Bejoy Arputharaj, visionary Phantom Digital Effects founder and CEO (part of the Phantom Media Group, a global collective of leading VFX and Animation studios) is recognised as one of the most forward-thinking leaders in the visual effects industry. An artist at heart and a veteran of the VFX space, he has over two decades of experience and more than two hundred films to his credit. Under his leadership, Phantom Digital Effects has grown from a small studio into a publicly listed global powerhouse, uniting over 600 artists across India, the US, Canada, the UK, France, Ireland, Spain, Dubai and China.

Arputharaj's vision has earned Phantom Digital Effects numerous accolades, including the Times Business Award for Excellence in VFX and Animation (2022), the Outlook Business Spotlight Business Icon Award (Company of the Year, 2022), recognition as Outstanding Young Person of the Year in India (2022) by Junior Chamber International, and the Best VFX Supervisor award at the VAM Awards 2024 for 'Ayalaan', where the studio also won multiple awards including Best Motion Capture, Best Compositing, Best VFX Feature (Domestic), and Best Innovative Use of Software in VFX. Most recently, Phantom FX won the Best VFX (Series) award at the 2025 Filmfare OTT Awards for its work on the Prime Video & Amazon MGM Studios series 'Khauf'.

Since its inception in 2010, Phantom Digital Effects has expanded its capabilities and global presence, creating sister companies like Spectre Post and pursuing major acquisitions that have strengthened its position in the international VFX market. A key milestone came in March 2024 with the acquisition of the Oscar-winning Tippett Studio, founded and led by legendary VFX and Animation artist Phil Tippett, whose decades of pioneering work shaped iconic cinematic moments, from 'Jurassic Park' to 'Star Wars'. The momentum continues with the recent addition of Milk and Lola Post joining the group. Milk, an Oscar, BAFTA, and Emmy-winning VFX studio, is renowned for its work on ambitious feature films and episodic projects, from expansive environments to photoreal characters and creatures, with credits including 'Good Omens', 'Fantastic Beasts', 'The Martian', and 'The Witcher'. Lola Post is a leading VFX studio celebrated for cinematic excellence, photorealistic VFX, and advanced post-production, contributing to internationally acclaimed projects across film, series, and immersive media.

This collective strength brings together some of the world's finest creative and technical teams under one umbrella, ensuring unparalleled quality for projects across film, series, and commercials. Together, these studios have contributed to some of the most high-profile ventures including 'Ironheart' (Tippett Studio-Disney+), 'Heads of State' (Milk-Prime Video), 'Walking with Dinosaurs' (Lola Post-BBC/PBS), 'Creation of the Gods II: Demon Force' (Tippett Studio & PhantomFX-Alibaba Pictures Group), 'Star Wars: Skeleton Crew' (Tippett Studio-Disney+), 'Citadel: Honey Bunny' (PhantomFX-Prime Video), 'Alien: Romulus' (Tippett Studio-Disney), 'IC814: The Kandahar Hijack' (PhantomFX-Netflix), 'Scoop' (Milk-Netflix), 'The Rig' (Lola Post-Prime Video), and 'Meg 2: The Trench' (Milk-Warner Bros.).

In addition to leading Phantom Digital Effects, he serves as Vegas (Visual Effects, Gaming, Animation & Comics Society) president and is an active member of the Visual Effects Society (VES), USA. He regularly speaks at international conferences and forums on VFX and animation and has received multiple awards for innovation and excellence in creative technology. Recognised as one of India's top VFX supervisors, he continues to inspire the global industry while guiding Phantom Digital Effects and PMG toward continued innovation, excellence, and international growth.

With over 24 years in the VFX industry, his tenure at Double Negative Mumbai has sharpened his expertise in animation and live action VFX, positioning him as a leader in visual effects. At the core of his mission lies a dedication to pushing the boundaries of what's possible in VFX, championing projects that marry technical prowess with artistic vision. He is also the Anamcara & Paintbooth Studio founder.

