Investors bet on content boom amid box-office duds, OTT rut

The box office has been volatile, and subscriptions have plateaued in a crowded streaming services market.

- LataJha

Yet, that hasn't deterred investor interest in content and entertainment firms.

This September, veteran stock market investor Ramesh Damani, Madhusudan Kela-owned Singularity AMC, and market veteran Utpal Sheth together acquired a 3.3% stake in visual effects firm Prime Focus for ₹146.2 crore. In May, ReelSaga, a mobile entertainment startup founded in 2024 by serial entrepreneurs Shubh Bansal, Shanu Vivek, and Ritesh Pandey, raised $2.1 million in a seed round led by Picus Capital.

Audio entertainment firms Pocket FM and Kuku FM have raised $103 million and $85 million, respectively, this year. Enam Securities co-founder Vallabh Bhansali, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd co-founder Motilal Oswal, and Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath, along with Abhijeet Pai, his partner at investment firm Gruhas, invested in film producer Mahaveer Jain's firm last year.

While these are financial bets with limited control, unless backed by board rights or veto protections, Adar Poonawalla acquired co-ownership in Dharma Productions last year by picking 50% for ₹1,000 crore.