Eros International Media explores film library sale amid cash crunch

MUMBAI: Eros is looking to make its old hits work harder as cash-flow pressures force the company to rethink its route back to the big screen. Eros International Media is exploring ways to monetise its extensive film and music library while working to improve liquidity and restart production of its deferred film slate.

According to the company’s annual report for 2025-26, Eros has faced significant cash-flow constraints since the Covid-19 pandemic, making it difficult to complete projects and release films. The pressure resulted in the deferment of its planned film slate and weighed on the company’s business during the year.

With new production constrained, Eros said it was forced to evaluate the strategic sale of rights to a third party. The company expects that reducing bank debt through such a transaction, along with an improvement in liquidity, could provide the headroom needed to recommence production on its previously planned slate.

But while the cameras have slowed, the catalogue remains in play. Eros has started exploring innovative ways to update and monetise its existing content libraries, pointing to rising content demand and growing viewership on OTT platforms.

The company believes the relative shortage of new content could increase the value of its existing catalogue, particularly as audiences continue to consume films digitally. Its library spans a wide range of genres, budgets and languages, with rights covering theatrical, overseas, television and other distribution channels.

The portfolio includes Hindi films as well as content in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Marathi, Gujarati, Bengali, Malayalam and Punjabi. Eros has historically focused on syndicating and monetising these film and music rights, giving the library a potentially important role in its efforts to generate cash.

Digital platforms could offer another route. Eros said its existing catalogue could benefit from increasing OTT consumption and a relative shortage of fresh content, while its long-standing rights portfolio provides a base for participating in emerging digital opportunities.

The company is also looking for new revenue streams as it attempts to reinvent its business and strengthen its position in the media and entertainment industry. Its immediate measures include restricting borrowing facilities, conserving cash through cost-saving initiatives, monetising film and music rights through long-term contracts and recovering overdue trade receivables.

The financial pressure comes alongside a separate regulatory overhang. Trading in Eros International Media’s securities has remained suspended since December 13, 2024, after the company failed to file its financial results with the stock exchanges within the stipulated timelines under SEBI listing regulations.

For Eros, therefore, the library is no longer simply an archive of past releases. It is increasingly being positioned as a financial lever, one that could help reduce debt, strengthen liquidity and eventually get the company back into production, while opening fresh monetisation opportunities across television, theatrical distribution and the rapidly expanding OTT ecosystem.