Speaking at the company’s Q1 FY27 earnings call, Ajay Bijli, managing director of PVR INOX, said the cinema chain is widening its alternative content strategy to include sports screenings, concerts and stand-up comedy shows. He noted that 64,000 people watched the recent FIFA World Cup final in PVR INOX cinemas across the country, despite the post-midnight kickoff time.
Cinépolis India also recorded nearly 100% occupancy in some of its cinemas for football games featuring Brazil and Argentina. Ashish Misra, head of commercialisation, Cinépolis India, says that while movies remain the core of the company’s business, sports and concert screenings contribute 3-5% of its revenues today.
“This content is growing well, although it is growing from a smaller base. Our Club Cinépolis data, covering over 1 crore members, shows us which cities index strongly towards alternate programming, so we programme where the demand actually is,” says Misra. Besides ticketed programming, corporate screenings and bookings are also seeing growing demand, filling auditoriums during the lighter dayparts.
While these offerings are still niche, there is significant headroom for growth. A FICCI-EY report projects that the organised live events business will grow from Rs 14,500 crore in 2025 to Rs 19,600 crore by 2028. Misra says cinemas are well poised to capture a good chunk of this business since it already has the right infrastructure and F&B offerings in place.
With revenue from traditional movie exhibition business impacted by the growing adoption of OTT platforms, alternative content could be valuable for multiplexes. Santosh N, managing partner, D and P Advisory, says these could prove to be meaningful supplementary revenue streams, particularly because cinemas have high fixed costs and underutilised screens during non-peak hours or periods of weak film releases. “These events can generate ticket revenue as well as incremental F&B and premium pricing. The average ticket price for non-movie offerings typically is higher than the movies, indicating that audiences may be willing to pay a premium for differentiated experiences,” he says.
They could potentially also boost advertiser revenues, which are currently around 7-8% of cinema earnings. Stand-up comedy, live sports screenings and other event-led programming can bring in highly engaged audience cohorts, says Sachiin Guptaa, country head for in-cinema advertising business at UFO Cine Media Network. “For brands, this creates opportunities beyond conventional movie advertising, including contextual integrations, on-screen branding and experiential activations. Advertiser interest in such opportunities is growing, especially when the content has a strong audience affinity,” he notes.
Beyond movie ticketing, cinema chains already earn a substantial 30-35% from F&B offerings. But Vibhor Gauba, associate partner, KPMG India, notes these revenues are dependent on the actual footfalls, which are also dependent on the success of the movies. Some chains are now leveraging their F&B offerings by foraying into corporate events, birthday parties and brand activations. “The major challenge, however, remains in positioning each location as an entertainment destination rather than just a cinema hall,” he says.
Niharika Bijli, lead strategist, PVR INOX, says while metros are important drivers, there is also strong interest from tier-II cities. “Gen Z and younger audiences are important for fandom-led content such as anime and K-pop, but the opportunity is much broader. Sports, music and cultural programming bring together audiences across age groups,” she sums up.