From film locations to a creative economy: Meghalaya bets on cinema, digital content and local talent

Guwahati: Meghalaya is seeking to turn its reputation as one of India’s most attractive filming destinations into something bigger, a state-level creative economy built around film production, local talent, digital content and tourism.

The strategy is beginning to show measurable outcomes. The state’s first feature film backed by its Film Tourism Policy 2025, Baa Baa Black Sheep, completed 100% of its shoot in Meghalaya in just 25 days and generated employment opportunities for nearly 2,000 local youth.

Now, through its state-backed OTT platform ‘Hello Meghalaya’ and a package of incentives for film production, the government is seeking to build an ecosystem where the economic value generated by the creative sector extends beyond individual film shoots to local artists, musicians, filmmakers, technicians and content creators.


The strategy was showcased at Film Expo India at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi, where the ‘Hello Meghalaya’ pavilion attracted around 300 visitors on its opening day.

Bollywood filmmakers and actors, creative professionals and representatives from technology and AI sectors expressed interest in the state’s locations as well as its emerging pool of local talent.

The interest from the film industry was underscored by actor Vindu Dara Singh, who said, “Meghalaya has taken the first step; I promise you that we will be coming and shooting a movie in Meghalaya very soon.” For Meghalaya, however, the larger opportunity lies beyond attracting the next film shoot.

Under the Meghalaya Film Tourism Policy 2025, the state is positioning itself as a premier filming destination under its Vision 2032. The policy provides incentives including single-window clearances through the Invest Meghalaya Portal and subsidies of up to Rs 1 crore or 25% of production costs, along with special grants linked to the use of local talent and music and premieres on the ‘Hello Meghalaya’ OTT platform.

The economic proposition is straightforward: attract productions to the state, increase local participation in those productions and ensure that a greater share of the resulting economic activity remains within the local creative ecosystem.

The experience of Baa Baa Black Sheep provides an early indicator of that potential. With the entire film shot within Meghalaya in 25 days, the production created employment opportunities for nearly 2,000 local youth, demonstrating how a film can generate activity well beyond the production company itself.

The model also creates potential linkages with tourism, hospitality, transport, local services, crafts, music and other businesses associated with film production.

From subsidies to digital monetisation

Meghalaya’s bet does not end when a film wraps. At the centre of the state’s strategy is ‘Hello Meghalaya’, a state-backed OTT platform aimed at creating a digital market for local creative content. The platform provides free access to regional content while allowing creators to earn through a viewership-based revenue model.

The platform is designed for a wide range of creators from filmmakers and musicians to other content producers, giving local talent an avenue to reach audiences beyond the state while creating opportunities to monetise their work.

The broader ambition is to create a pipeline in which talent development, content production, distribution and monetisation are connected rather than treated as separate government interventions.

Bollywood interest adds momentum

The national film industry’s response at Bharat Mandapam provides an important signal for the strategy.

Alongside Vindu Dara Singh, Nixon D’Cruz, Associate Director of Pushpa, expressed interest in future creative ventures and exploring Meghalaya’s talent pool. Filmmaker Ashwin Nayak also praised the state’s efforts, saying, “The Government of Meghalaya is doing a fantastic job, talent is inborn across all the tribes of Meghalaya.”

A visitor to the pavilion described Meghalaya as “the Gen Z of states”, capturing the positioning the state is increasingly seeking for itself: young, culturally distinctive, digitally connected and open to new creative industries.

The state’s approach also extends beyond cinema. At the Film Expo, Meghalaya showcased indigenous textiles and traditional attire from Meghalaya and the wider North East, bringing its cultural and creative industries into the same national conversation.

The underlying proposition is that Meghalaya’s natural landscape may bring filmmakers to the state, but local talent, policy incentives, digital distribution and cultural assets can determine how much economic value the creative industry ultimately generates within the state.

For a state seeking to diversify its economic opportunities, the creative sector offers a particularly significant proposition: it can connect young people to employment and entrepreneurship while simultaneously strengthening tourism, culture and digital participation.

Meghalaya’s emerging model therefore goes beyond positioning the state as a place where films can be shot. It is an attempt to build a complete creative value chain, from attracting productions and creating local employment to developing talent, distributing original content and enabling creators to earn from their audiences.

The next phase will determine whether this early momentum can translate into a sustained pipeline of productions, investment and creative businesses. But with a film tourism policy, a dedicated digital platform and early evidence of local employment generation, Meghalaya is positioning its creative economy as a potential new pillar of its growth story.