KD NEWS SERVICE
MUMBAI, Jan 17: In a significant step towards strengthening creative, technological and skill-based ecosystems in Jammu and Kashmir, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on January 15 visited the Indian Institute of Creative Technologies (IICT) campus located at the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) complex in Mumbai. The visit was aimed at exploring wide-ranging opportunities for institutional collaboration, student exchange programmes and capacity-building initiatives between IICT and the Government of Jammu & Kashmir.
The Chief Minister’s visit to the IICT–NFDC campus was hosted by Dr. Vishwas Deoskar, Chief Executive Officer of IICT, along with Munjal Shroff, Member of the Governing Council of IICT. Senior faculty members and officials of the institute were also present during the engagement.
During the visit, Omar Abdullah was taken on a comprehensive and structured walkthrough of the IICT main campus, where he was briefed in detail about the institute’s academic ecosystem, pedagogical approach and state-of-the-art technological infrastructure. The walkthrough highlighted IICT’s focus on advanced creative disciplines, including animation, visual effects, gaming, comics (AVGC), and emerging immersive technologies.
As part of the programme, the Chief Minister attended a specially curated audiovisual presentation at the Rangayan Preview Theatre. The presentation offered an in-depth overview of IICT’s vision, academic framework, industry-oriented training modules and its role in nurturing future-ready creative professionals through the integration of technology and artistic innovation.
The visit continued with a live demonstration at the Anubhuti Drishya Immersive Studio Lab, where cutting-edge applications of augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR) and mixed reality (MR) were showcased. The hands-on experiential interactions demonstrated how immersive technologies are being deployed for storytelling, education, simulation and digital content creation.
A key highlight of the visit was a Digital Twin demonstration at the Photogrammetry Studio. Here, a live 3D photogrammetry scan was conducted to create a digital avatar, offering the Chief Minister first-hand exposure to the practical and commercial applications of immersive and digital twin technologies across sectors such as filmmaking, heritage conservation, gaming and virtual production.
Following the technical demonstrations, a strategic discussion session was held between the IICT leadership and the Chief Minister to deliberate potential areas of collaboration between IICT and the Government of Jammu & Kashmir. The discussions focused on institutional cooperation and student exchange programmes, with special emphasis on skill development and capacity building in AVGC and emerging creative technologies. Other key areas included leveraging immersive tools for digital heritage and cultural preservation in Jammu & Kashmir, as well as developing a collaborative startup incubation and innovation ecosystem to empower youth from the region with employment and entrepreneurship opportunities.
Speaking during the interaction, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah underlined the importance of building local capacity to position Jammu & Kashmir as a competitive destination for filmmaking and creative industries. “If we want Jammu and Kashmir to become an attractive destination for filmmaking, then human talent and post-production capability must be created locally. That is where a relationship with an institution like IICT becomes important for us,” he said.
Dr. Vishwas Deoskar, CEO of IICT, expressed optimism about forging meaningful partnerships with the Jammu & Kashmir government. He said IICT looks forward to collaborations that can directly benefit students and young talent from the region by enabling skill development, fostering innovation, and creating sustainable employment and entrepreneurship opportunities in the creative and technology-driven sectors.
After the discussions, the Chief Minister was escorted to the NFDC Bharat Pavilion and Museum, which chronicles India’s rich cinematic and creative heritage. He was briefed on the role of the NFDC Museum as a national cultural repository dedicated to preserving, presenting and celebrating the legacy of Indian cinema and creative arts. The visit concluded with the Chief Minister proceeding to his onward engagements at the NFDC campus, marking a forward-looking engagement towards integrating Jammu & Kashmir into India’s growing creative economy.
