Skip to main content

Press Release­_India Charts Global OTT Ambition at WAVES Summit 2025 Roundtable




Mumbai, 2nd May 2025

As part of the prestigious WAVES Summit 2025, a high-level Roundtable on ‘OTT & Digital-Driven Democratisation of Content Creation and Consumption’ was hosted at the Jio World Convention Centre, Mumbai. Curated by Primus Partners, AWSand Rolling Stone India, the Roundtable brought together over 100 eminent personalities from the worlds of cinema, technology, policy and venture capital, reflecting a unique confluence of creativity, commerce and innovation aimed at shaping the next phase of India’s digital entertainment economy.

The Roundtable was launched by the release of the report “Press Play – India’s OTT Story Goes Global”, by Shri Ashish Shelar, Hon’ble Minister of Culture, Heritage & IT, Government of Maharashtra. The Report is jointly authored by AWS, Primus Partners and Rolling Stone India. On the occasion, Shri Shelar remarked “OTT today is not just about screen entertainment, it includes gaming, immersive content and education. I am proud that Maharashtra continues to be the launchpad for such transformation.” He congratulated CEO Prasar Bharati Shri Gaurav Dwivedi for launching WAVES OTT and said such platforms are making nostalgic content accessible while introducing fresh new-age programming.” The Minister also announced that the government would launch a Marathi OTT and reaffirmed the state’s commitment to supporting digital innovation and creative entrepreneurship.

The Roundtable was divided into three curated sessions, each focused on a pivotal theme driving the OTT and creative-tech ecosystem forward - Public–Private Collaborations & Hyper-Localisation of Content, Scaling Indian Media Content for Global Markets & Monetisation Models, and Role of Emerging Technologies & AVGC in OTT. The session explored the evolving role of public-sector broadcasters in expanding India’s multilingual content footprint and forming ecosystem partnerships for inclusive digital growth. There were discussions on India’s potential to become a global storytelling hub, through hybrid monetisation, co-productions, and digital-led internationalisation of content. The speakers spotlighted how AI, AR/VR, cloud, gaming, and immersive media are changing content creation, distribution, and monetisation, especially in India’s AVGC sector. Emphasis was placed on job creation, youth skilling, and building future-ready infrastructure.

In his key note address, Shri Gaurav Dwivedi, CEO, Prasar Bharati, traced the legacy of Prasar Bharati in nurturing India’s storytellers, from Binaca Geet Mala on radio to Ramayan and Hum Log on television, highlighting how external creators shaped national narratives through public broadcasting. He explained how WAVES OTT breaks the constraints of linear broadcasting, offering a limitless, multi-genre digital platform for creators across geographies. “This is not just a platform for entertainment,” he said, “it is an instrument of empowerment, where every voice from every corner of India gets to be seen and heard.”


The speakers were a motley group from Hollywood, Bollywood and the larger creator and AVGC community - Sajan Raj Kurup, Founder, Creativeland Studios, David Unger, CEO, Artists International Association, William Pfeiffer (Globalgate), Amala Akkineni (Annapurna Studios), Sandeep Marwah (AAFT), Sachin Pilgaonkar, Pankaj Gupta (AWS), Sudhir Chaudhary, Rituparna Sengupta, Amish Tripathi, Mahima Kaul (Netflix), Sameer Nair (Applause Entertainment), Shefali Bhushan, Kriti Kharbanda, Nitin Bawankule (AWS), Nicolas Granatino (Ridley Scott CG), Shamani Joshi, Editor, Rolling Stone India, Vaibhav Modi (Victor Tango), Isha Talwar, Manoj Padmanabhan (AWS), Aditi Shrivastava (Pocket Aces), Soumya Mukherjee (Hoichoi), Vishnu Mohta (Hoichoi), Shruti Paul (Accenture)

Smt Amala Akkineni recommended an institutionalised approach to mentoring regional talent and called for dedicated funds to support vernacular storytelling for global platforms.

