Page 207 - From Bombay to Bollywoord The Making of a Global Media Industri

194 << Profiles of Key Bollywood Companies

mobile distribution in order to reach out to audiences outside India. Today,
the company’s website (Rajshri.com) provides downloadable as well as ad-
supported streaming movies, trailers, television shows, and music in a num-
ber of Indian languages including Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi, Bengali,
Punjabi, and Gujarati. The site provides not only a new mode of distribution
beyond India, but also a means for producers to continue to profit from their
back catalogs. Rajshri also has a mobile site offering ring tones and other
mobile content.
Reimagining distribution for a digital age, Rajshri released its film Vivah
(2006) on Rajshri.com on the same day as its theatrical release, a first for
Indian cinema. The company also produced the first serial exclusively for
web and mobile platforms, Akbar Birbal Remixed. Rajshri boasts one of the
earliest, and today the most watched Indian channel on YouTube, logging
over 100 million viewers. The company also maintains a strong presence on
social networking sites.

4. Percept Pictures

Percept Pictures was founded in 2002 as the film, television, and advertising
production arm of Percept Limited, an advertising company founded in 1984
by Harindra Singh. He is now the company’s Vice Chairman and Managing
Director while his brother, Shailendra Singh, is the Joint Managing Direc-
tor. Self-consciously seeking to build a company firmly set in and oriented
toward the Indian market but with global connections, Percept Limited
sought strategic international alliances—such as its work with international
marketing organizations including the Aegis Group plc and Hakhodo Inc.—
and carefully filled its board with MBAs, chartered accountants, and mar-
keting professionals rather than family members. The company currently
has network offices in nineteen countries; the most important offices are in
India, the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, and the Middle East.
Percept’s entry into film production is very much about extending its
reach and presence in the advertising market by providing vertical solutions
for its clients. Percept’s film production studios are also a logical result of
the company’s long-standing emphasis on cross-promotion and synergy.
According to the company’s website, Percept adheres to an “efficient film
making process, by integrating content production, distribution, tie-ups for
exhibition, broadcasting and music rights.” Some of Percept’s recent film
productions include the animated film Hanuman (2005), Maalamaal Weekly
(2006), Return of Hanuman (2007), Firaaq (2008), Kanchivaram (2008),
Raat Gayi, Baat Gayi? (2009), Bumm Bumm Bole (2010), and Aashayein