A delegation of Indian filmmakers and social media stars visited Moscow at the invitation of Moscow Film Cluster (Moskino) with a city cluster that brings together production facilities, educational programs, and tourism infrastructure around cinema. The delegation included Aditya Bhat, CEO of Jio Creative Labs, actress Ashnoor Kaur, as well as content creators Aarush Bhola and Varun Yadav. Each of them looked at Moscow from their own perspective and each returned with concrete observations about what could grow out of this visit.This visit became part of Moscow’s broader work to develop international cooperation in film and the content industry. Today, the Moscow Film Cluster is a developed ecosystem: it not only supports Russian filmmakers, but also actively builds partnerships with foreign teams. The cluster is developing with support from the Moscow Government, in March 2025, on the instructions of Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin, a rebate programme for foreign filmmakers was established, allowing international projects to reimburse up to 45% of their filming expenses in Moscow.Aditya Bhat heads one of Asia’s largest media organisations. Jio Creative Labs has delivered campaigns for the markets of Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and the Americas, including local productions with Korean actors for international brands. According to him, Russia fits into the same logic: it has an audience, it has talent, and it has brands that want to enter the Indian market. “We can create content with Russian actors for international brands and, in the same way, help Russian companies that want to speak to Indian audiences,” he explains.According to Bhat, cooperation should not be limited to film or influencer content: the most vibrant cultural exchanges happen through food, fashion, music, and theatre. In this logic, Russia is not an exotic experiment, but an important point on the map.Ashnoor Kaur came to Moscow as someone who grew up on Bollywood film sets. Moscow Film Cluster (Moskino) impressed her above all with one detail: here, sets are not dismantled after filming, but preserved and turned into tourist attractions. The very idea of film and tourism working as a single ecosystem struck her as worthy of attention. “Every street, every lane here looks like a frame from a film,” she says. In her view, Moscow is an ideal city for travel, fashion, and lifestyle content, and that alone is a reason for Indian creators to take a closer look at the Russian market.Aarush Bhola looks at Moscow through the lens of an ecosystem. “Many young people start with content on social media, but not everyone knows how to take the next step into film,” he says. According to him, Moscow Film Cluster (Moskino) shows how a city can structure that transition: through access to education, mentorship, a production base, and industry connections. The first posts from the trip gathered millions of views even before the main content was released. “The audience was genuinely curious about Moscow, its culture, and its people, and we are very excited to share everything we filmed.”Varun Yadav sees the city differently. “Moscow is a great place to create content because it offers such a huge variety of visual and cultural experiences,” he says. Travel, lifestyle, fashion, cultural storytelling, all of this works here naturally. But what interested him most was Russia’s comedy scene. “Comedy brings people together regardless of language and culture and if there is an opportunity to collaborate with Russian comedy stars, I am definitely open to it.” Together with Bhola, he filmed material across the city and, according to them, the audience’s reaction has already said everything.The delegation’s overall conclusion is clear: streaming has removed the language barrier, and now the quality of stories matters more than geography. Crime dramas, romance, thrillers are genres that work equally well in Mumbai and Moscow. Moscow Film Cluster (Moskino) infrastructure, the XOVP virtual production studio, educational programs, and preserved outdoor sets, is already ready to host joint projects.Disclaimer - The above content is non-editorial, and TIL hereby disclaims any and all warranties, expressed or implied, relating to it, and does not guarantee, vouch for or necessarily endorse any of the content.