By Our Staff Reporter
Dehradun, 10 Apr: With the aim of bringing together various sectors of the global media industry under one roof, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India, is organising the first-ever World Audio Visual Entertainment Summit (WAVES) in Mumbai from 1 to 4 May 2025. This is the inaugural edition of the summit, envisioned as a global platform that encompasses 32 media fields—including radio, social media, filmmaking, reels, animation, gaming, and broadcasting—under the ‘Create in India Challenge’, giving professionals and youth from across the country an opportunity to shine globally.
Under the Create in India Challenge (Student Category), Dehradun-based filmmaker and animator Kartik Mahajan’s short animated film on the traditional Uttarakhand festival, Phul Dei, has been selected for the Award in Excellence in the Showreel/Shorts Making segment. Out of hundreds of entries from across India, only 26 films have been selected for this honour, including Phul Dei.
Kartik shared that his team is thrilled and proud to receive this recognition. As the film is fully animated, each frame was handcrafted, taking nearly three years to complete. The music for the film has been composed by the popular Uttarakhand-based band Pandavaas.
What makes Phul Dei especially notable is its beautiful portrayal of Uttarakhand’s natural mountain landscapes. The film has already been showcased and awarded at around 70 international film festivals across the world. Last year, Phul Dei won the Indian Gold Award at the prestigious Digicon Asia Awards in Tokyo. Kartik has also been honoured with the Arnab Chaudhuri Young Directors Award and was named ‘Young Animator of the Year’ at the NNN Awards 2024.
The World Audio Visual Entertainment Summit (WAVES) is a landmark event for India’s Media and Entertainment (M&E) sector. The summit will provide industry professionals, investors, content creators and innovators an unparalleled global platform to engage, collaborate, and innovate. WAVES aims to boost India’s creative economy and its position as a hub for content creation, intellectual property, and technology innovation.
Key sectors covered include broadcasting, print media, television, radio, film, animation, visual effects, gaming, comics, sound and music, advertising, digital media, social platforms, generative AI, augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and extended reality (XR).
