Budget: Govt’s AVGC lab push aims to formalise creator economy, unlock next phase of digital commerce

A sweeping push to embed animation, visual effects, gaming and comics (AVGC) training into India’s education system is set to formalise the country’s fast-expanding creator economy, as the government moves to establish AVGC content creator labs across 15,000 secondary schools and 500 colleges.

The move will lead to a structured talent pipeline for one of media and entertainment fastest-growing segments.

Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced support for the Indian Institute of Creative Technologies (IICT) to roll out the nationwide lab network, aimed at strengthening India’s AVGC ecosystem and accelerating job creation.


A grant of Rs. 250 crore has been allocated for talent development in the Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming and Comics (AVGC) sector. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has been granted Rs. 4,552 crore for FY27, compared to Rs. 4,358 crore in FY26 and a revised estimate of Rs. 6,103 crore.

The AVGC sector is projected to require nearly 2 million professionals by 2030. According to an EY report, India already serves as the global content back office for animation, VFX and post-production, with the AVP segment expected to grow at a CAGR of 13% between 2024 and 2027 to reach $1.7 billion.

The focus on the creative economy has been a recurring theme at the highest levels of government. PM Narendra Modi highlighted the potential of India’s “orange economy” at the inaugural World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit (WAVES) in May 2025, noting that creative industries are poised to play a significantly larger role in India’s GDP in the coming years.

IICT has been set up as a public-private partnership, with the central government holding 34%, the Maharashtra government 14%, and industry bodies Ficci and CII holding 26% each. With a total allocation of Rs 391 crore, the institute is modelled on the IITs and IIMs for creative technologies, including AVGC and XR. IICT has begun operations from the National Film Development Corporation of India campus in Mumbai, with a full-fledged campus coming up on a 10-acre site in Goregaon’s Film City.

Industry leaders said the move could have a multiplier effect across the media and entertainment value chain.

“The Union Budget reinforces India’s shift toward a digital-first content economy through investments in digital infrastructure, skilling, and innovation. For integrated media businesses spanning television, streaming, sports, and technology, sustained policy predictability, harmonised regulatory frameworks, and support for IP creation will be key to unlocking scale, exports, and global competitiveness," said Kevin Vaz, CEO - Entertainment, JioStar.

“The government’s focus on boosting the services sector through economic stability, human capital development and a digital infrastructure push will be pivotal in driving sustainable economic growth in the long term," said Punit Goenka, CEO of Zee Entertainment Enterprises.

"The emphasis on enhancing the orange economy by encouraging investments in content, creativity, innovation and talent development through the establishment of content creator labs coupled with deeper adoption of emerging technologies, will certainly help unlock the value of high-potential segments across the media and entertainment ecosystem."

Rajan Navani, chairman of JetSynthesys, welcomed the initiative to establish 15,000 content labs across secondary schools and 500 colleges nationwide. “This is a powerful step towards expanding the creative talent pool while simultaneously raising the bar for world-class capabilities and quality—laying a strong foundation for Bharat’s creative industries to compete globally," said Navani, who is also a member of the IICT board of directors.

Ronnie Screwvala, entrepreneur, investor and co-founder of upGrad, said the focus on unlocking India’s talent across skilling and education, creativity and storytelling, sports, IP creation, healthcare, caregiving and tourism recognises that the country’s real strength lies in its people and demographic advantage.

Ankush Sachdeva, CEO and co-founder of ShareChat and Moj, said the proposal is a timely step towards formalising India’s creator economy, which already influences over 30% of consumer purchase decisions and drives $350-400 billion in consumer spending.

"By enabling early, formal training in animation, visual storytelling and short-form content creation, this initiative will help creators build sustainable careers, improve content quality and unlock the next phase of creator-led commerce as creator-influenced spending moves towards $1 trillion by 2030," he added.

Experts also pointed to the role of the labs in building a deep, sustainable talent pipeline aligned with the industry’s long-term manpower needs.

"What is particularly encouraging is the strong push this will give to regional content creators, enabling talent beyond metro cities to access world-class tools, training and production ecosystems. This will accelerate original IP creation in local languages, expand employment opportunities and fuel India’s cultural exports globally," said Rajiv Chilaka, founder and CEO of Green Gold Animation.