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Perth will host its inaugural Indian Film Festival from November 12 to 15, it was announced in Mumbai on September 18, 2026, as Western Australia moves to deepen its screen, cultural and sporting ties with India.
The festival will showcase more than 30 films across Indian and South Asian languages at multiple locations in Perth and will welcome a select group of Indian filmmakers to Western Australia, including a visit to the newly opened Perth Film Studios.
The announcement formed part of discussions at the “Off the Pitch Fireside Chat: Western Australia and India: Connecting Through Culture, Tourism and Sport,” held during Western Australia’s investment and trade mission to India.
Western Australian Premier Roger Cook pointed to Perth Film Studios as central to that push. “The Perth Film Studios is a major piece of economic infrastructure that will position our state as a hub for international film production, which will create new opportunities for Western Australian talent and businesses,” Cook said.
Drawing comparisons with India’s Bollywood and Tollywood and America’s Hollywood, he joked that the studios’ location in the Perth suburb of Malaga might earn them the nickname “Mollywood.”
“We see film, television, gaming and digital content as powerful tools for cultural exchange, and we look forward to welcoming more Indian productions to our state,” he said.
The Mumbai discussion came a week after the launch of the West Australian Indian Film Council (WAIFC) at Government House in Perth, with WAIFC Founder and Chair Nilesh Makwana attending the Mumbai event.
“Western Australia is investing in its screen industry as part of building a more diverse economy,” Makwana said. “Our contribution is to help connect that investment and our creative talent with Indian partners who can see opportunities to work together.”
Referring to the newly established council, Cook said it would provide a bridge between Western Australia and India, bringing together filmmakers, industry, government, business, academia and the broader creative community.
“This will build opportunities for collaboration, talent exchange, investment and co-production,” he said.
The focus on India comes as Western Australia seeks to expand its creative industries and attract a greater share of film production.
Chad Anderson, Director General of the Western Australian Department of Creative Industries, Tourism and Sport, described Perth Film Studios as an important part of the state’s economic diversification agenda.
“The Perth Film Studios that just opened is an incredible new asset for Western Australia and for the world,” Anderson said.
Citing a statistic he said was not widely known, Anderson said Australia’s AFL and NRL competitions together draw a combined 11 million stadium spectators a year, compared with what he put at roughly four times that number for cinema admissions.
He said Western Australia’s creative industries contribute A$6.2 billion annually to the state’s economy and outlined an ambition to increase WA’s share of domestic Australian film production from 1 percent to 10 percent. “And Bollywood is absolutely a target market for us,” Anderson said.
Anderson extended that beyond acting and production talent. “We’re not just interested in what’s on screen, we’re interested in what goes on behind the camera,” he said.
“A career in the creative industries and a career in film is a genuine pathway for people, and we have shared passion, we have shared skills, we have shared aspiration.”
The WA Government had identified creative industries and the new Perth Film Studios as areas it intended to showcase during its September 17 to 25 investment and trade mission to India and Vietnam.
The cultural connection discussed in Mumbai also extended to sport, with cricket positioned as another link between Western Australia and India.
The Perth Scorchers will play the Melbourne Renegades in Chennai on December 12 in the opening game of the upcoming Big Bash League season, in what will be the competition’s first match staged outside Australia in its history.
The fixture will be played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, which holds around 38,000 spectators, and organizers have made it the season opener rather than a midseason fixture.
“No conversation about Australia and India is complete without mentioning sport,” Cook said during the Mumbai event, describing cricket as “one of the strongest bridges between our nations.”
“This game will be a wonderful opportunity to bring two cricketing nations even closer together,” he said.
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