Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos meets PM Modi, unveils big India storytelling push

Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos met Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss the growing global influence of Indian storytelling and the company's long-term commitment to India's creative economy on August 5. The meeting came alongside the launch of the Netflix India Storytelling Initiative, a multi-phase investment aimed at strengthening India's creative talent pipeline.

The company said the initiative would create strategic partnerships with Indian institutions and equip the next generation of storytellers with industry-relevant skills. These include the animation, visual effects, gaming and comics ecosystem, which it described as a key driver of India's Orange Economy. It said the effort would also support the Government of India's Viksit Bharat @ 2047 ambitions through stronger education, industry partnerships and creator capability development.

Speaking about the initiative, Sarandos said, "India has always been one of the world's greatest storytelling nations. Over the past decade, we've had the privilege of seeing Indian stories connect with audiences not just across India, but around the world. As we begin our next



decade here, we believe our greatest investment is in the people who will tell India's next generation of stories. The Netflix India Storytelling Initiative reflects our long-term commitment to strengthening India's creative ecosystem by creating more opportunities for emerging creators, because investing in creators is investing in India's creative future."

Netflix said the first phase of the Netflix India Storytelling Initiative would focus on youth skilling and include two new strategic partnerships with Indian institutions.

The first partnership is with the Indian Institute of Creative Technologies to co-develop an industry-ready curriculum in Visual Effects Mastery and Media Technology Workflows, with the aim of ensuring students graduate with skills aligned to evolving production needs.

Netflix said it would also offer 100 scholarships to Indian students for in-person programmes at the institute, including Interactive Comics and Sequential Art, Virtual Art Department Content Creation, Art of Character Animation, E-Sports and Gaming Management, and other emerging creative disciplines.