International Journal of Engineering Technology, Management and Applied Sciences www.ijetmas.com May 2015, Volume 3, Issue 5, ISSN 2349-4476 A Literature Review on the Significance of Movies in Promoting Destinations Jose K Antony & Rashmi R Department of Tourism Studies Christ University, Bangalore Introduction World tourism is considered as a momentous factor in the economy of many nations. Tourism today is one of the world‘s fastest growing and oldest industries. Tourism related infrastructure in various parts of the country has improved the quality of life of the host community and has helped to promote local art, handicrafts and culture. Tourism industry is also one of the influential sectors. Being a service industry, it creates employment opportunities for the local population. In 2013, Travel and Tourism directly supported 100,894,000 jobs (3.4% of total employment). It is a highly labour-intensive industry providing employment opportunities to both semi-skilled and unskilled. According to the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), over the past six decades, tourism has experienced continuous growth and diversification to become one of the largest and fastest growing economic sectors in the world. World Travel and Tourism Council stated that the total contribution of Travel & Tourism to GDP was 9.5% of GDP in 2013 and this is estimated to rise by 4.3% in 2014, and by 4.2% pa to 10.3% of GDP in 2024. Introduction to Film-induced Tourism Film tourism is defined as ―tourist visits to a destination or attraction as a result of the destination being featured on television, video, or the cinema screen‖. While choosing a destination, movies play an important role as it influences the viewer‘s choice of the destination.Film tourism describes the effects that film and TV-productions can have on the travel decisions as movies motivate people to take up travel to places. Film tourism is a growing phenomenon and is used as an effective marketing tool in order to attract more number of tourists to the country. Film tourism is an excellent strategy to captivate the minds of the viewers and attract them towards the destination. There has been a strong relationship between movies and tourism. With the growing popularity of the movie, the places showcased in it also attracts tourists. Hollywood movies have been doing an excellent work in depicting tourist destinations which catches the eyes of viewers. Tourists travel to many international destinations watching these movies and it becomes a motivating factor for them to take up travel. Evidence shows that places like New Zealand and Australia became top tourist destinations with the increase in the popularity of movies which were being filmed there. The screening of movies such as Piano (1993), The Last Samurai(2003), The Lord of the Rings trilogy shot on the territories of New Zealand, and Crocodile Dandy (1986), Mad Max (1985), The Wolverine (2013) and Mission Impossible 2 (2000) filmed in Australia generated a boom in tourist arrivals in to these countries. The animated movie – Finding Nemo (2003) also had a huge impact on it‘s viwers where the underwater backdrop in the movie depicted the beautiful marine life of Australia‘s Great Barrier Reef. The Harry Potter series which were shot in various locations in the United Kingdom had resulted in an increase of 50% and more vistors to the filmed locations. For Hollywood Makers, film induced tourism has become an established concept and they have being doing wonders with this marketing tool. 110 Jose K Antony , Rashmi R International Journal of Engineering Technology, Management and Applied Sciences www.ijetmas.com May 2015, Volume 3, Issue 5, ISSN 2349-4476 India has witnessed an increase in foreign tourist arrivals. One of the reasons being, depiction of India as a tourist destination in Hollywood Movies. The movie, Eat, Pray, Love is about the protagonist who goes to Italy, India and Indonesia to eat, pray and love. Julia Roberts, who played the lead, is shown searching for spirituality in India. The movie was shot in the ashram, Hari Mandir in Pataudi, Haryana. Slumdog Millionaire, the Oscar Award winning movie was shot exclusively in Mumbai. The movie, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel was screened in the beautiful city of Jaipur and Udaipur. The Legendary movie, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom were also shot in India. Life of Pie was also shot in the picturesques of Munnar, Kerala. Hollywood has been filming their movies in India because of the rich and colorful culture, diverse traditions and picturesque destinations. This has in directly been a benefit to India as there has been witnessed an increase in foreign tourist arrivals. Bollywood or Hindi Movies have become very popular in featuring foreign destinations. This has had a huge impact on the viewers and has resulted in a rapid increase in international travel by indians. With the release of the movie Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (2011), which depicted the beautiful attractions in Spain, there was an increase in Indian tourists travelling to Spain