A. India has a vibrant nonfiction storytelling tradition, but it operates within structural constraints. Unlike fiction, documentaries in India have very limited domestic commissioning avenues, and there are almost no institutional soft funds dedicated exclusively to documentaries.

Our focus is on strengthening the ecosystem for documentaries, and for that our mentoring programme, Doc Commune, launched in 2021–22, works to provide a space to documentary filmmakers to develop their projects over three months. We are seeking to build international pathways to create newer opportunities for filmmakers to connect with the larger global markets, finding international co-producers, and pitching platforms. Commissioning new films remains our primary focus to ensure that there are enough filmmakers who practice the craft. At PSBT, we also have a legacy of domestic documentary filmmaking with 700 films in our library, funded through government grants.

Another challenge is balancing public and artistic value since documentaries have for long been plagued with the challenge of having to speak of ‘public good’. While they will also represent a ‘public good’, we also want to emphasise the creative and artistic potential of documentaries.

We also focus on working with the government for recognition and to build partnerships to impress upon them the importance of the documentary in the creative economy of India.

For us, the major challenges are sustainability and scale. Funding remains fragile and inconsistent. Distribution is fragmented. And there is a growing tension between algorithm-driven content platforms and the slower, research-based practices that documentaries require. The task ahead is to create stability without compromising with the filmmaker’s sensibilities.

A. Your question contains the answer. Given that we hardly have any sources for soft financing in India, co-productions become inevitable for any documentary that wants to hit the big league.

Given the increasing number of co-productions that are coming together, the challenge is how do we ensure that the co-production process does not become extractive, and creative respect is maintained between the co-producers and the creative teams.

Going forward, I would like to see: Bilateral or multilateral documentary funds between India and key territories (including Asian partners, not just Europe); Simplified co-production treaty mechanisms that explicitly include nonfiction, and find a way around the need for a theatrical release (that remains one of the impediments to using the coproduction treaties for documentaries); Regional South-South collaboration models within Asia, where countries with emerging documentary cultures can share risk and resources; Stronger legal and financial advisory frameworks in India to help filmmakers navigate co-production structures.

If India is to be a meaningful partner in global nonfiction cinema, we need policy recognition of documentary as a cultural sector, not merely a broadcast genre. Hopefully, we’ll get there!

A. Doc Exchange emerged from a clear recognition: Indian documentaries need structured international engagement at the development stage, not just festival exposure at the end stage.

The vision behind Doc Exchange was to build literacy around financing and market opportunities in the UK; Connect emerging filmmakers with UK producers, sales agents and commissioning editors; Encourage long-term partnerships rather than one-off transactions; Situate documentary within the broader creative economy ties between India and the UK.

In many ways, Doc Exchange is an extension of what we do at PSBT through Doc Commune which is to strengthen projects at the conceptual level before they enter the marketplace. But this platform adds a strategic international dimension.