Prasar Bharati CEO Gaurav Dwivedi calls for stronger public-private partnerships, hyperlocal content focus at WAVES 2025

At a panel discussion on day two of WAVES 2025, Prasar Bharati CEO Gaurav Dwivedi traced the evolution of India’s public broadcasting landscape and emphasised the importance of strengthening public-private partnerships and hyperlocal content creation to meet the demands of a rapidly changing media environment. He also highlighted how Prasar Bharati's WAVES OTT will be an enabler in doing so, while also broadcasting vast volume of information, new, and entertainment content.

Reflecting on the broadcaster’s legacy, Dwivedi said, “ When All India Radio was set up in 1936, right from the beginning, there was this approach that as new radio stations came up in different parts of the country, all of the content was not always internally produced.”

He highlighted how landmark programmes like Binaca Geetmala and Bournvita Quiz Contest were externally produced but found national platforms through Akashvani. “These were all programs that were not really produced in-house, but came in from outside. And Akashwani provided this platform to them, which took them forward,” he said.

Read more: EAM Jaishankar, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw urge for cultural pluralism, tech collaboration at WAVES Global Media Dialogue

Dwivedi also recalled the golden age of Doordarshan in the 1980s and ’90s, where classic shows like Ramayan, Mahabharat, Buniyaad, Hum Log, and Karamchand became cultural touchstones—again, many of them produced externally and aired via Doordarshan’s platform.

Fast-forwarding to the present, Dwivedi detailed Prasar Bharati’s massive reach with “23 languages, 180 dialects, 12 foreign languages, 250 plus radio stations, 30 channels.” Yet, he pointed out the limitations of linear broadcasting: “Only one programme can go at a time… But then we also have the possibility of having multiple programs and infinitely scalable number of programs across languages, across genres, on the digital platform.”

He pitched WAVES OTT, Prasar Bharati’s own streaming service, as a natural next step.

“Why do we need our own streaming service? There is also the requirement to take a very vast volume of usable content to the audiences- not just entertainment content, not just news content, but information content.”

Dwivedi emphasised the continued relevance of educational programming, citing examples like Turning Point, a science show presented by Naseeruddin Shah. He also defended the long-running program Krishi Darshan, calling it “the longest running television program anywhere in the world” that still maintains strong audience engagement.

Read more: WAVES, IICT to further strengthen Mumbai's role as key centre in global creative ecosystem: Ashwini Vaishnaw

Highlighting the evolution of news broadcasting, he said, “When we started with allowing private partnerships in an area as sensitive as news, Doordarshan and Akashvani had the monopoly… This monopoly was also gradually relaxed."

“The question is not whether we need this whole public-private partnership,” he concluded. “Hyperlocalisation is just a matter of finding out what is the right way of doing it… Whatever you are creating, bring it to us. Prasar Bharati will run it to the audiences and have everybody watch it.”