PVR Inox Posts $700M Revenue, Bets on Premium Screens as India Box Office Hits Record
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- PVR Inox posted annual revenues of $700M (INR67.43BN) and $40M profit for the year ending March 2026, with 52% from ticket sales and ~30% from food & beverages, while continuing to whittle down merger-era debt from the 2023 PVR-Inox combination.
- India's box office hit a record $1.48BN in 2025 and grew 10% year-on-year to $663.8M in the first half of 2026, but 2025 admissions of 832 million remained roughly 19% below the 1.03 billion recorded in 2019, with revenue gains driven primarily by higher ticket prices.
- Bijli said PVR Inox now operates 1,798 screens across 359 sites in 110-plus cities and is pursuing a "capital-light" Tier 2/Tier 3 and South India expansion by co-investing with mall developers and trading lower rent for a share of box office.
- Hollywood titles contribute only 10-15% of Indian box office, but PVR Inox captures 60-70% of that English-language share, with Avatar: Fire And Ash charting in last year's top ten and recent successes including Project Hail Mary, Michael and Obsession.
- PVR Inox Pictures returned from the Cannes Marché du Film with a multi-studio acquisition haul spanning Lionsgate partner FilmNation, Patrick Wachsberger's 193 (Fernando Meirelles' Art with Ralph Fiennes and Doug Limon's Bitcoin with Gal Gadot), Neon (three horror titles including a Nicole Kidman vehicle), and the A24 release Marty Supreme.
- More than 120 Indian filmmakers launched the Independent Filmmakers Association of India (IFAI) at Cannes to lobby for better theatrical and streaming access for indie films, prompted by the struggle of Kanu Behl's Agra to secure prime showtimes after its 2023 Directors Fortnight premiere.
- Alternative programming — from streaming concerts and IPL cricket to FIFA World Cup matches and a Pride Month special with trans performer Rani KoHEnur through the "Live On Stage" program — is being tested across the chain, though Bijli acknowledged these efforts contribute little to the bottom line.
Why it matters: PVR Inox is the largest single bellwether for Indian theatrical exhibition, and its record $700M revenue alongside a 19% admissions shortfall shows that India's recovery is being powered by premium-format ticket inflation rather than footfall — meaning the circuit's growth now depends on convincing mall developers to co-fund new screens in smaller cities and on the continued supply of local blockbusters like Dhurandhar (which alone grossed around $320M with its sequel).
