WAVES Summit 2025: Shah Rukh Khan, Akshay Kumar, Alia Bhatt and others grace the event

Shah Rukh Khan, Akshay Kumar, Alia Bhatt and other celebrities marked their presence at the inaugural ceremony of the World Audio Visual & Entertainment (WAVES) Summit hosted by Government of India in Mumbai. The event, which is set to take place from May 1-4, aims to spotlight the media and entertainment industry with multiple panel discussions planned.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the event, addressing a huge audience of film celebrities and content creators. After this, a panel discussion, titled ‘Legends and Legacies: The Stories that Shaped India’s Soul’ is set to take place with veteran actors Hema Malini, Mithun Chakraborty, Rajinikanth, Mohanlal and Chiranjeevi and it will be moderated by Akshay Kumar.

Karan Johar is set to be a moderator for two sessions, titled, ‘The New Mainstream: Breaking Borders, Building Legends’ with filmmaker SS Rajamouli, music director AR Rahman, and actors Anil Kapoor, Alia and Vicky Kaushal joining as speakers; and the other one with the theme, ‘The Journey: From Outsider to Ruler’, with Shah Rukh and Deepika Padukone as the speakers.

Pushpa 2 star Allu Arjun will be joining for a session titled, ‘Talent Beyond Borders’ along with Barun Das and it will be moderated by Aditya Raj Kaul and Kabir Naqvi. Another session titled, ‘The Art of Creation’ will see a diverse panel of actors Shahid Kapoor, Rajkummar Rao and Riteish Deshmukh and filmmakers Zoya Akhtar and Atlee. It will be moderated by film critic Anupama Chopra.

Director Madhur Bhandarkar will be hosting a session discussing the legacy of the late Manoj Kumar along with Hema Malini. Along with these discussions, the event will also have performances by composer MM Keeravani, singers Shreya Ghoshal, Shankar Mahadevan, Sonu Nigam, KS Chithra and Mangli.