Carnival Cinemas, which is the country’s second largest multiplex chain after PVR-Inox, is in the initial stage of raising ₹400 crore in equity. At present, it has over 450 screens across the country. Sources close to the development told BusinessLine the company is in talks with its sole lender Yes Bank and as well as other public and private equity funds for raising money.

Carnival Cinemas plans to use the equity raised to further increase its screencount by 118 screens, said the source “these screens were semi capexed, the company has plans of opening these screens immediately after the fund raise.”

According to sources, the formal announcement on the fundraise can should come in 60-90 days, after the due diligence process is over. 

Carnival Cinemas, which is a company owned by Dr. Shrikanth Bhasi, always had plans for further expansion, especially after the record revenues of 2020. Yet, they have waited for the resolution of the pandemic before introducing private equity investors. 

Yes Bank support

Said the source, “To raise the funds, Carnival Cinemas worked with Yes Bank, with whom they have a long standing relationship, whereby the bank has always supported the business. Yes Bank has started its process to take equity and enable Carnival Cinemas to move towards its vision of 1,000 screens.”

Carnival Cinemas lead the market in tier 3 and tier 4 geographies, having a screen presence in over 130 locations. The fund raising comes even as the cinema segment has gone through major disruption due to the pandemic.

According to a FICCI-EY report, the year 2020 witnessed the sharpest drop in the number of single screens, with 1,000 to 1,500 screens estimated to have shut down, reducing India’s overall screen count to around 8,000.

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