Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday met Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos and discussed the growing potential of India’s media and entertainment industry, with a focus on strengthening the country’s position as a global hub for content creation.
In a post on X, the PM Modi said, “Glad to have met Mr. Ted Sarandos. Discussed the immense potential of India’s media and entertainment sector. India has a rich tradition of storytelling and an extraordinary pool of creative talent, which can be leveraged to strengthen our nation’s position as a global hub for content creation.”
The meeting coincided with Netflix’s tenth anniversary in India. To mark the milestone, Netflix announced the launch of the Netflix India Storytelling Initiative.
According to Netflix India, the initiative will work in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Creative Technologies (IICT) and the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) to strengthen education and skill development in the country’s creative ecosystem.
“Celebrating 10 years of Netflix in India! It was an honour for our Co-CEO Ted Sarandos to meet Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi to discuss their shared vision to take India’s media and entertainment industry global. To this effect, we unveiled the ‘Netflix India Storytelling Initiative’, an investment that will help nurture the next generation of India’s creative talent through skilling and education partnerships with IICT and NFDC. We can’t wait to see what India creates next,” Netflix India said in a post on X.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Tourism have partnered with Netflix India to promote India’s cultural heritage and tourism destinations through authentic storytelling, with Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat launching a new ‘As Seen on Netflix’ section on the Incredible India portal on Wednesday.
The new feature, developed as part of the collaboration between the Tourism Ministry and Netflix India, will enable audiences around the world to discover the real-life locations, cultural traditions and authentic experiences showcased in Netflix India’s films and series. The initiative aims to encourage cultural tourism while highlighting India’s rich heritage and diverse landscapes.
The launch took place during a special event at the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) in New Delhi, marking ten years of Netflix’s presence in India. The event also featured a fireside conversation between Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and Netflix Co-Chief Executive Officer Ted Sarandos on the role of storytelling in promoting India’s cultural heritage, tourism and creative economy.
Addressing the gathering, Shekhawat said India has inspired the world through its stories for thousands of years and that technology now offers an unprecedented opportunity to take those stories to global audiences.
He said the creative economy is emerging as a major engine of growth by generating livelihoods while preserving India’s cultural identity. Welcoming collaborations that empower Indian talent and celebrate the country’s diversity, the minister said India’s monuments, festivals, languages and folk traditions each carry stories that deserve worldwide recognition.
“Culture is not merely India’s inheritance but one of its greatest strategic strengths,” he said, adding that authentic storytelling can play a key role in projecting India’s civilisational heritage on the global stage.
Speaking at the event, Ted Sarandos said India is home to countless unique cultures and traditions, each with its own compelling stories. He noted that over the past decade, Netflix has brought stories rooted in different parts of the country to viewers across the world, inspiring many to visit the destinations and experience India’s cultural richness firsthand.
Sarandos said Netflix remains committed to working with the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Tourism to bring more Indian stories, locations and traditions to international audiences.
Both the Union Minister and the Netflix Co-CEO reaffirmed their shared commitment to promoting authentic narratives rooted in India’s diverse cultures, landscapes and traditions while strengthening the country’s creative economy and expanding India’s global cultural presence.
Over the past decade, Netflix has collaborated with filmmakers and creators across India to produce films and series inspired by the country’s varied communities, traditions and landscapes. The new partnership aligns with the Government of India’s vision of using storytelling as a powerful medium to preserve and promote India’s civilisational heritage, encourage cultural tourism and support the growth of the creative economy.