A significant announcement from the Roundtable was the announcement of a strategic MoU between the Government of Andhra Pradesh and Creativeland Asia to establish Creatorland: India’s first Transmedia Entertainment City in Andhra Pradesh. The MOUs were exchanged between Smt. Amrapali Kata, MD, Andhra Pradesh Tourism and Sajan Raj Kurup Sajan Raj Kurup, Founder, Creativeland Studios & Chairman, Creators Inc London in the presence of the global advisory board David Unger, CEO, Artists International & Global Advisory Board Member, Creativeland Asia and Nicolas Granatino, Chairman Novaquark. Under the MoU, Creatorland is envisioned as a pioneering ecosystem that will  integrate AI, gaming, immersive storytelling, and global co-productions, projected to attract ₹8,000–10,000 crore in investment, create over 150,000 jobs, and skill 10,000 youth annually.

Smt. Kata invited the entire creator ecosystem to “consider Andhra Pradesh as a new-age hub for creative tech and innovation”, reaffirming the state’s support for world-class infrastructure and policy backing.

The OTT Roundtable at the WAVES Summit 2025 has upheld India’s Creative-Tech Inflection Point and  served as a launchpad for new narratives, cross-sectoral partnerships, and digital innovation. The presence of creators like Jayant Somalkar, Om Raut, Vinod Bachchan, Tanvi Dhedia, Varun Mitra, and Shobha Sant further highlighted the ecosystem’s vibrancy.

With the release of a data-backed industry report, a landmark MoU, and powerful keynote interventions, the Roundtable reflected India’s growing ambition to lead the world in democratised, tech-enabled storytelling.

 

About Primus Partners

Primus Partners is a leading advisory firm dedicated to providing strategic insights across policy, technology and economic sectors. Established by seasoned industry leaders with extensive experience in global organizations, the firm comprises a team of 250+ consultants and additional advisors. With a strong presence across multiple cities in India and Dubai, UAE, Primus Partners has successfully executed projects across Africa, Asia-Pacific and the Americas.

 

For more information, visit: www.primuspartners.in.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

3 books you should read if you like gambling

By playing, a person's body remains active. He gets new energy from these games for other tasks. But in recent times, information and technology have advanced so much that various types of games are easily accessible through the Internet. Cricket is no exception. But if these games bring us happiness, then we have to answer no. These include playing cards and card games, carom during the holidays, and fun times. Cards originated in China. The cards are used to play various sitting games. In addition to games, cards are also used in magic, prophecy, and bungalows of cards. They are mainly used in gambling. People are so mentally disturbed that they can’t easily escape once they get mad in gambling with https://www.10cric.com/ . The person who knows gambling can automatically get knowledge about betting. Because gambling and betting are two sides of one coin, many houses have been destroyed due to gambling. But some gamblers earn a lot because of gambling and betting! ...
96 comments
Read more

Is studying abroad a boon or a bane?

We have always had a debate when it comes to the topic - "Is studying abroad a boon or a bane?" The ideas differ from person to person. If you ask me, I would surely say that Studying Abroad is certainly a boon. Why is that? India is home to many universities which are known worldwide. Having said that, we must also accept the fact that none of them are in Top 20 at least. While there are many factors that attributes to this, when a person has the means to afford it combined with interest and talent, I do not see the reason as to why one shouldn't be educated abroad? While few study for their status symbol, majority of them predominantly study abroad to enhance their career. There is no doubt in it. Take a look at this brilliant video before we could proceed further. Having said that, the option isn't available to all who wanted to go out of India. The major hindrance for us is clearing the English tests which were being conducted across the glob...
55 comments
Read more

WeeBeeSocial –Providing the Mojo for Digital Marketing Initiatives

A long time ago, the quest was to discover new lands and habitats. And now, as humanity has travelled far and wide, we search for new experiences in the digital world. The digital space is where brands and customers meet, communicate and interact to forge new relationships. The success of these interactions depends on the experiences that brands create for their target audience. This is no easy task and there are only a few that have mastered the art and science of digital marketing. One such entity is  WeBeeSocial , a leading digital marketing agency based in New Delhi. The folks at WeBeeSocial breathe digital and their one and only goal is to help brands create super-rich experiences for theircustomers. A full service creative digital agency,  WeBeeSocial  is where creativity and technology merge to create powerful, immersive experiences in the digital space. WeBeeSocial is the first choice for many leading brands, as it offers a comprehensive range of digital...
23 comments
Read more