The fund is a “strong statement of intent. Its impact will depend on execution and accessibility”, said Shudeep Majumdar, co-founder of Influencer Marketing firm Zefmo. “Clarity on fund allocation and eligibility criteria will be crucial, considering the sheer number of creators today.”
Majumdar said the “fund’s success will hinge on transparent guidelines, fair access, and accountability in execution. Further details, as and when they come out, will provide a clearer picture of its real impact.”
India’s influencer count has grown to over 4 million, up from less than a million in 2020, according to data from influencer intelligence platform Qoruz reported by Mint. The creator economy is expected to become a ₹3,375 crore industry by 2026, up from ₹2,344 crore in 2024, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 18%, according to an EY study.
On Friday, Union information and broadcasting minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced the $1-billion fund, along with an Indian Institute of Creative Technology (IICT) in Mumbai, with an outlay of ₹391 crore, to boost the nation’s creator economy. The announcement came ahead of the inaugural World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit (WAVES) 2025, which the ministry will organize in Mumbai in May.
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“A billion-dollar fund will be created for the creators economy, which will make sure that all the energetic creators using the latest technologies today get access to capital and hone their skills, upgrade their production levels and reach out to the global market,” the minister said.
Analysts believe this investment has the potential to make India’s creator economy one of the world’s best.
“This will help accelerate world-leading content development, especially by providing access to cutting-edge infrastructure for content development and innovative technology and by creating a community of players across the creator ecosystem,” said Prateek Sinha, partner at consulting firm PwC. Like it took 50 years for Davos to become what it is today, India can champion the global creator economy in about 20 years, he said.
Even Prime minister Narendra Modi, during the 117th episode of ‘Mann ki Baat’ on 29 December, had said that the creator economy is bringing new energy to achieve India’s $5-trillion economy goal.
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“In the past years, we have seen the government showing interest in the creator economy, talking about it in the press, in public, and organizing award shows for influencers,” said Rachit Mittal, founder of IM Hub, a creator marketing community. “The government is interested in the creator economy and wants to streamline the process, the media distribution, and the advertisement distribution.”
Yet, there are concerns about who can access the fund. Will the government use it to promote popular influencers? If that happens, the smaller and upcoming creators stand to lose out.
“Unfortunately, I have a feeling the (fund) will be used to commission social media creators with large followings for projects designed to make the government look good. We’ve already seen this happening, and I think we’ll see a lot more of it with this investment,” said Nainika A., an influencer known for creating review videos on skincare products on her Instagram page @badassbrownbeauty with over 18.5 thousand followers.
Nainika said having a large following and “being amenable to furthering certain political agendas” would be influencers’ key to obtaining an access to this fund.
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This might be “just a flashy announcement” until there is more clarity, she said. “While it has the potential to be a positive development, I find the announcement rather vague and ambiguous. Until we can understand exactly how the government plans to utilise these funds, I remain sceptical about any positive impact of this development.”
The recent backlash that podcaster Ranveer Allahbadia faced for his controversial remarks has also stoked concerns. While the Supreme Court, after multiple hearings, permitted him to resume his content, the top court also asked the Centre to balance morality and freedom of expression while laying down guidelines for digital content. Mint reported earlier that influencers are self-censoring, fearing upcoming regulations.
“The only downside I can foresee (from the $1-billion fund) is the regulation of content,” said Vinamre Kasanaa, a podcaster with over 166,000 followers on his Instagram channel @dodtcast. “To be eligible for the fund, the creators will have to be complacent with the government, which I don’t think will apply to political creators or commentators that comprise a large chunk of India’s creator economy.”
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