His past experience as MPC Bangalore VFX head instilled in him a robust competency in overseeing complex productions, ensuring that their team's work aligns with the company's commitment to innovation and excellence. At Double Negative, he proudly led a team that contributed to the industry's most compelling visual narratives, all while fostering a culture of creativity and collaboration.

Yogesh Chhag is NYVFXwaala business vice president, driving strategic growth and client partnerships in the visual effects industry. With a sharp business acumen, he plays a key role in expanding the company's growth and delivering high-quality VFX solutions.

Shailesh Pahuja is a seasoned VFX and game development professional with nearly two decades of experience spanning production, education, and community leadership within the AVGC-XR sector. Currently serving as education and upskilling for AVGC-XR Madhya Pradesh vertical director, he is a driving force for digital arts education and talent development in the region. He leads the Bhopal local chapter as the Unreal Engine Community meetup leader and serves as the VFX & game development faculty at the Career Design School. In this capacity, he is responsible for course development, designing production pipelines, and teaching cutting-edge virtual production techniques.

With a strong foundation in high-end VFX production, Pahuja has worked at Maya Entertainment in Mumbai as a compositor, where he developed custom tools to accelerate workflows and contributed to notable projects including 'Motu Patlu', 'Manjhi - The Mountain Man', and the Star Plus series 'Mahabharat'. His core studio experience is built upon an early compositing internship at the globally recognised Rhythm and Hues Studios.

He is deeply committed to nationwide skill development within the AVGC sector. He is an active assessor for the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), evaluating and certifying students in compositor and roto artist courses. His background includes extensive educational leadership, having previously handled the VFX education wings for multiple branches of Frameboxx and serving as a faculty member at MAAC.

Equipped with an Unreal Engine Professional certificate and a Unity Game Development Specialisation, his technical proficiency covers the complete AVGC-XR pipeline, including 3D and VFX compositing, FX, virtual reality, game development, 3D camera tracking, and motion capture.

Jayanti Mahapatra is a senior creative-technology and people leader with over 20 years of experience in the global VFX and animation industry. Beginning her career at DreamWorks Animation as an FX artist in California, where her contribution to features like 'Madagascar 2' and 'Puss in Boots' laid the foundation for a remarkable career.

She has grown into leadership roles shaping how studios build capability, retain talent, and adapt to industry-wide change.

Her experience with globally renowned studios including DreamWorks Animation, Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), Animal Logic, DNEG, Folks, and Pitch Black Group reflects a rare combination of production expertise, technical depth, and cross-functional leadership. Mahapatra specialises in building scalable learning ecosystems and studio academies that strengthen talent pipelines, accelerate artist performance, and enable sustained creative excellence. She is deeply committed to mentoring emerging talent and fostering meaningful collaboration between academia and industry.

Seshaprasad is the DNEG India studio head, one of the world's leading visual effects, animation and stereo conversion companies for feature film and television. Prasad collaborates extensively with DNEG's management, leadership, and core teams to lead and mentor its crews across India by sharing his wealth of experience, knowledge, and ideas.

He has been at the forefront of producing VFX and animation for over two decades. He has played key roles in establishing and growing artist-friendly studios across Asia. Over the years, Prasad has played a crucial role in establishing and collaboratively developing DNEG's VFX and animation pipelines in India, while also overseeing the delivery of India teams on all of its most successful VFX projects, including our Oscar-winners Blade Runner 2049, First Man, Tenet, Dune Part 1 & 2.

Meghana Tirumalasetty is the co-founder of LittleBlackStar Visual Effects where she oversees business development and operations, ensuring the smooth execution of their projects while driving growth and innovation. Together with her team, she’s passionately building their IP, including an NFT collection, and actively cultivating a Web 3.0 community.

Rutul Patel holds an MFA in art direction from Academy of Arts, San Francisco. She has worked at advertising agencies McCann Erickson and Publicis before starting her VFX career at Prime Focus Los Angeles, as a matte painter on "Avatar" and "Tree of Life". She has produced TV commercials and directed CGI for clients including Unilever and Birla.

