India theatre chain PVR Inox's loss doubles as Bollywood movies flop

PVR INOX

19/07/2024 15:30

BENGALURU, July 19 (Reuters) - PVR Inox  PVRL.NS ,
India's largest multiplex operator, reported a first-quarter
loss that more than doubled on Friday due to fewer big-budget
Bollywood releases and weak box office returns from the ones
that did.
    The company, formed by the merger of PVR and Inox in early
2023, posted a consolidated net loss of 1.79 billion rupees
($21.4 million) quarter, compared with a year-ago loss of 816
million rupees.
    Movie releases dropped 13% drop in the quarter, PVR Inox
said. Analysts have said that India's general elections and the
popular Indian Premier League cricket tournament led to
Bollywood releasing fewer Hindi movies between April and June.
    Moreover, movies that were released, such as "Bade Miyan
Chote Miyan", "Chandu Champion" and "Maidaan", did not fare well
at the box office.
    "The number of blockbusters also declined sharply this
quarter, with only three films crossing the 1 billion rupee-mark
compared to seven last year," said PVR Inox, which operates
1,754 screens across the country.
    This hurt its two largest avenues of revenue -- movie ticket
sales and food and beverages.
    Ticket sales, which account for nearly half of total
revenue, slid 14.5%. Food and beverages sales, which comprises
33% of the total, fell 6.1%.
    As a result, PVR Inox's overall revenue fell almost 9% to
11.91 billion rupees.
    Hollywood offered no respite either, as the industry saw
fewer releases due to delays from a writers' strike last year.
    Hollywood content has been delayed by four to eight months
due to the strike, said Karan Taurani, an analyst at Elara
Capital.
 
 ($1 = 83.6910 Indian rupees)

 (Reporting by Varun Hebbalalu in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi
Aich)
 ((varunvyas.hebbalalu@thomsonreuters.com;))