PVR INOX Pictures is widening its distribution lens, doubling down on regional cinema—from Malayalam to Bengali titles—while keeping a steady lineup of English releases to sharpen India’s global entertainment footprint.
The distribution arm of the multiplex chain is mirroring the big screen success in film distribution, by adding more regional content to its slate.
Growing distribution pie
Nayana Bijli, Director, PVR INOX Pictures, daughter of promoter Ajay Bijli, who is steering the distribution business, is taking learnings from the cinema side.
She said that the pan-India success of South Indian content is a learning they are applying on the distribution side. She also expects regional content to grow the distribution pie.
"Regional content will grow, and, hopefully, growing the pie will increase the contribution to overall revenues at the exhibition level, too," she said.
But the company is not limiting itself to only South Indian films. It released 24 Bengali films this financial year.
The distribution segment currently contributes 5-10 percent to the overall revenues of PVR INOX.
"We are very aggressive in our distribution strategy," Bijli said, adding that they have released 78 titles so far and are on track to meet last financial year's number.
Last year, PVR INOX Pictures released 124 films, with international and regional titles at 52 each, and another 20 from Hindi cinema. The current year is on the same track. From April to late November, 78 films have already reached cinemas, led by 42 international titles, followed by 26 regional films and 10 Hindi releases.
English titles in tow
While expanding its local slate, PVR INOX Pictures is ensuring English titles remain a key part of its strategy to boost India’s presence on the world stage.
"India is making a name for itself in global entertainment. There's a lot of excitement (amid filmmakers and studios) about coming to India, about releasing in India," Bijli said.
She gave the example of Hollywood's John Wick: Chapter 4, starring Keanu Reeves. India was among the top five countries in terms of the film's box-office contribution, she noted.
"The makers of the movie were impressed with that. They understood that India has such a strong appetite for all sorts of content. And the proof is in the box office. The figures are driving international movies towards us."
Bijli shared another example of the Japanese movie Suzume, for which India was one of the top performers. The film's maker Makoto Shinkai had come to India to meet the fans.
"Movies like Ballerina and Shinchan, for which India has been a top performer in terms of box-office business, are putting India on the map," Bijli added.
The upcoming Hollywood slate includes Christmas Karma by filmmaker Gurinder Chadha, who has given classics like Bend It Like Beckham and Bride & Prejudice.
Picking the right content
Bijli said that they attend all film festivals to understand what content can work in India.
In addition, the team keeps an eye on all films that their partners, like Lionsgate, are releasing.
"We also keep an eye for films that have commercial appeal. We know which genres have worked well, which are picking up. Anime is an example that we keep actively looking out for. Finally, we look at films that have some sort of Indian resonance like Christmas Karma by Gurinder Chadha, who is bringing a film to the big screen after a long time," she said.
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