Patel currently manages award-winning Paris-based VFX studio Digital District in India as CEO, and leads the creative team as VFX producer and supervisor. She's also VES India chair and a recipient of the Unreal Fellowship as part of the first Women Creators Program 2021 as well as a creative mentor for the second edition of WCP fellowship.

A.R. Seshaprasad is the DNEG India studio head, which is one of the world's leading visual effects, animation and stereo conversion companies for feature film and television. Prasad collaborates extensively with DNEG's management, leadership, and core teams to lead and mentor its crews across India by sharing his wealth of experience, knowledge, and ideas.

He has been at the forefront of producing VFX and animation for over two decades. He has played key roles in establishing and growing artist-friendly studios across Asia. Over the years, Prasad has played a crucial role in establishing and collaboratively developing DNEG's VFX and animation pipelines in India, while also overseeing the delivery of India teams on all of its most successful VFX projects, including our Oscar-winners 'Blade Runner 2049', 'First Man', 'Tenet', 'Dune Part 1 & 2'.

Meghana is the co-founder of LBS where she oversees business development and operations, ensuring the smooth execution of their projects while driving growth and innovation. Together with her team, she's passionately building their IP, including an NFT collection, and actively cultivating a Web 3.0 community.

India's leading film production studio Annapurna Studios chief technology officer CV Rao, a post-graduate degree in Economics and specialised training in film technologies, began his career as a graphic designer before moving into post-production. He played a key role in the success of iconic films like Baahubali and RRR, overseeing post production for over 500 films. He is recognised for his visionary leadership, notably establishing one of Indi's most advanced virtual production stages at Annapurna Studios. His expertise and innovation continue to shape the studio's growth and elevate Indian cinema's technological capabilities

Harish Rao is a 25-year gaming and transmedia executive whose career spans Blizzard Entertainment, Walt Disney Imagineering, Electronic Arts, and Sony PlayStation, with AAA exclusives shipping 12 million plus units worldwide. As Harvil LLC director, he operates at the intersection of cultural intelligence, co-development strategy, and IP architecture, advising studios and media companies seeking durable advantage in the global creative economy.

At Sony PlayStation Visual Arts, he led external development on 'Helldivers 2', 'Death Stranding 2', and 'MLB The Show', scaling art production teams from 12 to 30+ while delivering US $1million plus in cost optimisation and 30 per cent plus efficiency gains. His proprietary culturisation framework eliminates the 30 to 40 per cent rework cost driven by cross-cultural misalignment, deployed across AAA productions and recognised at the XDS Conference. As an architect of Transcend Goa, India's first government-recognised transmedia conclave, he is a policy-level voice on India's rise as a global IP market.

With over 25 plus years of experience in the animation and visual effects industry, Anand Bhanushali has worked with renowned studios on many award winning projects including National Award for best animated feature film and Filmfare for best VFX series OTT to name a few. Having been a technical director for the longest time in his career, he is known to handle hi-end tech-creative challenges adroitly, with no production puzzle being too problematic to solve. Being a visionary he has been instrumental in building philmCGI as one of the most reputed studios and also looks after the overall day-to-day operations of the studio.

Seshaprasad is the DNEG India studio head, one of the world's leading visual effects, animation and stereo conversion companies for feature film and television. Prasad collaborates extensively with DNEG's management, leadership, and core teams to lead and mentor its crews across India by sharing his wealth of experience, knowledge, and ideas.

He has been at the forefront of producing VFX and animation for over two decades. He has played key roles in establishing and growing artist-friendly studios across Asia. Over the years, Prasad has played a crucial role in establishing and collaboratively developing DNEG's VFX and animation pipelines in India, while also overseeing the delivery of India teams on all of its most successful VFX projects, including our Oscar-winners Blade Runner 2049, First Man, Tenet, Dune Part 1 & 2.

Meghana Tirumalasetty is the co-founder of LittleBlackStar Visual Effects where she oversees business development and operations, ensuring the smooth execution of their projects while driving growth and innovation. Together with her team, she’s passionately building their IP, including an NFT collection, and actively cultivating a Web 3.0 community.

