Shri Anurag Singh Thakur says the country’s expanding digital infrastructure and advancements in the AVGC (Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming and Comics) sector will make India the preferred post-production hub of the media and entertainment industry.
At the National Conference on ‘Changing Landscape of Media & Entertainment 2022’, organized by the Symbiosis Skill & Professional University in Pune, Shri Thakur shared that “a solid digital foundation for the AVGC sector is emerging across the country, and the government has established a Task Force to develop world-class creative talent to meet domestic and global demand”.
Media & Entertainment is a sunrise sector that will generate Rs 4 lakh crores a year by 2025 and reach $100 billion or Rs 7.5 lakh crores by 2030. Further, he said the government of India has designated audio-visual services as one of the 12 Champion Service Sectors and announced key policy measures aimed at nurturing sustained growth.
As we leapfrog into the digital era of quality content creation, the radio, film, and entertainment industries have tons of jobs to offer. There are many job roles in this sector – video editing, colour grading, Visual Effects (VFX), sound design, rotoscoping, 3D modeling, etc. Each job role in this sector requires a certain set of skills and competencies. “It is imperative that industry and academia come together and design programs relevant to this sector,” he said. Thakur said the government is also looking into new partnerships with the private sector to make sure students are up to speed with the latest tech trends.
Shri Thakur said Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s enthusiasm for technology has provided an oasis of opportunities for young minds to take flight, such as the Skill India Mission that aims to train 40 crore youth in market-relevant skills.
Speaking about the ’75 Creative Minds of Tomorrow’ project undertaken during International Film Festival of India 2021, Shri Thakur said several of those talents have been creatively contributing to the media and entertainment sector and some have established successful start-ups.
In talking about the start-up eco-system in India, Thakur said, even while the Covid pandemic was going on, India added 50 unicorn startups, which speaks volumes about Indian entrepreneurship. He said he hopes to see more start-ups emerging from leading film schools like FTII and SRFTI too.
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Shri Thakur said that the content creation industry has gotten a massive boost since the launch of ‘Digital India’. He said, “with good content, easy access, and an eager audience, India is ready to become a content creation hub”. He also said technical people behind the scenes need to be recognized and rewarded, moving beyond our current focus on lead characters.
Resul Pookutty, who won an Oscar and a BAFTA, was the guest of honour at the National Conference. Besides developing skills, educational institutions should revive the ancient Indian tradition of imparting wisdom to students.
New opportunities in Animation, VFX, Gaming and Comics, Opportunities in OTT, TV and Film Production, Augmented Reality / Virtual Reality Immersive media skills, etc. were the main topics of the National Conference.
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