World watches as two-day ET WLF kicks off today, bringing together the big names

The stage is set. The speakers are here. An intellectual feast spread across two days is about to open. ET’s flagship summit — World Leaders Forum—is set for a high-voltage launch today

Bringing together the big names that matter from home and afar, this year’s WLF promises a blend of inspiration, innovation, and impact. With generously sprinkled headline acts and power-packed sessions, the WLF venue in the heart of Lutyens Delhi will buzz with the Capital’s most influential.

The action will peak on Saturday evening when Prime Minister Narendra Modi takes stage in front of the exclusive, invite-only gathering of stars from global and Indian business, politics, technology and entertainment.


WLF will witness special sessions by the top ministers in the Union cabinet, including Rajnath Singh, defence minister; Nitin Gadkari, minister for road transport and highways; S Jaishankar, minister for external affairs; and Piyush Goyal, minister for commerce and industry.

Global business leaders such as Christoph Schweizer, CEO, BCG; Mohamed Kande, Chairman, PwC; Vishal Sikka, BMW board member and founder of Vianai Systems; Dame Sharon White, managing director, CDPQ; Sir Martin Sorrell, chairman of S4 Capital; and Jonathan Ross, CEO of Groq, will all share their perspective on the way of the future at this year’s WLF.

Shaping the India of Tomorrow
Joining them on stage would be Federico J González, CEO, Radisson Hotel Group; Ritu Arora, CEO-Asia Pacific, Allianz Investment Management; David Steinbach, global CIO of Hines; and Rajat Taneja, presidenttechnology at Visa.

In a world shaped by shifting geopolitical currents, few voices carry the weight of experience like those of former US presidential candidate John Kerry. At ET’s flagship summit, his insights promise to offer clarity and perspective in uncertain times. Celebrated author and parliamentarian Shashi Tharoor will also speak on the shifting grammar of contemporary geopolitics.

Former Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, who steered his country through a series of complex geopolitical challenges—from the European debt crisis and the civil war in Libya to Russia’s intervention in Crimea and the rise of the Islamic State in West Asia—will offer his perspective on a rapidly changing global order.

Meanwhile, in the true spirit of federalism, various chief ministers will present a case for their state in shaping the India of tomorrow.

Mohan Yadav, chief minister of Madhya Pradesh, will paint a picture of his state’s role in the rise of India, while Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu will deliberate on transforming the new India's objective from smart cities to smart states. Nayab Singh Saini, chief minister of Haryana, will share the global ambitions of his state, while Pushkar Singh Dhami, chief minister of Uttarakhand, will be on stage to talk about unlocking the potential of the Himalayan state.

The burning issues of the day, from energy transition to bollywood transformation will be discussed threadbare by eminent panelists.

There will be sessions on the topics that matter, including artificial intelligence, the new flow of capital, women’s role in India’s growth; with former union minister Smriti Irani sharing her observations.

Other prominent voices that will resound during the two days of WLF include Gautam Singhania of Raymond, designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee, Ipsita Das of Moët Hennessy India; Puneet Chhatwal of IHCL, Sandeep Ghosh of Visa, Rahul Jain of BCG, Sanjog Gupta of ICC, cricketer Mithali Raj, chef Gaggan Anand, Praveer Sinha of Tata Power, Girish Tanti of Suzlon, Sanjeev Krishan of PwC India, Rishit Jhunjhunwala of Truecaller, Akis Evangelidis of Nothing and Nigel Vaz of Publicis Sapient, among others.

Adding a heady sprinkling of stardust to proceedings will be actors Janhvi Kapoor and Sidharth Malhotra, who will be part of a panel dissecting the Hindi film industry’s push to transform itself.