, during visits to London and Los Angeles, I had the opportunity to inspect numerous studios and observe the latest technological advancements in their construction. Our endeavour will be to begin the shooting of the film after building one floor only, so that we feel that the film city has started. This will show the world that the film city has commenced. Our effort will be to give more than what we take,” he said while addressing the media along with Ashish Bhutani, the CEO of Bhutani group, after signing the agreement.

On January 30, 2024, Bayview Projects LLP, a firm backed by Kapoor along with the consortium of two other firms — Parmesh Construction Company Limited (Bhutani Group) and Noida Cyberpark Private Limited — won the bid for the development of International Film City, leaving behind a company backed by actor Akshay Kumar and production giant T-Series.

Bayview provided YEIDA with 18% gross revenue share, which was the highest financial bid among the four companies.

The letter of award was issued to the successful bidder on March 11 after which the consortium formed the SPV for the project. While the project will be developed by the company, YEIDA will be the nodal authority.

On September 29, 2023, the authority had issued a global e-tender for the third time to develop the film city on Design, Build, Finance, Operate and Transfer (DBFOT) basis.

Under the Phase-1 of the project, a total of 230 acres will be developed, which will include 75 acres (33%) of commercial and 155 acres (67%) of filming component. The estimated project cost is Rs 1,510 crore and the construction period has been set at three years.

A total of 1,000 acres have been identified for the complete project, out of which 220 acres is for commercial use while 780 acres is for industrial use.

The project will have filming facilities, studios, a film institute, an amusement park/family recreation centre, hotels and restaurants, retail shops, a shopping mall, serviced residences, and commercial offices besides other filming and supporting assets.

It will also have facilities for music production, dubbing, editing, VFX and special effects, film festival and premiere arenas.

Officials said that an amount of Rs 832.91 crore will cover filming components such as studio backlots and open sets whereas Rs 373.93 crore will be allocated for hospitality, Rs 315.07 crore for service accommodation, Rs 109.60 crore for offices, and Rs 76.44 crore for infrastructure enhancements.

Out of 230 acres, 135 acres will be designated for filming facilities, and an additional 21 acres will be allocated for a film institute.