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WAVES 2025

February 18, 2026 5 min read Art & Culture Economics GS Paper 1 GS Paper 3
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What Happened

  • The World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit (WAVES) 2025, organized by India's Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MoIB), was held from 1 to 4 May 2025 at the Jio World Convention Centre, Mumbai — the first edition of what is envisaged as India's flagship global creative economy summit.
  • WAVES brought together stakeholders from the media, entertainment, broadcasting, digital content, OTT platforms, gaming, animation, visual effects, and creative arts sectors from over 90 countries, with more than 10,000 delegates attending.
  • The summit's core ambition: position India as a global hub for the creative economy, attract investment in India's media and entertainment sector, foster international co-production partnerships, and strengthen intellectual property protections for Indian creative content.
  • A PIB article published around 18 February 2026 highlighted WAVES as a "strategic platform for the global creative economy," underscoring India's ongoing effort to build global mindshare for the initiative ahead of future editions.
  • The summit covered print, digital, audio-visual, and entertainment sectors — reflecting the convergence of traditional media with digital platforms and emerging technologies like AI-driven content creation, immersive media, and extended reality (XR).

Static Topic Bridges

India's Creative Economy: Scale, Potential, and Policy Framework

India's media and entertainment (M&E) sector is one of the fastest-growing in the world. As of 2024, the Indian M&E industry was valued at approximately ₹2.32 lakh crore ($28 billion) and is projected to reach ₹4 lakh crore ($48 billion) by 2030, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10-12%. India produces the most films annually of any country (1,500-2,000 per year across languages), has the world's largest television viewership base, and hosts the world's most rapidly expanding OTT streaming market. The creative economy also encompasses design, fashion, music, gaming, and animation — sectors where India has significant but underdeveloped export potential. The National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) and the Film Facilitation Office (FFO) support production and international co-productions.

  • India M&E sector size (2024): ~₹2.32 lakh crore (~$28 billion)
  • Projected size (2030): ~₹4 lakh crore (~$48 billion); CAGR 10-12%
  • India's film production: 1,500-2,000 films/year (highest globally)
  • India's OTT market: 500 million+ internet video users; world's largest by subscriber growth
  • India's gaming sector: ~$3.8 billion (2024), growing at 28% CAGR
  • Animation, VFX, and post-production: India is a global outsourcing hub (70% of global VFX work)
  • National Film Development Corporation (NFDC): Under MoIB; promotes Indian cinema globally

Connection to this news: WAVES was designed precisely to translate India's existing M&E scale into global creative economy leadership — creating a permanent annual platform where Indian content creators, studios, OTT platforms, and gaming companies can forge international co-productions, attract foreign investment, and strengthen the IP frameworks needed to monetize Indian creative output globally.

Intellectual Property and the Creative Economy: TRIPS and India's Approach

Intellectual property rights (IPR) are the economic foundation of the creative economy — without robust IP protection, creative industries cannot attract investment, monetize content, or participate in global co-production frameworks. India's IPR framework is governed by the Copyright Act, 1957 (amended 2012), Trade Marks Act, 1999, Patents Act, 1970, and the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999. India is a signatory to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) treaties and the WTO's TRIPS (Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights) Agreement. India's National IPR Policy (2016) aims to "Creative India; Innovative India" and set targets for strengthening IP administration, awareness, and enforcement.

  • Copyright Act, 1957 (amended 2012): Governs literary, artistic, musical, and cinematographic works
  • TRIPS Agreement: Minimum standards for IP protection under WTO; India is signatory
  • WIPO: World Intellectual Property Organization (UN agency); India is member
  • National IPR Policy (2016): Tagline "Creative India; Innovative India"; 7 objectives
  • Duration of copyright in India: Life of the author + 60 years (films: 60 years from publication)
  • Geographical Indications: E.g., Darjeeling Tea, Banarasi Saree, Kanjeevaram Silk — relevant to cultural industries
  • India's rank: GIPC (Global IP Center) International IP Index — India has improved but remains outside top 20

Connection to this news: WAVES explicitly highlighted IP protection as a core pillar — because Indian creative content (films, music, animation, games) is vulnerable to piracy and unauthorized reproduction globally, strengthening IP enforcement is a prerequisite for India becoming a creative economy powerhouse that attracts global investment.

India's Soft Power and Cultural Diplomacy: Film, OTT, and the Global Stage

India's creative industries — particularly cinema and music — have historically been powerful instruments of soft power. Bollywood has a global audience of approximately 3 billion people, and Indian films have achieved significant international traction through OTT platforms (Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ Hotstar). The success of RRR (Oscar for Naatu Naatu), The Elephant Whisperers (Oscar for Best Documentary Short), and All We Imagine as Light (Cannes Grand Prix 2024) signal India's growing presence in global creative markets. WAVES creates an institutional framework for deploying this soft power systematically — connecting Indian creative industries to global distribution, financing, and co-production networks.

  • Bollywood audience: Approximately 3 billion globally
  • Indian OTT market: World's most rapidly growing; Netflix has 10+ million Indian subscribers
  • RRR (2022): Won Oscar for Best Original Song (Naatu Naatu) at 95th Academy Awards (2023)
  • The Elephant Whisperers (2023): Won Oscar for Best Documentary Short
  • All We Imagine as Light (2024): Won Grand Prix at Cannes Film Festival (director Payal Kapadia)
  • India's animation/VFX exports: ~$2 billion/year; India handles outsourced work for Disney, Warner Bros., etc.
  • Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MoIB): Organizer of WAVES; also oversees Prasar Bharati, Doordarshan, AIR

Connection to this news: WAVES is India's institutional response to a recognized opportunity: to convert organic cultural influence (Bollywood's global reach, Indian music's streaming numbers, Indian gaming talent) into a structured, investment-backed creative economy that generates GDP, employment, and diplomatic influence simultaneously.

Key Facts & Data

  • Event full name: World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit (WAVES)
  • First edition: 1-4 May 2025, Jio World Convention Centre, Mumbai
  • Organizer: Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MoIB), Government of India
  • Participation: 90+ countries, 10,000+ delegates
  • India M&E sector size (2024): ~₹2.32 lakh crore (~$28 billion)
  • Projected M&E size (2030): ~₹4 lakh crore (~$48 billion)
  • India film production: 1,500-2,000 films/year (world's largest)
  • India's animation/VFX exports: ~$2 billion/year
  • Copyright Act, 1957 (amended 2012): Governs creative works in India
  • National IPR Policy: 2016 (tagline: "Creative India; Innovative India")
  • TRIPS: India is WTO signatory; minimum IP standards globally enforced
  • RRR Oscar win: Naatu Naatu, Best Original Song (95th Academy Awards, 2023)