MUMBAI: MissMalini Entertainment, India’s leading lifestyle and entertainment content platform, today announced the completion of INR 104 million pre-series A funding round from Orios Venture Partners and NEA.

MissMalini Entertainment is the first mover in Indian digital media with the launch of MissMalini.com in 2008. The site was initially launched as a hobby by Malini Agarwal and quickly established itself as a popular lifestyle and entertainment community in the country.  Malini’s unique voice, in conjunction with the rapid adoption of social media by millennials, captured a loyal audience that quickly grew into millions of fans. Since then, the company has built a multi-platform media network reaching over 40 million people a month across its multiple properties. MissMalini’s original lifestyle, entertainment, and social impact content is now a leading voice representing the young, connected and global Indian. 

As India’s leading multi-platform new media house, the company’s mission is to entertain, inspire and empower its community of over 10 million direct followers and fans. Today, the team of 65 has established a celebrated brand that offers content and marketing services across their website, social media, television, and audio properties, along with its growing library of digital video hits. Meanwhile, Malini has been widely recognized as India’s first major digital influencer, including being named the #1 Most Influential Woman in Indian Media, Marketing and Advertising in 2017 by IMPACT magazine, as well as being featured on Fortune India’s 40 Under 40 and GQ’s 50 Most Influential Young Indians lists. She is a leading advocate for women’s empowerment and is a regular speaker at industry and youth forums. 

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The pre-series A investment has been raised to expand MissMalini’s leadership position with a focus on community building, and to further expand its content, technology, analytics, and sales operations. The company will build out a full-service integrated video production unit, launch vernacular content and continue innovating with new engagement platforms.

Commenting on the investment, Mr. Rehan Yar Khan, Managing Partner at Orios Venture Partners said, “Digital Entertainment is a booming industry, riding on the back of a large emerging market. This is also an industry which is constantly innovating basis the audience preference and new technology. MissMalini has been at the center-stage of this transformation from the very beginning enabling Malini and her team to understand the pulse of her readers – creating and curating content in the most consumable manner. This makes her and her venture a worthy ‘misfit’ – who dared to think of unconventional ideas and help build her venture from scratch. Having closely worked with the team over some time now, we are extremely pleased with their focus on creating content and using technology to connect the next 300 Million new internet users, and we are delighted to partner with them in their next phase of growth.”

Malini Agarwal, Founder and Creative Director at MissMalini Entertainment on receiving the pre-Series A round said, “The steady growth at MissMalini reaffirms our conviction that there are still large, untapped audiences that are looking for new ways to connect, engage and express themselves. This round of funding is an important step in expanding our focus from major Metros and deeper into Tier I and II markets, helping us build lasting and meaningful communities of engaged young Indians. This Pre-Series A funding comes at just the right time, as we continue experimenting with exciting new content formats to attract new audiences. We are proud to receive this vote of confidence from our preeminent investors and look forward to a great partnership for the journey ahead. 

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Talking about the growth of the company, Nowshad Rizwanullah, CEO at MissMalini Entertainment said, “Over the years, we have independently built one of India’s most respected digital media brands and a market-leading provider of production and marketing services through our blog, social media, television, digital radio, and digital video teams. We are thrilled to partner with NEA – one of the world’s largest and most active venture capital funds – and Orios Venture Partners – India’s most exciting domestic VC – to power the next phase of our growth. Their unique network and insights are a perfect complement to the opportunities in front of us and the scale of our ambitions.”