and as a reason special tour packages were prepared o the destination. Six months after its release, Spain witnessed a 32% upturn of visitor arrivals from India to Spain. The Late Mr. Yash Chopra, a well-known Bollywood Movie Director showcased Switzerland in most of his popular movies. His legendary movie Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge was extensively filmed in Switzerland, and the film motivated thousands of Indains to explore the Swiss. Outbound travel from India to Switzerland increased by 30%. To date, more than 80 Bollywood Movies and more than 200 Indian Movies have been shot extensively in Switzerland. Europe has become a popular destination for Bollywood to screen their films. Some of the blockbusters of Bollywood that were filmed in Western Europe include Bachna Ae Haseno (Italy and Switzerland), Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge (Switzerland), Taal (Great Britain), Namastey London (United Kingdom), An Evening in Paris (France and Switzerland), Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham (United Kingdom) and Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (Spain). These are just a few of the movies that influenced Bollywood viewers in experiencing the international destinations. Sandalwood movies have also featured foreign destinations. The 1995 movie, America America was one of the award winning movies which depicted United States of America and its attractions. The Kollywood movie, Irandaam Ulagamwas shot extensively in Brazil and attracted numerous viewers to its attractions. Other Kollywood movies shot in international destinations include Vishwaroopam (Canada),Kochadaiiyaan ( London and Los Angeles), Enthiran(Peru), and the list goes on. Mollywood movies have also featured foreign locations in their movies. Some of the recent movies include Diamond Necklace (Dubai), London Bridge (London), Lanka (Sri Lanka), Varnapakittu (Singapore). Many other language movies have also been filmed in international destinations. Indian movies not only contribute towards the promotion of destinations abroad but in India as well. Many locations have become popular as they are depicted in the movies. One of the best example is Manali, the popularity of the tourist destination increased after it was showcased in the movie Yeh Jawani Hai Diwani. Many filmmakers are choosing Manali over international hill station destinations these days. Movies such as Bang Bang, Jab We Met, Krrish, 3 Idiots were also filmed in Manali. Some movies such as 3 Idiots, Jab Tak Hain Jaan, Highway have been shot in Leh and Ladakh, and have inspired many tourists to take up travel to these picturesque places. The Sandalwood movie, Mungaru Malehas increased the popularity of the hill station of Madikeri. After the release of the movie there was a substantial increase in the tourist inflow to the place. The Kollywood movie, Roja also attracted many viewers by showcasing the beautiful Srinagar. 111 Jose K Antony , Rashmi R International Journal of Engineering Technology, Management and Applied Sciences www.ijetmas.com May 2015, Volume 3, Issue 5, ISSN 2349-4476 Indian movies have been featuring many of the beautiful Indian destinations thereby attracting tourists. Review of Literatures Mittal, N. (2013) The study was based on Indian movies specifically Bollywood movies promoting foreign destinations such as Europe, New Zealand, Scotland, Spain, London and USA. The research paper also talked about the increase in outbound tourism among Indians. With the showcase of foreign destinations in Bollywood movies, there have been a higher number of tourist arrivals to these countries. Bollywood movies influence viewers to a great extent. The research also specially refer to the movie ‗ZindagiNaMilegiDobara‘ where the European country, Spain has been beautifully featured and the huge success of this movie led to more number of Indians travelling to Spain to visit the destinations showcased in the movie. The findings of the research also indicate that more number of Indians prefertravelling to foreign destinations than domestic destinations and this trend has increased over the past few years. The research article depicts the importance of film tourism and the role played by Bollywood movies in attracting tourists to undertake travel abroad. Wiley, J.(2010)The study was based on identifying the impact of movies on perception of viewers from different countries. For this experiment, the movie chosen was Motorcycle Diaries in which South America was featured. The respondents were made to watch the movie and a study was conducted on their perception after watching the movie. The respondents were from different countries and they showed a strongdesire to travel to South America after watching the movie. An analysis was also done to find out the factors that attracted the viewers towards the place. The findings from the study indicated that the Governments in South America were not putting enough efforts to promote their destinations, when compared to other places such as New Zealand, through the movie The Lord of the Rings and Australia through the movie Australia.