4 June 2026·PIB

Second BRICS Culture Working Group Meeting begins today in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh

In this note

1. At a Glance

Second BRICS Culture Working Group (CWG) Meeting held in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh on 4–5 June 2026 under India's BRICS Chairship 2026 [1][2].
Convened by the Ministry of Culture, Government of India; inaugural session chaired by Shri Vivek Aggarwal, Secretary, Ministry of Culture [2].
Examines India's role as BRICS Chair 2026, the expanded BRICS+ composition, and themes like Creative Economy, Cultural & Creative Industries, Copyright and AI [1].

The 2nd BRICS CWG Meeting commenced on 4 June 2026 in Varanasi with in-person delegations from Brazil, China, Indonesia, Iran, South Africa, UAE, and virtual participation by Ethiopia, Egypt and the Russian Federation [2].
First panel: "Creative Economy and People-to-People Cooperation: Innovation, Partnerships and the Way Forward," moderated by Secretary, Culture [2].
Part of a sequence of BRICS sectoral meetings hosted across India in 2026 (Tourism, Health, Employment, MSME, Youth) [1].

2009: First BRIC Summit (Yekaterinburg, Russia); South Africa joined 2010 making it BRICS.
2015: Agreement on Cooperation in the Field of Culture signed by BRICS governments — mandate basis for CWG [1].
2016 (Goa) and 2021 (New Delhi): India hosted earlier BRICS Culture Ministers' Meetings under prior Chairships [1].
2024: BRICS expansion — Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, UAE, Indonesia inducted (Saudi Arabia invited), forming "BRICS+".
2026: India assumes BRICS Chairship with theme "Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability" (BRICS) [1].
2023: Varanasi previously hosted the 4th G20 Culture Working Group meeting — establishing the city as a recurring cultural-diplomacy venue [3].

Host city: Varanasi (Kashi), Uttar Pradesh — UNESCO City of Music (2015).
Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Culture (not MEA, though MEA leads overall BRICS coordination).
Mandate basis: 2015 BRICS Cultural Cooperation Agreement [1].
2026 Chairship theme: "Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability" — acronym BRICS [1].
Thematic priorities (CWG 2026): Creative Economy; Cultural & Creative Industries; Copyright & Artificial Intelligence [1].
Participating members in this meeting: Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Iran, South Africa, UAE (in person); Ethiopia, Egypt, Russia (virtual) [2].
Chair of inaugural session: Shri Vivek Aggarwal, Secretary, Ministry of Culture [2].

Geopolitical / Strategic

Reinforces India's leadership in the expanded BRICS+ bloc; signals soft-power projection through cultural diplomacy [1][2].
Forum brings together non-Western civilisational states (China, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia) into a parallel multilateral cultural architecture distinct from UNESCO-led processes.

Economic

Focus on Creative Economy aligns with UNCTAD's classification of creative industries (audiovisual, design, crafts, performing arts) — a growing share of global trade.
Engages Copyright & AI — addresses generative-AI's impact on creators' IP, relevant to WIPO debates [1].

Cultural / Social

People-to-People (P2P) cooperation — covers museums, archives, films, digital cultural ecosystems [1].
India has consistently pushed at BRICS for recognising Culture as a standalone SDG (St Petersburg 2024) [4].

Administrative

Tracks parallel BRICS Working Group meetings hosted by India in 2026: Tourism (Andhra), Health (Delhi), Employment (Thiruvananthapuram), MSME, Youth (Indore).

4 June 2026: 2nd BRICS CWG opens in Varanasi [2].
2026: India assumes BRICS Chairship; logo, theme & website launched by EAM [1].
2024 (St Petersburg): India reiterated demand to make Culture a standalone SDG at BRICS Culture Ministers' meeting [4].
2024: BRICS expansion (Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, UAE, Indonesia).

2nd BRICS Culture Working Group Meeting held in Varanasi, 4–5 June 2026 [1].
Theme of India's BRICS 2026 Chairship: Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability [1].
Mandate of CWG drawn from BRICS Cultural Cooperation Agreement, 2015 [1].
Chaired by Secretary, Ministry of Culture — Shri Vivek Aggarwal [2].
BRICS expanded in 2024 to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, UAE, Indonesia.
India previously hosted BRICS Culture Ministers' meetings in Goa (2016) and New Delhi (2021) [1].
Varanasi also hosted the 4th G20 Culture Working Group in 2023 [3].
Russia, Ethiopia, Egypt joined the 2026 Varanasi meeting virtually [2].
Three thematic priorities of CWG 2026: Creative Economy; Cultural & Creative Industries; Copyright & AI [1].
India's BRICS chairship theme acronym = BRICS itself [1].

GS-II: India and its neighbourhood; bilateral, regional & global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India's interests.
GS-I: Indian Culture — salient aspects of Art Forms. (Soft power, cultural diplomacy)
GS-III: IPR (Copyright & AI dimension).

Plausible question stems:

"Cultural diplomacy is emerging as a key pillar of India's multilateral engagement." Discuss in the context of India's 2026 BRICS Chairship. (15 marks)
Examine how the expansion of BRICS (2024) reshapes the bloc's agenda on creative economy and cultural cooperation. (10 marks)
Discuss the challenges that Artificial Intelligence poses to copyright regimes, with reference to BRICS deliberations. (10 marks)

BRICS expansion 2024 — new members, implications for India.
G20 New Delhi Declaration 2023 & Culture Working Group — Varanasi precedent.
UNESCO Creative Cities Network — Varanasi (Music), Chennai (Music), Jaipur (Crafts), Mumbai (Film), Hyderabad (Gastronomy).
WIPO & AI-Copyright debate — relevance to CWG agenda.
SDG framework & culture — India's push for culture as standalone SDG.
New Development Bank (NDB) — BRICS financial pillar.
India's soft power doctrine — yoga, AYUSH, ICCR.

Ministry confusion: Nodal is Ministry of Culture, not MEA (MEA only coordinates overall BRICS).
Year of cultural agreement: BRICS Cultural Cooperation Agreement is 2015, not 2009 (founding) or 2016 (Goa Summit).
Theme acronym: Often misread; BRICS = Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability — not "Building Responsive...".
BRICS expansion year: Effective 1 Jan 2024 (Saudi Arabia's status remains ambiguous — invited but did not formally accede; do not list it as a member).
Confusing G20 CWG (Varanasi 2023) with the BRICS CWG (Varanasi 2026) — both held in the same city under different forums.