PM Narendra Modi to inaugurate first WAVES summit in Mumbai on May 1

Mumbai: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the first World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit (WAVES) here on Thursday, a four-day event that will bring together the entire spectrum of the media and entertainment industry.

Envisioned as a platform to bridge the gap between traditional and emerging media, the prime minister has set aside nearly 10 hours for WAVES where he will chair a meeting with CEOs and industry leaders from the media and entertainment sector.

The prime minister will also interact with young creators from across the world who have participated in 31 different Create in India challenges at the Creatosphere and also give away awards to the winners.

The Creatosphere will feature curated zones from VR, animation, films, games, VFX, comics, music yo immersive exhibits and masterclasses.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw will also address the inaugural session of the summit, which is expected to witness participation from top actors such as Rajinikanth, Mohanlal, Hema Malini, and Chiranjeevi, among others.

The summit will opens with a stirring invocation by M M Keeravaani and a 30-member orchestra and 'Sutradhar Reinvented' which is billed as a sensory-rich journey into India's cinematic and storytelling DNA narrated by Sharad Kelkar.

The prime minister will also unveil the Bharat Pavilion, a vibrant tribute to the India's profound legacy of storytelling, based on the theme "Kala to Code".

The Pavilion will have four immersive zones that will take visitors through the continuum of India's storytelling traditions and a deep dive into the media and entertainment growth story.

The summit will feature theme-based plenaries and discussions aimed at shaping the future of the audio-visual industry in India and beyond.

The cultural evening on the opening day will feature a classical ensemble led by legends like Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, Yella Venkateswara Rao, and Ronu Majumdar, performances by the Tetseo Sisters, JHAALA, Shreya Ghoshal, KING x Alan Walker, and a cinematic act by Anupam Kher.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar is expected to chair the Global Media Dialogue which will see participation from ministers, leaders of the media industry and policymakers from across the world.

The first WAVES Awards to winners of 32 challenges announced in the run-up to the summit will also be given away at the event organised at the Jio World Centre in Mumbai.

Mumbai is expected to be the permanent venue of the WAVES summit, billed as the biggest gathering of the media and entertainment industry, similar to what World Economic Forum meeting at Davos is for the business and economy sectors, officials said.

Day one will open with a high-profile panel discussion titled 'Legends and Legacies: The Stories That Shaped India's Soul', featuring Hema Malini, Mithun Chakraborty, Rajinikanth, Mohanlal, and Chiranjeevi. The session will be moderated by actor Akshay Kumar.

Another highlight will be 'The New Mainstream: Breaking Borders, Building Legends', a panel with filmmaker S S Rajamouli, actors Anil Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, and Vicky Kaushal, and music maestro AR Rahman, moderated by producer-director Karan Johar.

A much-anticipated chat between Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone and Karan Johar, titled 'The Journey: From Outsider to Ruler', will delve into the inspiring careers of the two actors.

Key issues on the agenda include regulating broadcasting in the digital age, copyright for audio-visual performers and content creators, the role of artificial intelligence in media, the future of theatrical releases, and the evolution of the AVGC-XR (Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, Comics and Extended Reality) sector.