Mukesh Ambani, Chairman & Managing Director, Reliance Industries, outlined a bold vision for India to become the epicentre of a new global entertainment revolution during his keynote address at the inaugural edition of WAVES in Mumbai. The summit convened leading figures from film, streaming, television, music, sports, and digital content to discuss the creative economy’s future.
“Entertainment touches minds, hearts and souls. It communicates with our emotions, energises our thoughts and awakens our spiritual core,” said Ambani. Framing entertainment as a powerful force for societal enrichment, Ambani underlined that India’s culture and creativity are not just assets—they are the country’s true power.
He paid tribute to cultural icons such as Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Rajnikanth, Gulzar and Hema Malini, calling them India’s most influential cultural ambassadors. “They have carried the flag of Indian culture to all parts of Asia, Africa, Europe and America,” he said, describing their global reach as both a matter of pride and a springboard for what lies ahead.
Ambani said that storytelling lies at the heart of India’s entertainment advantage. “Good stories always sell. This unchanging principle defines the success of entertainment products anywhere, everywhere and always,” he explained. Quoting Mark Twain, he said, “India is the cradle of the human race, birthplace of human speech, mother of history, the grandmother of legend and the great-grandmother of tradition.”
He then identified three strategic advantages that place India in a unique position to lead the entertainment world: content, demography, and technology.
India, he said, has a massive and youthful population that is both a source of content creation and a vast audience. “1.4 billion creators and consumers with an average age of 29 — this is not just a statistic. It is the profile of a demographic, economic and creative superpower,” he stated with pride. He forecast that India’s economy would soon become the world’s third largest, making it the largest media and entertainment market globally.
Ambani emphasised that in terms of technology, India is leading, not following. “Indian VFX is now powering Hollywood blockbusters. We produce several million hours of content every year—films, TV series, music, sports, short form, long form, live and immersive content,” he said. “We are multilingual, multi-format and multi-platform by design,” highlighted Ambani.
He credited Reliance Jio for enabling this transformation. “With JioCinema, we have broken viewership records, revolutionised IP streaming and made immersive multi-language interactive sports viewing a global standard. And this is just the beginning.” Ambani also spoke about Jio’s partnership with Disney and the launch of JioHotstar: “Its technology stack is unrivalled. JioHotstar is committed to making India a proud leader in the global entertainment industry.”
Artificial intelligence was another major theme in his address. “AI tools are dissolving the barriers between dream and reality, between imagination and execution. They can make good content a thousand times more captivating and take it simultaneously to hundreds of millions of screens across geographies and languages.”
Among the most notable parts of his speech was his mention of the IPL, highlighting its growing international footprint. “As sports is also a new genre of entertainment, IPL has now gained phenomenal viewership around the world,” he said. Alongside IPL, Ambani cited films like Dangal becoming blockbusters in China and older examples such as Raj Kapoor’s films being embraced in Russia and Central America.
Ambani laid out a four-part strategy to take Indian entertainment global. First, he urged the industry to seize the opportunity to grow India’s media and entertainment industry from $28 billion to over $100 billion in the next decade. Second, he called on content creators to think globally, pointing out that even regional filmmakers should aim to reach international audiences.
Third, he emphasised the importance of international collaboration. “India should become the modern global centre for content and creativity,” he said, citing Prime Minister Modi’s vision. Fourth, he spoke about the deeper purpose of entertainment—to build a better, more harmonious world. “People all over the globe are hungry for entertainment that is healthy, wholesome and brings hope and happiness. India can satisfy this hunger better than any country in the world,” he said.
Expanding on the potential of India’s creative economy, Ambani said the country must invest in content clusters and institutions that can train tens of thousands of young professionals in animation, VFX, AI-based storytelling, and gamification. “We need new investment avenues, modern policies and regulatory support that rewards imagination and inclusion,” he added.
He described the entertainment industry not only as an economic sector but as a cultural mission that can define the global image of India. “The purpose of all we do is to build a better world for our future generations. A world that realises the motto Prime Minister Modi gave to the G20: Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam—the whole world is one family,” Ambani said.
He also noted that the products of India’s creative industry have a timeless quality. “They are not consumed and forgotten. They last. They influence. They awaken the human spirit,” he said, distinguishing the creative industries from other material ones. “They paint dreams of a brighter future, help us confront our past and enjoy beauty in the present.”
Ambani pointed out that the next great media consumption boom would come from the Global South. “Most of the creation and consumption of media and entertainment products will now start taking place in Asia, Africa and South America,” he said, noting that this shift is both economic and cultural.
He highlighted that India is uniquely positioned to serve this vast, multicultural, multilingual audience because of its own diversity. “We are already multilingual, multi-format, multi-platform. This is not a choice. It is in our DNA,” Ambani remarked.
Returning to the role of AI and digital platforms, Ambani asserted that these technologies are now more disruptive than the invention of the camera a century ago. “What AI is doing to entertainment now is a million times more revolutionary than when silent cinema first brought stories to the screen,” he declared.
He credited Jio for democratising access to this digital revolution. “With 1.2 billion mobile phones, India has 1.2 billion screens. With Jio’s affordable internet, every Indian can become a viewer—and a creator,” he said.
Looking forward, Ambani described JioHotstar as a platform that would showcase both Indian and global talent. “Our ambition is not to follow Western content leaders, but to match and even surpass them—on our own terms,” he said.
He also struck a note of humility and optimism in concluding his speech. “This is just the beginning of a long journey. The start has been fantastic and auspicious. With collective effort, Waves can become a must-attend global summit for the entertainment industry,” he said.
Concluding the keynote, Ambani left the audience with a powerful wish: “May this newly created WAVES platform give the message of hope for a new world from a resurgent new India.”
