Mumbai: The National Stock Exchange (NSE) on Friday launched the Nifty Waves Index, which comprises 43 listed companies from sectors such as media, entertainment, gaming, film, television, digital platforms, and music.

“This index will give investors an idea as to what’s happening to India’s creative economy,” NSE MD & CEO Ashishkumar Chauhan told Mint on the sidelines of the launch event. The index captures the strong growth potential across digital and creative industries – areas that are rapidly becoming key pillars of India’s economic story, he added.

The index has a base date of 1 April 2005, with a base value of 1000, according to a release. The weight of each stock in the Nifty Waves Index is based on free-float market capitalisation, subject to a cap of 5%. The index will be reconstituted semi-annually and rebalanced quarterly. 

Nazara Technologies tops the index with the largest weightage at 5.23%, closely followed by Zee Media Corp. (5.15%), Zee Entertainment Enterprises (5.14%), and Hathway Cable & Datacom (5.07%). 

Other key players in the mix include Den Networks, Tips Music, PVR Inox, Saregama India, TV Today Network, and Network18 Media & Investments.

Given that some companies in the index have relatively small market capitalization, questions around liquidity and volatility naturally arise. Chauhan said while some of these companies may grow significantly, others might not perform as well. “So it remains to be seen,” he said. When new players enter the space, they could be considered for inclusion in the index.

The NSE has 35 thematic indices, each focused on a specific investment theme, including capital markets, commodities, consumption, infrastructure, energy and CPSE.

“Through Waves, we are building a bridge between our rich cultural heritage and our boundless digital future. The launch of the Nifty Waves Index has provided us with a tool to measure success in this field and inspire many more entrepreneurs,” said Devendra Fadnavis, chief minister of Maharashtra.