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PVR to launch digital cinema in small towns, plans Rs 2 billion investment
MUMBAI: PVR Cinemas, which runs a chain of multiplexes, is making a strategic foray into smaller towns through digital theatres under the “PVR Talkies” brand. The company plans to invest Rs 2 billion towards this. The first to come under this plan in the last week of September are theatres in Aurangabad and Latur which are digital ready. The computerised tickets will be priced in the range between Rs 40 and Rs 60. Aurangabad and Latur will have three screens each and a seating capacity of 1151 and 1148 respectively. |
The company plans to have 200 PVR Talkies across 13 states and over 70 cities in the first phase. Says PVR Cinemas chairman and managing director Ajay Bijli, “In 1997, we enhanced the way India went to the movies. Now, in the second stage of our mission, we are taking our enhancement to more and more places in the country. With PVR Talkies, the people‘s cinema has arrived. It is my fervent hope that PVR Talkies will induce people to come back to the big screen and rediscover the true magic of the movies.” |
| The digital theatres in the tier II and tier III cities will work on the principle of digitised content being distributed to theatres through satellite or fibre. They will be uploaded to a digital cinema server. Digital projectors will be used for screening, enabling the entire system to have wide releases of a movie across the country. “Pan-India openings will also guarantee larger release made available across different territories leading to nationwide screenings, which will in turn ensure better return on investments for producers, distributors among others. It would also be extremely helpful in curbing piracy,” the company said. |
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With 57 per cent single new users, Ashley Madison rebrands as discreet dating platform
Platform says majority of new members now identify as single
INDIA: Ashley Madison is shedding the “married-dating” label that defined it for two decades, repositioning itself as a platform for discreet dating in what it calls the post-social media age.
The rebrand, unveiled in India on 27 February, 2026, marks a structural shift in business model and identity. Once synonymous with married dating, the company now describes itself as the “premier destination for discreet dating” under a new tagline: Where Desire Meets Discretion.
The pivot is data-driven. Internal figures show that 57 per cent of global sign-ups between 1 January and 31 December, 2025 identified as single: a notable departure from the platform’s married core. The company argues that its community has already evolved beyond its original positioning.
“In an age where our lives have been constantly put on public display, privacy has become the new luxury,” said Ashley Madison chief strategy officer Paul Keable. He framed the platform’s offering as “ethical discretion” for singles, separated, divorced and non-monogamous users seeking private connections.
The shift also taps into wider digital fatigue. A global survey conducted by YouGov for Ashley Madison, covering 13,071 adults across Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, India, Italy, Mexico, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and the US, found mounting discomfort with hyper-public online lives.
Among dating app users, 30 per cent cited constant swiping and messaging as a source of fatigue, while 24 per cent pointed to pressure to curate public-facing profiles and early personal disclosure. Some 27 per cent said fears of screenshots or information being shared contributed to exhaustion; an equal share cited unwanted attention.
The retreat from oversharing appears broader. According to the survey, 46 per cent of adults actively try to keep most aspects of their life private online. Only 8 per cent feel comfortable sharing most aspects publicly, while 35 per cent say they are becoming more selective about what they disclose.
Ashley Madison is betting that this cultural recalibration towards controlled visibility can be monetised. By doubling down on privacy infrastructure and reframing itself around discretion rather than infidelity, the company is attempting to convert reputational baggage into a premium proposition.