Part of Indian Television Group Anil NM Wanvari, is the founder, CEO and editor-in-chief of the Indiantelevision.com group. He has spent more than 37 years in the media industry and is considered India's foremost analyst, consultant and catalyst for the media sector. It achieves this through its various B2B and B2C portals: indiantelevision.com (for the cable, satellite, OTT, production, advertising, marketing, media industries), tellychakkar.com (TV show and actor news for TV fans), AnimationXpress.com (for the VFX, comics, gaming, and animation segments) and radionandmusic.com (for the FM radio, digital music and music industry).

He is also a well known Television/Digital Producer known for producing The Indian Telly Awards for the last 16 years and oodles of digital content. It engages with industry by organizing thought leadership forums under its various verticals: Video and Broadband Summit, RadioConnex Awards, News Television Awards ,BrandVid, The Content Hub, Kids Animation & More, etc.

An accomplished business leader with over 20+ years of experience in the global VFX and post-production industry, Rajan E serves as Phantom Media Group (PMG) chief business officer and Specter Post managing director. He has been instrumental in driving strategic growth, innovation, and key acquisitions, playing a critical role in the company’s expansion. His expertise in business development and stakeholder engagement has enabled numerous successful partnerships, significantly elevating market presence. Rajan has led large-scale international and domestic projects across feature films, series, and commercials, with a strong focus on operational efficiency, while continuing to expand global opportunities and strengthen India's position in the AVGC-XR ecosystem.

He graduated in painting from the Government Fine Arts College, Indore, in 2003, and later specialised in animation from ZICA in 2006. Since beginning his professional journey, he has worked across multiple creative roles, including director, producer, storyboard artist, art director, illustrator, and animator contributing to a diverse range of projects.

His animated short films, such as 'Saraswati', 'Common Story', 'Travel to Moo'n, and Channel V Shorts, have been showcased at international festivals and have received notable recognition, including the UNICEF Short Film Award in Bangkok and the Channel V Best Promo Award in Singapore. His work has also been acknowledged at esteemed platforms like ANIFEST, FICCI, and BAF. Before co-founding Paperboat Design Studios in 2011, he gained extensive industry experience working with organizations such as Hurix Systems, Anirights, Tata Elxsi, and UTV Motion Pictures.

He directed Bandbudh Aur Budbak for Zee TV, which became one of India's most popular animated television series. As a Creative Producer, he contributed to multiple episodes of Pakdam Pakdai for Nickelodeon and Sab Jholmaal Hai for Sony Yay. He currently serves as the Creative Director and Executive Producer of Fukrey Boyzz, a successful show on Discovery Kids. In addition to his role at Paperboat Design Studios, he is also the Co-Founder and Director of Occult VFX Studios. Most recently, he achieved a significant milestone with Shatak, recognized as India's first AI-powered feature film-marking a pioneering step in the integration of artificial intelligence within Indian cinema.

Sathish Narayanan is a seasoned professional with over three decades of experience in advertising, design, animation, visual effects, video production, gaming, and the AR/VR industry. A visionary leader and mentor, he is the founding member of Design Media & Edutainment Solutions, AVGC Skills and Nectar Pixels co-founder. His contributions have earned him prestigious accolades, including being a Grand Jury member at the New York Film Festival, the FICCI BAF Awards, and a citation from the Ministry of Skills and Entrepreneurship for outstanding contribution for skills development, prestigious "Anjali Khandwala creative mentorship award for 2026"

Holding a Master of Fine Arts in Industrial Design, Narayanan serves as a core committee member of the AVGC Sub Task Force under the Ministry of Skills and Entrepreneurship, Government of India. He is also an advisor to the Media & Entertainment Skills Council, an expert for World Skills International, and the chief expert for World Skills India in Graphic Design. He has played a key role in developing AVGC-XR curricula for leading universities across India. His leadership led India to win the bronze medal at World Skills 2019 in Kazan, Russia. Beyond professional achievements, he actively contributes to society through Rotary initiatives, continuing to inspire and mentor future generations through Indian Institute of Creative Technologies (IICT) an initiative by I&B Minister, in the capacity of Director of Academics

