Western Railway Approves Vande Bharat Train for Film Shooting for the First Time

The Vande Bharat Express train is to make its on-screen debut soon with the Western Railway for the first time allowing the use of the semi-high-speed train for a commercial production and shooting conducted at Mumbai Central station on Wednesday, officials said.

He is the first director to shoot on board the Vande Bharat Express. The scene was shot at platform number five of the Mumbai Central Station- one of the major railway termini of the Western Railway.

Explaining the rationale behind their decision, WR officials said one of the two Vande Bharat trains operated on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad route does not run on Wednesday. It remains parked in the station yard or the car shed for maintenance.

We allowed the use of this non-plying train for the film shoot as per policy guidelines, an official said.
He said the Railways earned around Rs 23 lakh in non-fare box revenue from the film shoot, a tad higher than Rs 20 lakh raked in by the semi-high-speed train during its single journey between Mumbai and Ahmedabad a day before.

"We allow trains, stations, and other railway premises for commercial purposes based on set guidelines. It's the first time a Vande Bharat Express train has been allowed for film shooting," said Western Railway's Chief PRO Vineet Abhishek.

He said that such permissions would be issued while making sure passengers were not disturbed.
Abhishek said film shoots of railways generate non-fare revenues which are used for developing railway assets and amenities.

"Western Railway follows a single-window system for a quick and convenient process for giving permission for commercial shootings," he said while appealing to the film fraternity to make use of railways for shooting.

Abhishek said that depicting trains in films is a two-way street since it gives the visual stories a realistic feel as Indians have a "positive and emotional connection" with trains.

In the current financial year, Western Railway has generated close to Rs 1 crore as non-fare box revenue from shooting for films. Films such as "Railwaymen", "Gaslight", "Heropanti 2", "Breathe into Shadows", "OMG 2", "Baby Doll", and "Ek Villain Returns" were among some of the films shot under Western Railways along with a fee web series in recent times.