HOW THE NEXT GENERATION IS POWERING THE PVR LEGACY?

Cinemas are as old a form of entertainment as far as we can remember. The millennial in me was awestruck watching DDLJ come alive on the big theater. However, for me the real movie thrill was watching a movie at PVR Naraina. For everyone, PVR was a rage in the 2000. As friends if one would buy the tickets, the other would compensate with popcorn and cold drink as both would almost cost equal. In fact, PVR was in its best phase preCovid. 2019 would count among the best year the cinema chain had seen. However, everything changed for humans and businesses alike as Covid struck our lives. Being confined not only meant screen closures, it also meant newer forms of entrainment coming via different channels. OTT saw its rise and our smartphone screens served us well. The cinema chain which grew over 25 years to become the biggest in the country suddenly saw its competitor in a handheld device. But things do not always remain the same. Post-Covid every business and human was back with full force to live their best life and achieve the maximum they could in the shortest period of time. Though revenge retail and travel zoomed back, movie hopping wasn't back on the map as old habits die hard. The rise of digital entertainment during covid further gave a new way of entertainment to audience who don't necessarily feel the need to spend time and money to go to a theater. However, bigger the challenge, bigger the opportunity that's what entrepreneurs tend to do. Entrepreneur India had the opportunity to sit down with Ajay bijli, MD, PVR INOX and his three kids Niharika, Nayana and Aamer to witness how the future will unfold for entertainment and experience.

- PUNITA SABHARWAL

AJAY BIJLI MD, PVR INOX THE SHOWMAN

You ventured into the family business and now your children are also part of it. How different is it from the time you got inducted to that of your children?

When I joined the family business, we had a single screen cinema and the transport company. It is very different when you have to join a listed company. At that time my father was the one who was guiding me to make sure that I navigated, in both the businesses right from the grassroots up to a management position. He wanted me to understand everything. And I understood how the operations worked before I could think about revamping the cinema. And similarly with the trucking company, he wanted me to understand everything that happens in a booking office and a delivery office.

How were the roles allocated to each one of your children? Was it a natural process?

You can't impose anything on anybody these days, let alone your family members. It's just wherever they showed the right aptitude. Niharika, for example went to study cinematic arts in the USA and fell in love with the idea of directing and script writing. It was very natural that she would work with PVR, after she finishes a stint, with Ayan Mukherjee and Karan Johar (for Brahmastra: Part One - Shiva) that she gets into all the ad films that we are doing, because a lot of directors intersperse between doing films as well as ad work, and even to tell a story in 60 to 90 seconds is not easy.

Nayana for the longest time has been very interested in the distribution part of the company. She became naturally aligned towards looking at the distribution arm of PVR pictures and working along with my younger brother Sanjeev. She has a flare for alternate marketing and alternate programming. Plus she's being very helpful to me while doubling up as my chief of staff.