PVR, Inox book profits in Q1 despite Bollywood duds

Advertising, F&B revenues helped multiplex players in registering double-digit growth in the quarter

It was a mixed bag of a quarter for the cinema exhibition companies as big releases like 'Tubelight' and 'Half Girlfriend' failed to capture the audiences’ fancy, while 'Baahubali' and 'Hindi Medium' managed to drive footfalls. Both PVR and Inox showed double-digit growth in income from operations, and growth in profit after tax. It was, however, growth in the advertising and food and beverage (F&B) revenues that gave a boost to its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBIDTA) and profit after tax (PAT) eventually.

On a comparable property basis, both companies saw a decline in footfall– Inox by