Guest Column: Indian M&E – On the cusp of a magnetic transformation

Prof Dr Namrata Singh, Faculty, PGDM-Media & Entertainment, WeSchool, shares some pertinent facts about what is making the sunrise Indian Media and Entertainment industry tick and the careers in it so rewarding.

The Indian Media and Entertainment industry is a sunrise sector for the economy and is making high growth strides. Proving its resilience to the world, this Indian industry is on the cusp of a strong phase of growth, backed by rising consumer demand and improving advertising revenues. The industry has been largely driven by increasing digitisation and higher internet usage over the last decade. Internet has almost become a mainstream media for entertainment for most of the people. 

The Indian media & entertainment sector is expected to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 14.3 per cent to touch Rs 2.26 trillion (US$ 33.7 billion) by 2020, while revenues from advertising is expected to grow at 15.9 per cent to Rs 99,400 crore (US$ 14.82 billion). 

Over a period of 2015-20, radio will likely grow at a CAGR of 16.9 per cent, while digital advertising will grow at 33.5 per cent. The largest segment, India’s television industry is expected to grow at a CAGR of 15 per cent, while print media is expected to grow at a CAGR of 8.6 per cent. 

The country’s expenditure on advertising is expected to grow more than 12 per cent in 2016, and accelerate to 13.9 per cent in 2017, based on various media events like T20 Cricket World Cup, the Indian Premier League (IPL) and State elections. Television segment, which continues to hold highest share of spending, is expected to grow by 12.3 per cent in 2016 and 12.5 per cent in 2017, led by increased spending by packaged consumer goods brands and e-commerce companies. 

The Smartphone penetration, rise in short films/ ads/ movie previews/ hot star/ etc., liberalisation of various segments of media and entertainment industry and the fast growing animation and VFX field are some of the other important factors that are adding to the growth and development of this burgeoning sector. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (I&B) is working towards promoting ease of doing business, which will ensure less regulation and facilitate India to become the hub of media and entertainment industry. While the Indian job market today offers improved employment opportunities in traditional sectors such as retail, infrastructure and IT, attention is now focused on burgeoning  fields such as news ,entertainment ,education, data or promotional. 

Today, the definition of media includes every broadcasting and narrowcasting medium as newspapers, magazines, TV, billboards, direct mail, telephone, fax, and internet, which is also seeing a rapid increase in the number of job applicants. Entertainment with use of audio visuals – films, videos and games, Internet that includes blogs, forums, music, news, publishing of books, papers, magazines, and it also includes postal mail, telephony and other interactive Media. Thus, the scope of a career in this field is vast and varied. Business opportunities in Indian media and entertainment industry are enormous. 

In the film industry, technical jobs would include story and script writing for film and television, cinematography, photography, sound mixing and recording, direction of films and promotional ventures, etc. Advertising industry is another major employer for media professionals. Public relations and CSR, Event Management, Film Marketing, Copy Writing & Visualisation, Content Writing for Print/ TV/ Radio/ Digital Media, Journalism, Celebrity Management, Sports Management And Broadcasting, Television Distribution, etc., are some of the noteworthy career avenues that this industry has on offer. 

The Indian media and entertainment industry is one of the fastest growing in the world and has the largest output by any media industry in the world. Raised regulations, quality content development, competitive pricing, increased consumer base and significant marketing, creative use of technology and work effectiveness are driving the growth of this industry. Many media companies in India have grown speedily and are recruiting newer and younger talent for increased efficiency and creativity. The challenges and scope for growth for those who decide to make a career for themselves in the field of media and entertainment are varied and endless. Success in the competitive media industry often depends on one’s creative talent, determination, persistence and motivation, but the skills needed to effectively execute variety of projects  need to be learnt and assimilated from a media programme that can be a stepping stone to a rewarding career. 

For the young graduates, it will be prudent to look out for those programmes designed and delivered with the help of industry stalwarts to provide students a deeper understanding of the industry eventually providing them with first hand industry knowledge and experience and also offer the opportunity to undertake a work placement with a media or related company, thereby providing an excellent opportunity to develop practical and professional skills and to make industry contacts. Talented and creative young team players who can dream big, think out-of-the box and can design the excitement related to diverse entertainment genres like movies, animation, news, music, television, digital platforms and all the rest of it have a great future here as this will not only be fun, exciting and ever-growing, but also help you build a promising career for yourself. 

Prof Dr Namrata Singh is the Faculty of the two-year, full time, AICTE approved program PGDM-Media & Entertainment at Prin.L.N.Welingkar Institute of Management Development and Research (WeSchool).