PVR expects 35% occupancy for IPL matches

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In an interview with CNBC-TV18, Pramod Arora, Group President of PVR , spoke about his outlook for the company during Indian Premier League (IPL) matches.

Below is a verbatim transcript of an exclusive interview with Pramod Arora on CNBC-TV18. Also watch the accompanying video.

Q: What occupancies are looking like in your initial rounds of the IPL matches? The TRPs have not done too badly at all.

A: It's very difficult to predict bit in the early days. We are getting around 15% occupancy now, but it's just started. As it goes forward and the tempo builds up, we should be looking at around 30-35% occupancy.

Q: How does it work for you? Is it a particularly level at which you break even or is it just a revenue sharing model? How do you make money on this?

A: This is more like a revenue sharing model. If you look at it, there are no big movies slated during this period due to which these options really work for us. It atleast generates as much revenues as one is looking forward to.

Q: Explain more about this entire revenue sharing agreement. Is it going on with UFO Moviez?

A: Yes.

Q: How is the kind of response as far as the screening is concerned because we have heard it's extremely lukewarm as of now? Are you expecting to garner some more by way of audiences? What are the strategies that you are using?

A: To an extent, this is experimental in nature as of now. It is now the initial days. The décor of the cinema has been set as it's like a stadium. Whatever you are watching on the screen is 33% more of what you watch on the television screen.

Q: How about the pricing?

A: The pricing is almost same as to where we sell our movie tickets that is around Rs 150.

Q: Take us through the revenue sharing as well?

A: I don't have that data with me. It is basically a day to day on an official level. So it would be difficult for me to put light on that.

Q: So for PVR in this phase of the IPL, has the movie business taken a back seat?

A: Not really. If there are good movies which will be coming in, we believe they will be still be able to get the clientele expected from them. No major releases are slated at this time barring a few.

Q: Are you expecting a decreasing in foot falls like it usually does during the time of the IPL?

A: Not really that much. If I was to take a hypothetical situation where in I would suggest there are enough profits coming in into the cinemas, then one would be seeing a lot of traffic.

Q: You had planned to sell off your Phoenix mills property and take it back on lease. What's the latest on that?

A: I don't know how this information is floating around. We have got this in one of our subsidiary companies, which is a 100% subsidiary owned by PVR. On a strategically move, if we are ever to come upon a lease-cum-buyback, we can use it as a means of finance. Nothing is out from our stable as of now that we are looking at that sort of a situation because we are well covered in terms of funding to growth for the next couple of years.

Q: What is your total debt anyway? How much is your monthly interest outgo?

A: Difficult for me to say it now.

Q: Are you planning any more acquisitions?

A: If something is available in the market, so we are buyers for that. However, our focus is on the organic growth strategy, which is not having any plans for any acquisitions coming in or not coming in.