Chaitanya Chinchlikar has had a multi-faceted two-decade career in the media & entertainment industry. He is currently the Whistling Woods International vice president, business head, chief technology officer & emerging media head, India's premier film & creative arts institute. He is also SGM Studios - Mukta Arts' Animation & Video Gaming division business head. Over the past two decades, he has greatly strengthened India's media & entertainment education landscape including leading many academic & technology innovations, pioneered new areas of education and emerging technologies in the M&E industry, through technology partnerships and setting up tech development labs at Whistling Woods. In 2025, Chinchlikar became the first Indian film educator to be invited to join The Oscars Academy - the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences in the Production & Technology branch, and also served on the Oscars jury. He currently also serves on multiple public policy & advisory bodies for government of India, Government of Maharashtra and various state governments as well as on many industry associations in India & globally like the IICT, SMPTE, IABM, HPA, C2PA and the CAI. He writes extensively and is an active speaker at global seminars & conferences, speaking on M&E education and technology. He is also a strategic advisor to several startups in the M&E, technology & education verticals.

Shobu Yarlagadda is the CEO and co-founder of Arka Mediaworks, one of India's leading film and television production houses. Arka Mediaworks has produced several successful and critically acclaimed films, including Vedam and Maryada Ramanna, and is best known as the banner behind S.S. Rajamouli's two-part epic Baahubali. He has played a key role in expanding the Baahubali brand beyond cinema, building it into India's largest tentpole franchise with extensions into an animated series, a novel trilogy, merchandising, and more. The next major chapter in the universe is Baahubali: Eternal War, a high-budget animated feature slated for release in 2027.

An accomplished business leader with over 20+ years of experience in the global VFX and post-production industry, Rajan E serves as Phantom Media Group (PMG) chief business officer and Specter Post managing director. He has been instrumental in driving strategic growth, innovation, and key acquisitions, playing a critical role in the company's expansion. His expertise in business development and stakeholder engagement has enabled numerous successful partnerships, significantly elevating market presence. Rajan has led large-scale international and domestic projects across feature films, series, and commercials, with a strong focus on operational efficiency, while continuing to expand global opportunities and strengthen India’s position in the AVGC-XR ecosystem.

As a new-gen entrepreneur, Arjun Madhavan has played a pivotal role in shaping Assemblage over the past decade, working with a global marquee clientele and producing premium and world-class animated content across multi-platforms, genres, and formats. He is a firm believer in the power of people and partnerships and is all about investing in talent who will keep the studio and industry moving forward.

As a London School of Economics graduate, Madhavan began his career as an investment banker with Goldman Sachs and Deutsche Bank in London. He was also part of the commercial, strategy, and business development team at Genel Energy, under the tutelage of former BP CEO Tony Hayward and Nat Rothschild. He was featured in Forbes Magazine's 30 Under 30 Asia list in the media and entertainment category. He was also awarded the "AVGC 40 Under 40" title, initiated by AnimationXpress India, to recognise the finest 40 individuals from the Indian AVGC ecosystem.

I started out like most people not sure of what lies ahead post the compulsory education that each of us is supposed to do and would have probably been a Doctor or an Interior Designer had it not been for a chance encounter with the famed Dir/DoP Rajiv Menon. From the age of 16 I had been hanging on sets doing odd bits n pieces until his apprenticeship led to me being introduced to my future calling of Cinematography. I went on to reject a medical college admission and got myself enrolled into the MGR film institute in chennai and spent my years in the amazing library half the time and the other half on film sets.

I have been extremely lucky to have been accepted over the years by the industry both in feature films as well as advertising and I am always grateful of all the opportunities and people who have taken the leap of faith in me leading to a large body of work .

Azim Lalani, Co-Founder & Chief Business Officer at Bullet, brings 25+ years of media leadership. From Rediff to Network18, he's shaped content, syndication, and monetisation-driving strategy, scaling businesses, and navigating complex licensing ecosystems with sharp industry insight.

