Media has bigger role to play in building Brand India: Uday Shankar

The media industry has a bigger role to play in building “Brand India” as the country progresses, JioStar vice-chairman Uday Shankar said at FICCI FRAMES.

Speaking after receiving the FICCI FRAMES Lifetime Achievement Award, Shankar said India had made “tremendous progress” and that the media industry still had a role to play in helping the world believe in India more.

“And again, not just through news, but through entertainment, sports and movies, we need to build Brand India,” he said.


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Shankar said countries and institutions that were known to be great had also invested actively in sharing their experiences, telling their stories and building narratives around them.

“And I think as the country progresses to a greater future today, we can play a much bigger role in building Brand India. And that responsibility lies squarely with us,” he said.

Shankar also spoke about the continuing role of media despite changes in the industry. He said the media remained “a fundamental pillar of society” and was the foundation on which society’s imagination, vision for the future, and individuals’ aspirations for a better life, a better world and a better country were shaped.

He said the role of media extended beyond news to entertainment, drama, cinema and sports, with each of these elements having the ability to inspire people who had been left sidelined by the progress of the world.

They could help people imagine and create and give them “a sense of hope”, he said.

“The forms in which these are expressed may have changed, but that role remains far more pivotal today than it ever was,” Shankar said.

Shankar also acknowledged the changing nature of the industry, saying the younger generation had taken over and was bringing new ideas, innovation and the ability to deal with new challenges.