“We have to touch it, and we will get there,” Deepak Dhar, Group CEO of Banijay Asia and Endemol Shine India told ET.
“One of my key focus areas is to ensure profitable growth across all the businesses,” Dhar said, adding that the two companies produce high-quality content on tight budgets. “We are seeing an upswing in content investments by broadcasters and streaming platforms,” he noted.
Last year, Banijay took full control of Endemol Shine India by acquiring CA Media’s 51% stake for $90-100 million. The two companies produce 85–90 scripted and unscripted shows across Hindi and regional languages a year, which is set to rise to 90–100 shows in 2024.
Dhar also said the content production space in India is ripe for consolidation. “Acquisitions are going to be a big part of our thrust in India. We are looking at companies with complementary strengths and skillsets,” he said, without elaborating.
Dhar believes India has the potential to become a global content creation hub, with Banijay/Endemol vying for a leadership position in this area after producing the Chinese version of Big Brother in India a few years ago.”We want to make India an outsourcing hub for content because we can produce content at price points that the world can’t produce at,” he said.Meanwhile, a key focus area for the two companies will be to take the existing IPs like Bigg Boss, Fear Factor, and MasterChef to new regional markets on both TV and streaming, according to Dhar.
“We see growth opportunities on both linear TV and streaming,” he said, adding that Banijay and Endemol work with all major platforms like Viacom18, Sony Pictures Networks India, Zee Entertainment, Netflix, and Amazon Prime Video.
Apart from the returning seasons of existing shows like Bigg Boss, Fear Factor, Temptation Island, MasterChef, The Night Manager, and Dahan, the company will this year also produce new shows, including the Indian adaptation of Suits, The Good Wife Monk, and House.
Banijay has also ventured into the live entertainment business, with the opening ceremony of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 being its first project. It intends to create local IPs and bring international IPs to India in the live events space.
In terms of formats, sports will be a major focus. “There will be a lot of sports content, sports-related IPs, and formats that you will see us create,” he said.