Karan Anshuman is a trailblazing writer-director and showrunner behind hits like Rana Naidu, Mirzapur and Inside Edge - India's first iEmmy-nominated OTT drama. With Glory next, he continues pushing bold, high-impact long-form storytelling globally.

Karan Anshuman is a trailblazing writer-director and showrunner behind hits like Rana Naidu, Mirzapur and Inside Edge - India's first iEmmy-nominated OTT drama. With Glory next, he continues pushing bold, high-impact long-form storytelling globally.

Sreyans Bardia is the co-founder and director of Bot VFX, where he has built one of India's largest VFX operations from the ground up. Combining entrepreneurial drive with creative insight and a people-first leadership philosophy, he oversees the company's production, finance, HR and legal functions across multiple cities. A recognised industry voice, he was invited to participate in the Government of India's "Champions of Change" initiative, engaging directly with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Prior to founding Bot VFX, he served as Project Head at Sony Pictures Imageworks India, and holds a gold medal in Visual Communication from The University of Madras.

Abhishek More is the NSE listed Digikore Studios founder and managing director, a global VFX and media-tech company serving leading studios and streamers worldwide. With 25+ years of experience across post-production, content creation, and innovation, he is driving Digikore's vision of building globally scalable content IP from India.

More is also the producer of 'Kingdom Games', an AI-assisted CG animated feature film being developed for a global release. He focuses on blending storytelling with next-generation production pipelines, spanning VFX, virtual production, branded content, and AI to help Digikore create, own, and export world-class entertainment.

RK Chand is an entrepreneur, business leader, and growth strategist with deep experience across the global creative, media, and technology industries. He is the founder of Astra Studios, backed by the Hombale Group. Over the last two decades, he has played key roles in driving business expansion, strategic partnerships, and revenue growth, working with internationally respected companies such as MPC, The Mill, and Technicolor.

Known for combining entrepreneurial vision with commercial execution, RK has helped build businesses, unlock new markets, and create long-term client value across domestic and international territories. His expertise spans VFX, animation, immersive experiences, branded content, and AI-driven creative solutions. With a strong reputation for leadership, relationship building, and future-focused thinking, he is committed to creating scalable creative enterprises that connect talent, technology, and storytelling for the next generation of global content.

Rajeev Rastogi is a creative individual with a vast capacity for thought and imagination to produce spectacular visual effects, enabling him to emerge as the epitome of a successful businessman in VFX. He has earned the highest praise, admiration, and accolades for his remarkable achievements in the VFX field.

His career has particularly flourished since he started creating unexpected and eye-catching visuals for the film industry.He has been part of Excel Entertainment and Ashutosh Gowariker Productions and has worked in the industry for more than two decades. His experience spans over 150 films and 50+ OTT series. Having worked with numerous directors and producers in his journey he's well recognised for his cost effective techniques and smart business approach. Having led several organisations earlier, he's now White Apple founder and managing director.

He has been awarded multiple trophies and recognition in the field of visual effects. Some prominent ones include: BW Disrupt 40 Under 40, Excellence in VFX and Animation, Maharashtra Ratna Puraskar, Dada Saheb Phalke Award, Labels Awards, Entrepreneur of the Year 2024 etc. WhiteApple has worked on more than 80 projects in the last five years and continuously strives to advance the industry with its unique execution strategy, aiming to become a multimillion-dollar company in the years to come. WhiteApple has strategically expanded into the digital sector, establishing itself as a rising content studio. Its versatile catalog now encompasses podcasts, music videos, original narratives, and cultural folklore.

With over 25 plus years of experience in the animation and visual effects industry, Anand Bhanushali has worked with renowned studios on many award winning projects including National Award for best animated feature film and Filmfare for best VFX series OTT to name a few. Having been a technical director for the longest time in his career, he is known to handle hi-end tech-creative challenges adroitly, with no production puzzle being too problematic to solve. Being a visionary he has been instrumental in building philmCGI as one of the most reputed studios and also looks after the overall day-to-day operations of the studio.