An entertaining twist to the city’s dynamic tale
For years, Hyderabad wore one badge with pride: the IT hub. The city that gave the world software engineers by the millions, that turned a sleepy Deccan town into a skyline of glass towers and server clusters. But now, things are changing. The next chapter being written for this city isn’t in “lines of code”. It’s in “frames per second”.
And the cast joining this story? Let’s just say it has some familiar faces.
Lights, camera, Hyderabad
Ajay Devgn’s proposed film city is not a vanity project attached to a famous name. The vision being discussed is a proper, working creative infrastructure – studios, sound stages, post-production suites, and an ecosystem that keeps an entire creative economy ticking. Think of it not as a film set but as a small city within a city, where the real economy runs on carpenters, costume designers, light technicians, junior artistes, and the chai stall outside Gate 3.
Salman Khan’s studio plans to add another layer. When two of Bollywood’s biggest names start looking at Hyderabad not just as a shooting location but also as a base of operations, it tells you something about where the gravity is shifting.
Hyderabad has always had the bones for this. The city already hosts major Telugu productions, has a strong post-production workforce, and sits at a geographic sweet spot which is close enough to Mumbai’s industry network, distinct enough to develop its own identity. What’s been missing is the infrastructure to hold it all together in one place. That, apparently, is now on the table.
The VFX angle nobody is talking about much
‘Baahubali’, one of the biggest blockbusters in Indian film history, had amazing VFX.
Director Rajamouli became a household name worldwide after the global release of ‘Baahubali’ parts 1 and 2.
Here’s where things get genuinely interesting. India’s VFX industry is growing fast – driven partly by Hollywood outsourcing, partly by the ambition of Indian productions that no longer want to look like Indian productions when they can look like global creations. Hyderabad, with its existing tech talent and design school graduates, is better placed than almost any other city to own this space.
A film city attracts not only directors and actors but also animators, compositors, sound designers, and a whole new generation of storytellers who grew up on screens and want to build what they watch. If the VFX component of these announcements takes root, Hyderabad could become the city where a scene shot in a warehouse ends up looking like Mars. That’s not a small thing.
Film tourism: Revenue that demands attention
Ask anyone who has visited Ramoji Film City (RFC) on a weekday and they’ll tell you that it’s packed – always! This goes on to prove that people don’t just want to watch films. They want to walk through them. Film tourism, which was once considered a novelty, is now a serious economic driver across the world. New Zealand built an entire post-‘Lord of the Rings’ identity around it. South Korea turned its drama sets into pilgrimage sites.
Hyderabad, with its mix of old-world charm, modern infrastructure, and now a potential new film district being integrated into the ambitious Bharat Future City project, is well-placed to offer something much better and engaging. Not a mere studio tour, but a city where cinema is being made, studied, and celebrated – all at once. That is a tourist proposition worth investing in.
From IT hub to ideas & images hub
The IT industry gave Hyderabad a template to attract talent, build infrastructure, and let the ecosystem do the rest. The creative economy works on the same logic, just a bit louder and a little more dramatic.
However, this shift isn’t about abandoning tech and HITEC City is certainly not going anywhere. It’s only about adding a second identity and another layer in the State’s economic growth and propelling Hyderabad towards becoming a city that exports software, and stories! Imagine a city where a data scientist and a documentary filmmaker can argue over lunch about whose work matters more, and both would have a point.
That kind of city is rare. And it happens only when a series of bets – some bold, some silent – land simultaneously.
What comes after the announcements
MoUs are only starting points, not guarantees. Anyone who has watched enough summits knows the gap between a press conference and a functioning studio is wide, and perhaps impassable. Land acquisition, financing timelines, and regulatory clearances – none of these are small items on a list.
But the direction is clear. And directions matter.
If Hyderabad gets even half of this right – with a working film city, a serious VFX cluster, and tourism infrastructure that makes visitors stay longer and come back – the impact won’t show up only in industry reports.
It’ll show up in multiple ways for different people
~ the sound design student who doesn’t have to move to Mumbai for an internship or a job
~ the travel blogger who books a film district walk instead of a food tour
~ the family running a homestay near a new studio district who finally has a full calendar
Hyderabad has always been a city that rewards the people who believed in it early.
The cameras began rolling. And now the city just has to show up on set to answer the call – ‘Lights, Camera, Action!’