Animation
Crest net loss Rs 5 million in Q3
Crest Animation Studios has incurred a net loss of Rs 5 million for the quarter ended 31 December 2004, as against a loss of Rs 6 million a year ago.
The company’s revenue, however, has gone 34 per cent up to Rs. 67 million, as against Rs 50 million for Q3-03.
For the nine month period in the current fiscal, the company, however, has returned to profitability. Crest has registered a net profit of Rs 6 million during this period, as against a loss of Rs 36 million a year ago.
Crest has explained the net loss to “strategic” investments the company has made to achieve its long terms objectives. Besides, the company has been hit by a declining dollar. Crest has made substantial investments to expand its manpower and infrastructural facilities. While 40 CGI (Computer Generated Imaging) animators have been imparted on the job training during the last quarter, over 170 CGI animators have been added in the 12-month period ended December 2004. As such, depreciation outlay is comparatively higher, informs an official release.
Crest Animation CEO A K Madhavan says, “Directionally, we are on course, moving from a work-for-hire basis for television series to co-producing television series to moving into the home video space (DVD market). We are steadily progressing along the learning curve, taking on and meeting the most stringent quality challenges while working for reputed studios in the US. The improving margin is testimony to the fact that we are also simultaneously being able to command better pricing”.
MUMBAI: History is getting a fresh rewrite this time with code, creativity and a longer arc in mind. Lens Vault Studios has announced its first original production, Bal Tanhaji, marking the official entry of the newly launched, tech-driven studio into India’s evolving entertainment landscape.
Arriving six years after the box-office success of Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior, the new project expands the universe rather than revisiting familiar ground. Bal Tanhaji explores uncharted narrative territory, signalling a clear shift from one-off cinematic spectacles to long-format, world-building storytelling designed for digital-first audiences.
At the heart of this ambition is Prismix Studios, the in-house generative AI and technology arm powering the creative engine behind the show. The studio’s approach blends storytelling with next-generation tools, aiming to reimagine how Indian IPs are created, scaled and sustained beyond theatrical releases.
For Lens Vault Studios chairman Ajay Devgn the new venture represents a deliberate step beyond traditional cinema. The focus is firmly on building long-form intellectual properties across fiction and non-fiction, tailored to changing viewing habits and platform-led consumption. He said the studio intends to explore formats that remain largely untapped, while drawing on the team’s experience with large-scale cinematic storytelling.
Lens Vault Studios founder and CEO Danish Devgn echoed that sentiment, describing Bal Tanhaji as the studio’s first generative-AI-led IP and the starting point of a broader vision. The aim, he noted, is to carry forward the legacy of the Tanhaji universe while connecting with younger audiences through a blend of powerful narratives and emerging technologies.
With Bal Tanhaji, Lens Vault Studios is planting its flag early not just launching a show, but signalling a larger play for cinematic universes that live, grow and evolve across platforms. If this debut is any indication, the future of Indian storytelling may be as much about imagination as it is about innovation.
