At the World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit (WAVES) 2025, veteran actor Aamir Khan underscored a critical challenge facing India’s film industry — the lack of cinema screens across the country.
Speaking during a session titled Studios of the Future: Putting India on the World Studio Map, the actor emphasised that while India is known for its love of cinema, most people still lack access to theatres.
“We need far more theatres across India — and not just high-end ones, but a variety catering to different regions and audiences,” said Khan. “Many districts don’t even have a single screen. That’s a gap we need to address urgently.”
Khan drew comparisons with countries like the United States and China, highlighting how India lags significantly in screen density despite its vast population. “India currently has around 10,000 cinema screens. The US, with a population just one-third of ours, has 40,000. China leads with about 90,000 screens,” he noted.
He added that even within India’s limited screen count, distribution is skewed. “Nearly half of India’s screens are located in the southern states, leaving the rest of the country, especially the Hindi-speaking regions, underserved. So, a Hindi film typically gets access to only about 5,000 screens.”
The result? Even the most successful films are seen by only a small fraction of the population. “Only two per cent of Indians go to the theatre to watch our biggest hits. What about the remaining 98 per cent? They hear about the films, see them trending online — but have no theatres nearby to actually watch them,” Khan explained. He specifically mentioned the Konkan region as one of many underserved areas.
Aamir's concerns echoed comments made earlier at the summit by fellow actor Shah Rukh Khan. On day one, SRK had called for simpler, more affordable theatres in small towns and cities, arguing that high ticket prices and limited infrastructure were keeping cinema out of reach for many Indians.
The panel also featured industry stalwarts including producers Ritesh Sidhwani, Dinesh Vijan, Namit Malhotra, PVR Inox founder Ajay Bijli, and Hollywood producer Charles Roven, all of whom discussed the pressing need to strengthen India’s cinema infrastructure as a way to unlock its true potential on the global entertainment stage.