Film Production
Production houses take to movies to scale up growth
MUMBAI: Remember Balaji Telefilms chairman Jeetendra Kapoor saying that the listed company would not diversify into movies as it is a risky business?
That may well be a thing of the past. Today, Balaji Telefilms is busy drawing a roadmap for a rich pipeline of movies to ride on the success of its first production Kya Kool Hai Hum.
A clip from the movie ‘Koi Aap Sa’
Recently released is Koi Aap Sa, and a sequel to Kya Kool Hai Hum is planned for production. Though this fiscal will see just these two launches, more are to come next year.
The production house, which has almost all of its revenues coming from TV content, is still taking a cautious approach to movies. The plan is to make small-to-medium budget movies. But it feels movies can be a good business model, with multiple revenue streams including satellite TV rights picking up.
Says Balaji Telefilms chief financial officer V Devrajan, “If you can plan and control costs, then it can be a good bet.”
Taking a bigger bet on movies is UTV Software Communications, extending its television content creation business. In the quarter ended 30 September, this segment has contributed 49 per cent of the company’s total revenues. UTV’s most celebrated film Swades pocketed Rs 40 million through the sale of satellite rights.
A clip from ‘Rang De Basanti’ starring Aamir Khan
And the big films in the pipeline are, among others, Rang De Basanti (starring Aamir Khan), Namesake (directed by Mira Nair and co-produced with Fox and Entertainment Farm), and a co-produced film with AB Corp starring Amitabh Bachchan.
Apart from film production, UTV is aggressive on theatrical distribution. During the fiscal 2006, films lined up for theatrical distribution in India and overseas include Shaadi No. 1 (produced by Vashu Bhagnani and directed by David Dhawan, Deewane Huey Pagal, Bluffmaster and The Myth (Jackie Chan & Mallika Sherawat).
B.A.G Films Ltd. has also ambitious designs of foraying into movie production. The company is in the process of rolling out four movies – two Hindi and two regional. The first movie titled Rockin will be ready for release in May 2006 and stars Sushmita Sen, Shiney Ahuja and Kim Sharma. The second movie (yet untitled) will be directed by Saurabh Narang and will star Parineeta fame Vidya Balan. The two regional films – a Punjabi and a Bhojpuri one are also untitled. While the Punjabi movie will be released in April next year, the Bhojpuri one will be ready for release in the second half of 2006.
“The two Hindi movies will be medium budget, whereas the regional movies will be low budget. We are targetting the international markets of US, UK and Canada with our Punjabi movie and obviously the northern parts of India,” says B.A.G Films managing director Anurradha Prasad.
So why are production houses writing new scripts? Scalability seems to be the most common answer. How will production houses grow if they are stuck to just their core competence of television content creation? Creative Eye is also turning to movies as it looks at topline growth which was earlier provided by pubcaster Doordarshan. Founder-promoter Dheeraj Kumar has announced he is making an English movie, reviving a project that was planned two years ago.
Besides, the barrier between television and films, says Prasad, is gradually decreasing. “The cost of making a medium budget film is almost the same as what goes into making one serial in a year. What’s more, 54 per cent of India’s population is below the age of 24 years and we are looking at creating a lot of stimulating content for this set of audience. To be present in all forms of content and platforms is our USP and our movies’ venture is just an extension of this,” she elaborates.
Movie production is, of course, fast becoming the most popular route, aided by the growth in multiplexes and the fact that there are more hits in the marketplace this year. But it is not a one-way traffic. Movie production houses are also taking the reverse path to find growth in the TV content business. K Sera Sera, primarily a movie production house, has floated a subsidiary to handle television content.
Production houses are trying to find cushions in other revenue streams. Mukta Arts, for instance, has done a turnkey project for INTV and, in exchange, got equity in the Dubai-based city-centric fashion and lifestyle channel.
So what are production houses driving at? That the time has come for them to scale up and build multiple revenue streams. The sad truth is that production houses in India, barring perhaps Balaji Telefilms and UTV, have no robust size or model that can protect them from the volatile nature of the business.
Film Production
Arka Mediaworks onboards 88 Pictures as animation studio partner on ‘The Eternal War – Part 1’
Arka Mediaworks announces that 88 Pictures, the acclaimed animation and visual storytelling studio known for its cutting-edge CGI and cinematic artistry, is on board as the animation partner for the highly anticipated Baahubali: The Eternal War, a groundbreaking two-part 3D animated feature film set in the globally beloved Baahubali universe.
Baahubali: The Eternal War represents a bold new chapter in the Baahubali saga envisioned for national and international audiences and crafted with the ambition of delivering one of India’s most ambitious and globally benchmarked animation projects to date.
88 Pictures will execute the animation production, bringing to life the film’s richly detailed worlds, epic battle sequences, and larger-than-life characters with its signature blend of artistic vision, performance-driven animation, and advanced production pipelines. Working closely with the film’s creative leadership and technical partners, the studio aims to set new benchmarks in animation quality, cinematic storytelling, and global scalability.
This animated epic follows the successful re-release of Baahubali: The Epic (the combined theatrical version of the original live-action films) on 31 October 2025 across India and the USA. During the film’s interval, legendary creator and director S.S. Rajamouli (Baahubali 1 & 2, RRR) stunned audiences with a surprise teaser for The Eternal War – Part 1. The video immediately went viral, garnering widespread national and international acclaim across LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube for its ambitious visual style and scale.
Produced by Arka Mediaworks and led by co-founder and CEO Shobu Yarlagadda – producer of the iconic Baahubali duology, The Eternal War brings together fantastic storytelling and cutting-edge animation.. The film is directed and written by acclaimed animation filmmaker Ishan Shukla (Schirkoa: In Lies We Trust, Star Wars: Visions – “The Bandits of Golak”) and screenplay by Scott Mosier (The Grinch). Mihira Visual Labs, the studio co-founded by Yarlagadda anchors the film’s animation, visual development, and execution.
The partnership with 88 Pictures brings significant pedigree to the project; the studio is well-regarded for its work on high-profile international titles including DreamWorks’ series Trollhunters, the HBO Max original series Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai, Disney’s animated short An Almost Christmas Story to name a few.
Yarlagadda shared, “We are happy to onboard 88 Pictures as the animation studio partner for our prestigious and most expensive animated film from India. We believe that their expertise and capabilities will allow us to produce a first-of-its-kind, world-class animated feature film from India.”
88 Pictures founder & CEO Milind D. Shinde said, “Baahubali changed the way cinema is perceived and became a defining milestone that turned the tide for Indian live-action filmmaking. Expanding the franchise into an entirely new universe—at a never-seen, never-done scale—through an animated feature created in India for a global audience is set to redefine how the world views Indian animation. We are truly thrilled to be part of this landmark project and to bring it to life under the visionary direction of Ishan Shukla, guided by the experience and leadership of acclaimed producer Shobu Yarlagadda.”
Shukla expressed, “Eternal War requires a level of visual and emotional precision that can only come from teams who truly understand both craft and intent. Working with 88 Pictures, alongside Mihira Visual Labs, has been a deeply collaborative experience. This association brings together technical excellence and creative sensitivity, enabling us to translate an ambitious vision into a compelling cinematic reality.”
Baahubali: The Eternal War – Part 1 is scheduled for release in 2027
