Orange economy enters formal education as Budget backs large-scale AVGC training in schools and colleges

Presenting the Union Budget in Parliament on February 1, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman outlined a push to strengthen India’s orange economy by integrating creative skills into the education system. Citing the rapid expansion of the animation, visual effects, gaming and comics (AVGC) sector projected to require nearly two million professionals by 2030.

As part of this effort, the government plans to set up content creation labs in around 15,000 secondary schools and 500 colleges across the country. These labs are meant to provide students with hands-on exposure to AVGC-related tools and workflows rather than treating content creation as an extracurricular activity.

Support for setting up these labs will be extended through Indian Institute of Creative Technologies (IICT), Mumbai, which will help design infrastructure, curriculum frameworks, and training modules.

Welcoming the move, Professor Raja Ravi Chandra Prasad Kanakamedala, an Unreal Authorised Instructor, with over a decade of experience in game development, said, the announcement marks an important recognition of creative industries within formal education. “For long, art and media have existed outside mainstream career pathways. This is a step towards acknowledging them as viable alternatives to engineering and medicine within schools,” he said.

Globally, AVGC industries as well as digital storytelling have expanded rapidly with the rise of streaming platforms, social media, mobile gaming, and digital entertainment. In India, now it is increasingly being positioned as a strategic industry, for large-scale job creation and global competitiveness.

Content creation labs in schools and colleges

Speaking to The Hindu, Professor Sandesh Deepak Pawar, Associate Professor at the Indian Institute of Creative Technologies (IICT), Mumbai, with over 19 years of experience in animation, visual effects, and game art, said, “Once there is clarity on the proper streamlining of the programme, something that is still being discussed in internal meetings with departments in Delhi; we will be able to speak in detail on this aspect.”

Prof. Raja highlighted the infrastructural requirements and said that AVGC labs would need high-configuration computers capable of handling tools and software used for visual effects and animation. “Setting up such labs would also require personnel who at least know how to operate and manage these systems,” he said.

He added that India’s content industry is expanding rapidly and has begun to establish a global presence, particularly in gaming and visual effects, with several ambitious studios operating in the space. However, the pool of skilled professionals remains limited. Against this backdrop, he said the government’s decision to introduce AVGC skills at the school level could help build a stronger talent pipeline and open up clearer career pathways for students. “There is no need to fear while choosing this field as a career option.”

One of the key questions surrounding the rollout is staffing; Professor Raja spoke about the possibilities of the structure ‘labs’ and feasibility of infrastructure and manpower in schools. As per the proposed framework, instructors may not necessarily follow traditional subject-teaching pathways. Instead, teachers are expected to be drawn from a mix of trained educators and industry professionals, depending on availability.

“We are still figuring out who will teach these courses, whether it will be school teachers or industry professionals and how the training will be structured….professionals from the industry can be brought in as trainers. A lab, per se, cannot be treated as a subject. Instead, it can function through activities, webinars, excursions, and project-based work, without the need for a subject framework or an expert to be present at all times,” Raja said.

Mustafa who has 12 years of experience in the field said, “There needs to be some clarity on whether the government is also looking at new teaching vacancies specific to AVGC subjects, or short-term training and re-skilling programmes for existing teachers. There should be a structure etched in policy documents or guidelines released to clearly define eligibility criteria for appointments. There should be standardised lab structures and equipment norms to ensure uniformity”.

Speaking on infrastructure requirements, Mr. Mustafa said that computer systems capable of handling visual effects software typically cost between ₹1.25 lakh and ₹2 lakh per unit, and would require adequate security to prevent theft, regardless of whether the institution is public or private. He added that such labs would also need a full-time operator trained in the relevant software.

Prof. Sandesh Deepak Pawar of IICT, Mumbai, said discussions on the framework were still ongoing and that more clarity would emerge once the programme is formally streamlined.

These labs are expected to focus on practical training, allowing students to work directly with animation software, basic visual effects tools, game design platforms and digital storytelling formats.

Prof. Raja and Prof. Sandesh, said that the field was not recognised 15 years ago and there was an ambiguity around the profession with no specified courses and training. It was and and still is a mix of courses and skills that lands a person in a specification after a while.

Sharing his own journey, Prof. Raja said that when he was a student in Hyderabad, formal courses in game development and animation were not available. Though he pursued electrical engineering, his interest lay in game development. “I eventually found a professor working in this field and learned skills alongside completing my degree,” he said, adding that he had to combine learning from different disciplines while still securing a formal qualification.

Reflecting on generational change, Prof. Sandesh said that when he was choosing a career, the range of options available today simply did not exist. “There were neither so many specialised courses nor the kind of start-up ecosystem we see now,” he said.

AVGC as a career

According to government estimates, the AVGC sector could generate nearly two million jobs by 2030, with a significant portion coming from new-age digital roles that did not exist a decade ago. The broader aim is to strengthen India’s international competitiveness.

Offering a more cautious perspective, Mr. Mustafa pointed out that although skilled video game developers exist globally, many have been rendered unemployed following layoffs. He said the industry has also been affected by changing consumption patterns, including the dominance of short-form social media and reel-based content.

At the same time, he noted that studios in Mumbai and Hyderabad regularly execute visual effects work for international films at relatively low costs. “If such work can be done in Indian cities, there is no reason why our own industry cannot flourish by producing more content in-house,” he said. A stronger domestic ecosystem, he added, would require a larger and better-trained talent pool.

Speaking about career prospects, Mr. Mustafa said India still has a relatively small market for video game development companies compared to software services firms. “There are already instances where over 100 applicants compete for a single game development role,” he said, pointing to the mismatch between aspirations and available opportunities. However, he added that with the right skills, students and existing professionals could also explore independent production and entrepreneurial ventures.

(Mantasha Ahmed is an independent journalist based in Indore with five years of experience. She reports on the critical intersections of education, civil rights, social issues, and culture.)

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