As we complete #8Iconicyearsofdelhiites , we have put together an interesting story featuring eight icons of the city from different parallels of lifestyle. The illustrious list includes F & B – AD Singh, MD Olive restaurants, Auto – Amit Garg, MD Shiva motors, Music – DJ Aqeel, Jewellery – