Balaji Telefilms Ltd. is one of the largest content production houses across India, South Asia,South East Asia and the Middle East delivering Hindi and regional content. Promoted by Mr. Jeetendra Kapoor, Mrs. Shobha Kapoor, Ms. Ekta Kapoor and Mr. Tusshar Kapoor, we have constantly built relationships across the entertainment industry, while identifying new avenues and markets.
Our dominance in TV soaps dates back to the early 1990s. Under the astute leadership vision of our promoter Ekta Kapoor, a handful of serials based on social themes gave way to high voltage family dramas. Indian TV was never to be the same again. So successful was this strategy that Ekta Kapoor became a household name. While 'Mano Ya Na Mano' a fiction thriller which was aired on Zee TV in the year 1995 was our first show, the first big hit that we produced was a comedy show "Hum Paanch" about a couple with five daughters. It ran for 5 years and turned out to be a huge success. After that, we produced numerous hit shows such as "Itihaas", "Koshish... EkAasha" , "Koi AaneKoHai" , "Kkusum ... EkAamLadki Ki Kahani", ‘Kaaun’, ‘Kanyadaan’, ‘GharEkMandir’, ‘Bandhan’etc. catering to the Hindi speaking audience and 'PavitraBandham', ‘KulaaVillaakku’, 'Pasamalargal', Anubandham', 'Itihaasaa' etc. in regional languages.
In 2000 the launch of the three shows on Star Plus, namely, "Kyunkii... SaasBhiKabhiBahuThi", "KahaaniGharGharKii" and "KasautiiZindagii Kay" catapulted us into the living rooms of India and Indians globally. Such was the popularity of our shows in 2002 that 22 out of top 25 serials were produced by us, and we are proud that even today our shows consistently continue to be ranked number 1 shows on the general entertainment channels.
Even as we made rapid strides in the Hindi market we strategically expanded our offering to the growing demand in regional content. Our first regional program, ‘Kudumbam’ was produced in 1998 by us and aired on Sun TV. This laid the foundation for Balaji in becoming a prolific content producer down South in languages such as Telugu, Kannada, Malyalam and Tamil. Some of the hit shows produced by us in south were Kudumbam ,KulaaVillaakku , Kasthuree in Tamil , Kavyanjali in Malayalam and Pavithrabandham, Kalisundhamra in Telugu . Additionally, we also produced shows internationally for ARY in Dubai (Khwaish) and Maharaja TV in Sri Lanka.
Today having produced over 17,000 hours of television content, we are one of the leading providers of television entertainment in India. At present we are producing television content for all major entertainment channels in the country .
Our success in the television market is attributed to understanding the pulse of the masses, anticipating viewer and channel preferences and creating programs which are in tune with the changing times. Our state of the art infrastructure includes production sets, resources, manpower and editing machines and this allows us to continuously produce high quality shows.
We endeavor to maintain a healthy pipeline for new TV shows and strive to consistently deliver top-quality content catering to a diversified audience across genres in India.
Balaji Motion Pictures Ltd. (BMPL) has become synonymous with commercial cutting edge cinematic content supported by intensive and innovative marketing.
While Balaji Films Group was set up in 2001 and KyoKii... Main Jhuth Nahin Bolta,(2001) was the first film produced, Balaji Motion Pictures Limited was formally incorporated as a subsidiary on March 9, 2007. Today, with a number of award-winning and acclaimed box office blockbusters, we have firmly established our position among the top 5 Indian motion picture studios in the business.
After the release of our first film in 2001, we produced KucchToHai, Krishna Cottage and Koi Aap Sa in 2003, 2004 and 2005 respectively. In 2005, we produced and released KyaaKoolHaiHum which made it to the top three films of 2005; and also pioneered the wave of adult comedies. In 2007, Shootout at Lokhandwala co-produced with Sanjay Gupta was the first film under the BMPL banner.The film was critically acclaimed as well as a commercial hit . It was followed in 2008 by C Kkompany. In the same year we co-produced Mission Istanbul and EMI – Liya Hai Toh Chukana Padega with Popcorn Entertainment .In 2008, we acquired the domestic distribution rights of BhoolBhulaiyaa , Darling and Sarkar Raj.
In 2010, we launched a sub-brand ALT Entertainment (details below) for new-age cinema with alternate sensibilities . Love Sex AurDhokha was the first movie produced by ‘Alt’. In the same year, we released Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai, which was among the most acclaimed hits of the year. This was followed in FY 2012-13 by Kyaa Super KoolHain Hum a sequel to the erstwhile 2007 hit Kya KoolHain Hum which surpassed expectations and became a box-office winner.
In FY2014, we scaled output substantially with diverse subjects and genres, cementing our position as a film company to reckon with. The 6 movies produced and released during 2013/14 were Ek Thi Daayan, Shootout at Wadala, Lootera, Once Upon a Time in Mumbai Dobaara, ShaadiKe Side Effects and Ragini MMS-2. We also successfully undertook distribution of some of our movies in limited territories, giving us the confidence to be across the value chain, from production to distribution.
In FY2015, we have released Main Tera Hero , Kuku Mathur Ki Jhand Ho Gayi and Ek Villain and in FY2016 –FY2017 we released Kyaa Kool Hai Hum3, Azhar Udta Punjab, Great Grand Masti and A Flying Jatt
Over a period of time we have built a diversified film library which would provide stable and recurring future cash flows. The library, in future, would help us exploit old content on new and emerging platforms as well.
We will continue building on our credibility as a leading motion picture studio and maintain focus on scripts, budgets, economies of scale and out-of-the-box marketing. The emphasis will continue to be on optimising risk-return trade-off by pre-sale of rights as well as production of sequels and series which have an easier acceptance and connect with audiences. In recent times we have been building our capabilities in film distribution and undertaken distribution of our movies in select territories. In the near future we aim at becoming a fully integrated studio across the value chain, from ideation to distribution of the final film.
With four releases, 2011-12 saw the rapid emergence of Alt Entertainment, our alternate brand, which stands for new-age cinema with alternate sensibilities. Shor in the City, an urban drama, emerged as the most acclaimed film of the year, while Ragini MMS, a paranormal thriller made on a shoe-string budget was a big hit. Alt’s also forayed into regional cinema with its Award-winning Marathi language movie Taryanche Bait. The year ended on a crescendo with the runaway success of The Dirty Picture, one of the most acclaimed, celebrated and discussed films of Indian cinema.
Going forward ALT will continue in the space of commercial alternate cinema while the parent brand Balaji Motion Pictures will create and produce content aimed at a more universal and mainstream audience. We believe that there is a tremendous scope and demand for the cutting edge content produced by ALT given the changing market landscape and audience profile and tastes.
The Company’s digital content business is housed under ALT Digital Media Entertainment Ltd, which was incorporated as a wholly-owned subsidiary in August, 2015. Through the subsidiary, we have made a strategic foray into the B2C digital content business segment to monetise the incredible potential of original, premium, on-demand entertainment.
The unit will operate an over-the-top (OTT) platform that will offer subscription-based video on-demand services. It has been floated with an aim to produce original shows for web and mobile users. The move reflects BTL’s strategic intent to expand its entertainment expertise by creating enjoyable and engaging content for digital audiences, targeted towards urban Indians and the Indian Diaspora. ALTT offers fresh, original and exclusive stories. Tailored especially for Indians across the globe, the platform hosts premium, high quality shows featuring popular celebrities, acclaimed writers, and award winning directors, making ALTT a true alternative to mainstream entertainment
ALT will create highly differentiated, original digital content for the entire ecosystem spanning mobiles, computers, tablets, smart TVs and game stations. It will present all-new original, exclusive and fresh content across genres, available only on ALT Digital, and developed solely for the digital consumer.
In 2014 Balaji Telefilms Ltd. acquired a controlling stake in Marinating Films Private Limited (MFPL) to showcase Box Cricket League. Box Cricket League is a fusion of Celebrities, Entertainment & Cricket all put into one. It is one of a kind arrangement that brings entertainment and cricket together in the form of over 120 celebrities that fill out the roster of 8 co-ed teams. Fundamentally it is first of its kind to have men and woman play together and compete in a rectangular box shaped stadium with a soft ball. Season 1 has been a great success and we continue to develop the concept going forward
Brand EK, is the signature label of Ekta Kapoor comprising Indian ethnic wear and exquisite Jewelry. We have made a mark in the world of fashion in a limited time and the brand is available in the online space and also through TV shopping networks. The brand caters to Indian audiences across the globe and aims at capturing an even wider universe.
With the fashion brand, Ekta is helping the modern Indian woman find the route to express her thoughts and beliefs. Brand EK promotes women’s wear with quality ethnic wear at competitive prices. We cater to the upper and higher middleclass audience who want to buy what they see on television, inspired by what the TV characters wear