– Ronita Torcato

India’s premier creative economy platform, World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit (WAVES) and affiliated events are major gatherings for the media and entertainment industry, film professionals and students.

Organised by the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB), the second edition of WAVES will cast the spotlight on nurturing youth talent, upskilling, structured mentoring, and fostering innovation. The first event BRICS WAVES Bazaar is scheduled for August 6–7, 2026, at the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) in Mumbai.

With the global M&E industry projected to reach $2.32 trillion by 2027, over 50 industry-led challenges are planned at WAVES, with a major focus on youth-oriented skills and emerging technologies.

To this end, MIB is offering a grant of Rs one crore for Create in India Youth and Innovation Challenges from associations within the Media and Entertainment (M&E) sector.

The winners and their projects will be showcased at ‘CreatoSphere’ during the WAVES 2027 Summit.

A new online portal has been created to ensure a merit-based process for all entries. Interested entities are invited to submit their proposals through https://wavesbazaar.com/create-india-challenge/season2/ifp, before July 31, 2026.

The proposals may be from any of the following domains including Artificial Intelligence (AI), Digital and Social Media, Animation, VFX, Online Social Gaming, E-Sports, Comics, XR/AR/VR, Films, Broadcasting, Music and Dance, as well as other emerging fields of the M&E sector.

On Friday, a high-level delegation from the Union MIB led by secretary Chanchal Kumar, called on Devendra Fadnavis, chief minister of Maharashtra, to discuss the upcoming WAVES Summit in Mumbai.

Apart from CM Fadnavis, discussions were held with chief secretary Rajesh Aggarwal, principal secretary to the CM, Shrikant Pardeshi, principal secretary (Industries, Investment and Services) Dr. P. Anbalagan, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) commissioner Ashwini Bhide, and director-general, DGIPR Brijesh Singh, among others.

Prior to the meeting with the CM, MIB’s Chanchal Kumar, chaired a review meeting with senior officials to assess preparations for WAVES 2027.

The meeting was followed by a recce of the Jio World Convention Centre at Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) the venue of the inaugural edition of WAVES in 2025.

Prime minister Narendra Modi had inaugurated the first WAVES Summit which was followed by a series of ‘WAVES Bazaar’ roadshows across the world, including Melbourne, Busan and Toronto.

Co-chaired by Union I&B Secretary Sanjay Jaju and Maharashtra Government officials, WAVES 2025 aimed to promote India’s creative ecosystem—including film, VFX, gaming, and OTT—to global audiences.

Under the Create in India Challenges (CIC) over 700 finalists converged at the four day event which featured 140 sessions, participation from more than 3,100 companies and drew over one lakh visitors.

As part of WAVES, an “Access to Mentorship” programme for creative startups was launched at the Indian Institute of Creative Technology (IICT) operating as a National Centre of Excellence for the AVGC-XR sector from the NFDC Campus.

IICT recently relocated to a new campus in suburban Goregaon with the first academic batch planned for 2028. The institute boasts partnerships with global technology giants, including Google, Meta, Microsoft, Apple, Adobe, and NVIDIA.

Companies have been urged to reskill employees through IICT courses and tap its incubation and technology infrastructure.

Also read: The Forum 2026 advances the vision of Viksit Bharat 2047