India can create content for the world: Goyal

New Delhi: India has the potential to become content creators for the world, said Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal on Thursday.

Addressing the Valedictory Session of the 11th CII Big Picture Summit, the minister said media and entertainment industry presents a remarkable opportunity for India. “This opportunity can be realized only if the entire industry and all of it verticals, stakeholders came together to ideate and synergize. The industry has kept the citizens informed, connected, engaged and entertained during the pandemic with credible, quality content.”

Goyal added that the industry is a sunrise sector. “India has immense resources in this sector, from technical skill, the talent of our young boys and girls, excellent digital connectivity which is further boosted with the roll out of 5G.”

He said that India is a huge market for the media and entertainment industry. “We have a long way to reach the inflection point. Out of the box ideas from the industry will help expand the ecosystem and bring in economies of scale.”

The minister further said that there is a need to make our legal framework much more contemporary. “It is time we move away from colonial mindset and outdated laws. The government will engage with industry to conceive laws which will truly facilitate growth and simplify day to day operations in this sector.”

Goyal added that the efforts will be made to simplify the ecosystem of permissions for shooting in India by making provisions to grant them through a single window framework. “Centre has already liberalized FDI in the entertainment industry to enable companies from all over the world to invest in India. All efforts must be directed towards laying a red carpet for international artists to create in India.”

The minister said that there is a need to take our platforms global and bring in new technology and equipment to improve visual effects, animation etc. “There is also need to embrace innovation in storytelling and asked that inspiration be derived from India’s rich archive of history, culture and traditions to take them to the global stage. The entertainment industry has great potential for employment generation and called for more skill development and educational courses.”

He added that the stakeholders of the sector should function independent of the government as much as possible but assured that the government was ready to support, facilitate and enable the sector to the best possible extent. “The private sector and the government must work in a spirit of partnership for the growth of the sector.”