The Screenwriters' Association of India (SWA) has launched a Script Lab and Pitch Fest to discover new talent in Bollywood. Over 1,400 entries were received in 2025, with the top 25 scripts undergoing a month-long training program to learn how to pitch to producers. The Pitch Fest involves 25 writers pitching to 40 producers, resulting in 1,000 meetings in two days. The initiative has led to success stories, with many winners and finalists finding work in the entertainment industry.
SWA's Script Lab and Pitch Fest aim to bring new voices to the table in a guarded Bollywood industry. The initiative began in 2021 with a script lab and has since grown to include a Pitch Fest, where writers pitch their ideas and scripts to producers and streaming giants. The event has become a platform for young writers to meet top producers and get their work noticed.
Writer-producer Biswapati Sarkar has hired four writers from the pitch fest, while actor-writer Sindhu Sreenivasa Murthy has had her script picked up by a production house and is directing it herself. The SWA aims to increase the scale of the initiative while retaining the quality of writing pitched there.
