At the inaugural WAVES Summit 2025 in Mumbai, the Prime Minister highlighted India’s creative economy as a powerful driver of future GDP growth, innovation, and inclusive development.

• WAVES aims to unlock a $50 billion market by 2029, positioning India as a major player in the global entertainment economy.
• During the summit, the government announced the launch of the Indian Institute of Creative Technology (IICT) for the creative sector.
  • The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting is establishing it in a strategic partnership with FICCI & CII, envisioned as a National Centre of Excellence.

What is Creative Economy?

• Definition: The creative economy (orange economy) is an evolving concept based on the contribution and potential of creative assets to economic growth and development.
  • It includes Media & Entertainment, Advertising and Marketing, Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, Comics, and Extended Reality (AVGC-XR), etc.
• The United Nations declared 2021 the International Year of Creative Economy for Sustainable Development, emphasizing its global importance.

India's Creative Economy 

• Contribution: $30 billion to GDP, employing 8% of the workforce. Creative exports exceed $11 billion annually. 
• Challenges: Misinformation, copyright, intellectual property, privacy, market monopolization, limited rural digital access, and lack of formal financing.