Ever since the evergreen hero Dev Anand shot the establishing scenes of 'Guide' at Udaipur's City Palace, sometime in the early 1960s, the heritage-city of lakes and palaces has become the dream-destination for film directors and film shoots.
Over the decades, as the demands of cinema and television have grown, Udaipur's City Palace and Gajner Palace have featured in innumerable films, television serials, music videos and documentaries on royal Rajasthan. Despite the constant exposure on celluloid, Bollywood and Hollywood film directors and production crews have pushed the limits of their creativity and utilised the unique palace architecture, courtyards and skyline to bewitch their viewers, film after film, year after year.
The runaway success of 'Guide' inspired other film directors to explore Udaipur and capture its natural beauty and architectural magnificence on celluloid. 'Mera Saya', 'Main Tulsi Tere Angan ki', 'Jalmahal' were the other major Bollywood films shot at Udaipur, optimising the grand locations at Shiv Niwas Palace, Lake Palace Hotel, Jagmandir Island Palace and Shikarbadi Hotel.
James Bond's 'Octopussy' in the 1980s, Subhash Ghai's 'Yaadein' in 2001 and Akbar Khan's 'Taj Mahal' were truly trendsetters. These films were built around Udaipur, its palaces, island-palaces, quaint bazaars and other scenic locations. Till date, these films continue to regale visitors to Udaipur and can be seen in the city's cafetarias and restaurants!
European film-makers and production crews have not been far behind. 'Christmas in India' was a major film production centred around Udaipur, followed by the recent 'The Darjeeling Limited' in 2007 that has captured Rajasthan and India in a thrilling film. Sensitive to the needs of demanding film-makers and their production crews, and equally sensitive to preserving the built and natural heritage of Udaipur, HRH Group of Hotels has been working in tandem with these teams to facilitate the production of memorable films.
To shoot in Udaipur you need to seek the local governmental permissions and keep away from the law enforcement issues. Once the procedures are done get ready to capture the heaven into your camera lens. The shoots in Udaipur with the HRH Group of Hotels are unique for the locations, ambience and simply cannot be replicated in any film studio anywhere in the world.