Vijay Darda, Chairman and Managing Director, Lokmat Group, addressing the Mumbai Conclave.

The exchange4media Conclave at Mumbai took off in a grand manner at the Taj Land’s End, Bandra in the presence of industry bigwigs as part of audience and panel members. Vijay Darda, Chairman and Managing Director, Lokmat group of newspapers, was the chief guest for the event.

Darda addressed the issues that pertain to the media today and the way the environment is changing with new regulations and more fierce competition.

Darda said that he felt like a student amid a whole group of learned teachers from whom he would learn a lot. Hailing Anurag Batra, Managing Director, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of exchange4media publications as the youngest achiever in his profession, Darda said exchange4media has clocked a commendable growth in a short span of five years.

“exchange4media has been true to its name, indeed offering a platform for healthy exchange of information,” Darda said. Describing the efforts taken by the group as a movement that has started, Darda said that it will go a long way.

“Today, the challenges before print media are many and intense. With the FDI in retail opening to 26 per cent, there is competition from all fronts,” Darda said.

Sharing his experiences at world economic forums and other international seminars, Darda said that instead of Line of Control, there should be a Line of Cooperation between countries.

Darda further said, “With the passing of the Information Bill, in the true sense, India will be free and journalism will influence the mindsets of people.”

Dwelling on the way the advertisements and commercials are made today, he suggested that while the commercial interests are taken care of, the basic function to spread message should not be ignored.

Darda chose to conclude his speech with a point pertinent for the future scenario -“In the future, there will be only one war – that of intellectual property rights and India will surely be a winner.”