Lights, Camera, Scoop | From Dharma, Saregama and Excel to Sikhya: Why Bollywood’s Studio Consolidation Wave is Happening Now

A new script is writing itself out in the Hindi film industry. It boasts of a stellar cast, features industry heavyweights, and holds the promise of blockbuster success. As the narrative unfolds in the power corridors of showbiz, all eyes are trained not so much on the big screen’s A-listers as on the deals that will bankroll celluloid dreams.

Over the last two years, experts believe, capital has gradually moved from individual film bets to equity interests, with mergers and strategic partnerships steadily reshaping the studio ecosystem. This unconnected spate of isolated deals is, in fact, a larger consolidation wave redefining who holds leverage in Bollywood’s next phase, a closely-watched sequel of high stakes.

Making headlines in 2024, Adar Poonawalla acquired a 50 per cent stake in Dharma Productions for ₹1,000 crore, valuing the studio at ₹2,000 crore.

In another high-profile move, merging musical legacy and cinematic spectacle, Saregama India announced in December 2025 that it would invest ₹325 crore in filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Bhansali Productions. Under this, the banner will exclusively sell all its future film music to Saregama, based on a pre-agreed formula. 

The first two months of 2026 have already seen two prestige investments. In January, Jio Studios picked up a 50.1 per cent stake in Sikhya Entertainment for approximately ₹150 crore, and in February, Universal Music Group acquired a 30 per cent stake in Excel Entertainment at an enterprise valuation of ₹2,400 crore.

Speaking to THR India, industry insiders said that the recent slew of deals signals a consolidation phase in an ecosystem where capital concentration among big players has emerged even as traditional financing has thinned and platform spending has cooled.

Action Behind the Scenes

As is often the case, the culmination of disparate trends has been a key driver behind these stake sales. Prominent among them was the drying up of traditional funding channels. As previously reported by THR India, until about a year ago, the Hindi film industry was operating at reduced volume, with fewer films being mounted, writer fees compressing and development pipelines slowing sharply. Theatrical recovery was uneven, and mid-budget cinema struggled to find a sustainable footing.

A senior executive at a production house who was directly involved in one of the recent stake sales observes, "Industrial financing has practically disappeared over the last five to ten years.”

While film activity has picked up marginally since then and cash flow has stabilised in pockets, the fundamentals have not shifted dramatically. The after-effects of that slowdown continue to shape how some studios are financing themselves today.

When global streamers entered India around 2015–16, they injected aggressive capital into the ecosystem, pushing up budgets, star remunerations and development slates. The surge peaked during the pandemic when films bypassed theatres and went straight to OTT. With audiences confined at home, platforms were acquiring almost everything available — often at inflated prices — to sustain subscriber growth and keep content pipelines active.

"But then, the crazy money stopped. Suddenly, studios were staring at liquidity gaps. When cash flow tightens, consolidation becomes inevitable," the executive says.

By 2022, streamer spending had normalised, theatrical revenues had not fully stabilised and traditional financiers had largely exited. The result was a funding vacuum. Studios that were once able to patch budgets film-by-film found themselves needing structural capital instead.

Age of Content

The executive notes that while there are more screens and outlets than ever, the pool of financiers willing to underwrite risk at scale has narrowed. Without alternative sources of capital, producers become increasingly dependent on platforms for commissioning power. An industry watcher explains, “Platforms increasingly function through algorithms rather than creative instinct.”  

An independent producer who has explored outside investment frames the shift as a market correction. “Consumption hasn’t slowed. If anything, it has expanded. From e-commerce companies to food delivery apps, everyone wants content built around their ecosystem.”

That shift has changed how studios are valued. They are increasingly seen as IP hubs feeding streaming platforms, music labels, satellite deals and overseas markets. In that context, the attraction for investors lies in steady pipelines and catalogue value, not the volatility of a single theatrical release.

Saregama India’s investment in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Bhansali Productions illustrates that approach. By securing exclusive rights to all future film music from Bhansali's banner, the structure ensures the music label a steady pipeline of marquee soundtracks, removes competitive bidding and gives it greater control over acquisition costs while strengthening its long-term position in new film music.

A similar logic underpins the partnership between Excel Entertainment and Universal Music Group (UMG). Under the agreement, UMG will secure global distribution rights to all future original soundtracks created for projects owned or controlled by Excel. The deal also includes the launch of a dedicated Excel music label, to be distributed worldwide by UMG.

"It’s an era of acquisitions and consolidation. Either major studios will fold into larger structures, or new forms of non-traditional financing will define the next phase," the producer says.

Dominance, Creativity and the Entry of Corporates

Consolidation, however, carries a range of implications. A filmmaker, who has mounted projects under both independent and corporate-backed models, says, "If too much money sits with too few entities, one dominant kind of cinema may emerge."

Several executives add that capital alone does not correct structural gaps in development. While some studios treat fresh funding as an opportunity to tighten packaging and commissioning processes, others expand slates quickly. Projects can move forward before scripts are fully in place or key cast is secured.

Industry observers illustrate the point by citing middling outcomes across banners that front-footed commercial films. "Commercial films are meant to generate cushion. They are supposed to fire so that studios can afford to take creative risks elsewhere. When those titles underperform, the buffer shrinks," the insider notes.

That, executives say, is where the conversation circles back to choice and judgment. Financial infusion in the system does not guarantee success. Even with stronger balance sheets, studios still have to be careful about what they greenlight and how they package it.

The filmmaker adds that the tension is structural as it pits profit-and-loss statements and risk analysis against the instinct that cinema has traditionally relied on.  “What feels right creatively doesn’t always make sense on a spreadsheet, and that’s where the biggest challenge will be. It’s about finding a way to balance a Laapataa Ladies with a Dhurandhar, and a Homebound with a Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani even within this new studio system."

On the flip side, the independent producer argues that stable capital can create space rather than shrink it. If cash flow is secure, tentpoles can underwrite smaller, more experimental films. "In theory, if they choose to, deep-pocketed backers could provide breathing room to experiment and back braver voices and original films."