New Delhi: The popularity of Indian songs will soon be at par with that of Indian food globally, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi while inaugurating India’s first-ever global entertainment summit, WAVES 2025, at the Jio World Convention in Mumbai on Thursday.
With over 70 sessions and 32 masterclasses until 4 May, the World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit 2025 is a platform for the broadcasting, film, animation, gaming, music, and digital industries. Celebrities and industrialists from across India, including Mukesh Ambani, Shah Rukh Khan, Hema Malini, Mohanlal, Allu Arjun, and SS Rajamouli, are part of the star line-up.
“This is the rise of the orange economy in India. Content, creativity, and culture are three pillars of the orange economy,” Modi said. He spoke about the reach of Indian films and a growing international audience. “Foreign audiences are not just watching Indian films but are trying to understand them.”
Held barely nine days after the Pahalgam terror attack on 22 April, the event carried a sombre undertone. Speakers expressed solidarity and offered condolences to the victims’ families.
“After the barbaric, merciless event that happened at Pahalgam, many people told me that the government would postpone this event because of unnecessary criticism, because the event’s subject is entertainment. But, I was confident that this event would definitely happen, because I have confidence in my PM Narendra Modi ji,” said Tamil superstar Rajinikanth.
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‘Our message is getting bigger’
Over 100 exhibitors will participate in the WAVES summit. Among the segments planned, WAVES Bazaar will discuss investment opportunities, WAVES Accelerator will support new innovations, and Creatosphere will facilitate idea exchange and collaboration.
“The global audio, visual, and entertainment economy views our stories not just as art, but as assets of global and national value, an idea inspired by the grand vision of PM Narendra Modi,” said Shah Rukh Khan.
The first day saw a gallery of celebrity speakers like Hema Malini, Mithun Chakraborty, Rajinikanth, Mohanlal, and Chiranjeevi. In another session moderated by Karan Johar, actors Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone will speak of their experiences of starting out without a ‘godfather’ in the film industry.
Industrialist Mukesh Ambani, whose Reliance Industries owns the newly formed Jio Hotstar, will be the speaker of the session, ‘Building the Next Global Entertainment Revolution from India’.
Modi also released commemorative postage stamps on 5 legendary figures of Indian Cinema: Guru Dutt, P Bhanumathi, Raj Khosla, Ritwik Ghatak, and Salil Chowdhury.
“While screens may be getting smaller, the message of our stories is only growing larger,” Modi said.
(Edited by Prasanna Bachchhav)