India’s movie industry, which is largely based in Mumbai, hit 107 billion rupees last year (about US$ 2 billion) and should reach 118 billion (more than US$ 2.3 billion) this year. It is expected to grow a further 11.5 per cent over the next five years. In 2013 Bollywood and India’s regional movie production centres should generate 185 billion rupees (US$ 3.7 billion) in revenues.

Indian TV production should follow the same trend, growing by 11.45 per cent in the next five years, from 244 billion rupees last year (US$ 4.8 billion) to 420 billion rupees in 2013 (over US$ 8.3 billion).

Bollywood, a portmanteau word created by blending Bombay (Mumbai) and Hollywood, exports a thousand movies and 40,000 TV hours, primarily to developing countries but also in Europe and more broadly the West.

The success of India’s entertainment industry is not limited to major hits like Slumdog millionaire, paradoxically a British movie by Danny Boyle which won eight Academy Awards, and which put India back on the movie map. Bollywood’s success has deeper roots and the industry is an economic force to be reckoned with. The numbers tell in fact a different story, especially if we look at India’s movie stars. According to estimates that appeared in the Indian press, top actors like Akshay Kumar and Aamir Khan.can earn up to 12 and 4 million dollars respectively in movies alone.

Mumbai’s movie industry goes further back than Hollywood and is giving Los Angeles studios a run for their money. Increasingly the latter are joining forces with Bollywood to produce and distribute movies. In fact California landed on India’s shores long ago.

Recently Steven Spielberg signed a deal with the Reliance ADA Group, a major Indian company with interests in entertainment, worth US$ 825 million, to produce six movies a year in new studies in Mumbai with Walt Disney distributing them outside of India.

The first production is expected next year.