Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to support cultural engagement with the Indian community.

Our relationship with India is a priority for this Government. Our shared culture and heritage provides a foundation for mutual benefits and economic growth. India is a priority for our Creative Industries Sector Plan and our people to people engagement.

During her visit to India in May, my Rt Hon Friend the Secretary of State signed on behalf of DCMS a five year cultural agreement with the Indian Minister of Culture. This is a key element of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with India announced by the Prime Minister in July and will support a broad range of activity embracing the Indian community across the UK. We regularly meet cultural leaders from the Indian and wider South Asian diaspora.

During the Prime Minister’s visit to India last month, he announced that three new Bollywood films will be made in the UK, supporting economic growth, job creation and cultural exchange. My Department is working closely with Yash Raj Films to realise this ambition.

From Gurinder Chadha and Civic Studios’ Christmas Karma to a major Chila Kumari Singh Burman retrospective to reopen Tate Liverpool in 2027, British and Indian cultural creativity is thriving across the country.