WAVES: An Inclusive Movement of Entertainment

About the WAVES Summit, which brings together various stakeholders contributing to the entertainment industry on a single platform, offering them the opportunity for mutual collaboration and exchange of modern technology…

India is a leading and equally significant country in the global entertainment and media industry. In India, this sector is progressing at a rapid pace, and simultaneously, it is blooming steadily amidst the constant changes happening in the ecosystem. If we observe this field today, we can see a huge leap in content creation across various platforms. The reason behind this is the rise of digital broadcasting services in the country, content creation in regional languages, and the increasing demand for new, engaging, and inclusive content by the tech-savvy audience in India. Therefore, for India, this sector is no longer limited to being a mere source of entertainment, but it has become a powerful medium for cultural expression, economic growth, and establishing its impact on the global stage.

Soon, the World Audio Visual & Entertainment Summit (WAVES) will be held in Mumbai. This summit will take place from May 1 to 4, 2025, in Mumbai, Maharashtra. Importantly, the Government of India itself is organizing this summit. This summit will be a platform reflecting India’s growing importance globally, and the WAVES Market is a very significant component under this summit.

In fact, I have lived and worked in this field for many decades. From my own long experience, I can confidently say that storytelling has a great power to bring people together, inspire them, and bring about change. Against this backdrop, through WAVES and the WAVES Market, India has taken a step towards building an inclusive and collaborative future for the global entertainment sector.

Truly, WAVES Market is a revolutionary concept designed for an online marketplace. This online market is set to become a platform connecting professionals, businesses, and artists within the global entertainment ecosystem. The objective of this marketplace is to facilitate collaboration in the industry. Through this, industry professionals will get the opportunity to explore new prospects and establish collaborative partnerships. The government aims to position this marketplace as an innovative business center in the media and entertainment sector.

India’s Minister of Information and Broadcasting, Ashwini Vaishnaw, formally inaugurated this innovative marketplace on January 27, 2025. Just as the Davos Summit holds significance in the economic sector, Prime Minister Narendra Modi envisions the WAVES Summit to have similar importance in the entertainment sector. In this context, WAVES Market will be an essential instrument.

So far, on the official website of WAVES Market, around 5,500 buyers, over 2,000 sellers, and nearly 1,000 projects related to various segments of media and entertainment have registered. The government’s aim is to develop this website into an inclusive marketplace and a hub of interaction for content in the media and entertainment sector. Accordingly, the website is equipped with AI-based profiling and matching technology to identify professional identities and connect them as per demand. Through this medium, sessions for pitching concepts online, B2B meetings, webinars, and other important events will be organized.

This marketplace will be a major platform bringing together stakeholders from cinema, television, animation, gaming, advertising, extended reality, music, sound design, and radio – all from within the media and entertainment space. It will act as a bridge between sellers and buyers, allowing professionals to showcase their skills, establish direct contact with potential clients, and access opportunities for meaningful collaboration.

Whether a filmmaker is searching for a production partner, an advertiser is looking for the right platform, a game developer is seeking investors, or an artist wishes to present their work to global audiences – for all such individuals, WAVES Market will serve as a multi-dimensional platform enabling interaction, collaboration, and business growth.

In one sense, WAVES Market is an innovative B2B meeting marketplace that has radically transformed the interaction system, collaboration partnerships, and overall development framework of the global entertainment industry. This market has provided a platform to bring together professionals related to immersive technologies like film, television, music, gaming, animation, advertising, extended reality (XR), and virtual reality (VR). It offers a comprehensive platform for cataloging content across creative domains, facilitating discovery and relevant transactions. Whether it’s producers seeking distribution platforms, game developers presenting new concepts, or sound designers looking for licensing opportunities – WAVES Market offers categorized cataloging, secure viewing portals, and contact systems to simplify the entire process.

Through this marketplace, services have been included that enable sellers and buyers to find appropriate partners and opportunities beyond geographical boundaries. Sellers such as film studios, animation houses, podcast creators, and marketing agencies now have the opportunity to present their services and content to global investors, distributors, and partners. At the same time, buyers now have access to high-quality, contemporary projects. Investors too are finding doors opened for co-production agreements and large-scale business opportunities.

Significantly, this platform is integrated with industry-specific initiatives such as presentation portals, investor meetings and discussions, and live screening sessions of artworks. This ensures that this platform goes beyond virtual interaction and enables meaningful contracts and transactions to materialize in the real world.

Most importantly, the WAVES Summit will be held at Bandra-Kurla Complex in Mumbai from May 1 to 4, 2025, and during this summit, the WAVES Market will be brought to life. Selected representatives who have registered on the digital marketplace will be given a major opportunity to pitch their concepts, establish connections with industry stakeholders, and finalize actual contracts and deals with leading players. Due to its innovative approach, WAVES Market has not remained limited to just a platform but has evolved into a smarter, more interconnected, and inclusive movement towards a globally connected entertainment sector.

As artists, we are always in search of challenging, inspiring, and thought-provoking creative spaces. WAVES is an attempt to create such a space. I truly feel proud to be a part of this visionary journey. This summit will revolutionize the ways we interact, create, and present artworks. This transformation will not be limited to India alone but will have a global impact. This summit is India’s ‘Lagaan’ moment – a moment of unity, courage, and vision for the global media and entertainment industry, whose echo will be heard far beyond our borders.