WAVES 2025 has significantly energized the country’s creative economy, often referred to as the Orange Economy also. This initiative aims to foster economic activities that convert ideas, creativity, rich and diverse cultural expressions and heritage into tangible goods and services. The creative economy spans a wide range of industries including music, film, design, publishing, gaming and many more creative pursuits. This mission amply demonstrates how cultural and creative assets can also be leveraged to fuel the nation’s economic growth.
India, a land of over 143 crore people, is also home to a billion stories and storytellers, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in his address at this grand ceremony. He said, every village, street, river and mountain echoes with unique tales and perspectives. Indian art and music, deeply spiritual in nature, reflect this storytelling spirit, where every note and rhythm carries a soul whether in a devotional bhajan or a modern composition.
The country’s creative legacy, from the pioneering film Raja Harishchandra in 1913 to global milestones like RRR winning at the Oscars, highlights the growing influence of Indian cinema and cultural expressions. From Guru Dutt’s poetic visuals to AR Rahman’s soulful music and Rajamouli’s epic narratives, Indian creativity continues to resonate across the world.
The rise of India’s creative economy powered by content, creativity and culture, is truly transforming the country into a global hub for film, digital content, gaming, fashion, music and live performances. This sector holds immense potential to significantly contribute to India’s GDP.
With the world looking for new stories, India stands ready to offer a rich blend of science, fiction, courage and imagination. The message is clear for the creators of the country- dream big, invest in talent and share the soul of India with the world.
WAVES 2025 is also expected to unlock a 50 billion dollar opportunity for India’s media and entertainment sector by 2029. The summit held from 1 May to 4 May at Jio World Convention Centre, Mumbai, attracted over 10,000 delegates, 1,000 creators, 300 companies and more than 350 startups.
This initiative alone recorded business transactions worth over Rs. 1,328 crore with more than 3,000 business-to-business meetings held over three days. Adding further value to the summit, the Maharashtra government signed MoUs worth Rs. 8,000 crore during the event. Among these, MoUs worth Rs. 1,500 crore each were signed with the University of York and the University of Western Australia. The state’s industries department also inked MoUs valued at Rs. 3,000 crore with Prime Focus and Rs. 2,000 crore with Godrej.
WAVES 2025 marks a turning point, launching the Global Media Dialogue with participation from 25 countries to promote international collaboration. The event also featured the WAVES Bazaar, a digital marketplace with over 6,100 buyers, 5,200 sellers and 2,100 creative projects. At the event, a landmark report by Boston Consulting Group titled ‘From Content to Commerce’ spotlighted India’s booming creator economy. It has revealed that the creative economy related activities drive over 350 billion dollar in consumer spending, which is a figure projected to cross one trillion dollar by 2030.
With around 2.5 million active creators, India hosts one of the world’s youngest and largest digital communities. Yet, only 8-10% currently monetise meaningfully, pointing to a vast untapped economic opportunity. Creators now influence over 30% of consumer purchases through diverse content forms like short videos, tutorials and live streams. Genres like comedy, film and fashion dominate, but sectors like gaming, wellness and finance are also rapidly growing.
The report positions India as a global content studio, powered by its linguistic diversity, cultural depth, and digital talent. With a 40-60% cost edge in animation and VFX and 25% of Indian OTT content viewed overseas, India is emerging as a hub of cultural diplomacy and soft power.
Importantly, the creator economy is expanding beyond Gen Z and metros, reaching smaller towns, regional markets and multilingual audiences. Brands are shifting from traditional ads to creator-led campaigns, while new revenue models like virtual gifting, live commerce and fan funding are empowering creators financially.
WAVES 2025 showcased this evolution as more than entertainment. Creators are now key drivers of commerce, culture and innovation. With supportive policies, investor’s interest and educational initiatives, India’s creator economy is poised to become a global force. The white paper on India’s Live Events Industry also highlighted the sector’s strong momentum and evolving consumer trends. Growing at a steady 15% annually, the industry added 13 billion dollar in revenue in 2024 alone.
A notable shift is the rise of event-based tourism with nearly half a million fans traveling across cities to attend live shows. There’s also increasing demand for premium, curated experiences while tier-2 cities like Shillong, Vadodara and Jamshedpur are fast emerging as new cultural hubs.
At WAVES 2025, Shantanu Narayen, CEO of Adobe highlighted India’s emergence as a global hub of creativity powered by digital tools and generative AI. With over 100 million content creators and 500 million OTT consumers, Narayen described India as the world’s next creative superpower. He showcased Adobe’s Firefly AI models and stressed ethical AI, content authenticity and creator attribution as vital for sustainable growth.
On the occasion, YouTube CEO Neal Mohan announced a 850 crore dollar investment to accelerate India’s creator economy, citing over 15,000 Indian channels with more than one million subscribers. Joined by global creators Mark Rober and Gautami Kawale (Slayy Point), Mohan underlined YouTube’s role in taking Indian stories global. India isn’t just leading in music and film, it’s now a creator nation, he said. Kawale shared how regional Indian content, when rooted in culture, has universal appeal, while Rober spoke about the power of STEM content crossing borders through AI-enabled dubbing and localization.
Mark Read, CEO of WPP, described the advertising industry’s one trillion dollar global footprint and its shift towards AI-led storytelling. He unveiled WPP’s open video production platform and shared a campaign featuring Shah Rukh Khan to demonstrate hyper-personalized content creation using motion AI. AI is not replacing creativity, it is expanding it, Read said, outlining the role of MSMEs and digital tools in democratizing access to quality advertising.
Without doubt, WAVES 2025 marked a transformative moment for India’s creative economy, positioning the country as a global powerhouse of content, culture and innovation. From unlocking multi-billion-dollar opportunities to showcasing India’s rich storytelling traditions, the summit underscored the vast potential of the Orange Economy in shaping the future of commerce and cultural influence. With strong government backing, global collaborations, technological advancements like AI and growing investor confidence, India is not just participating in the global creative revolution, it is also in a position to lead it. As the world increasingly turns to stories that inspire, inform and connect, India stands ready to rise with its immense creative potential.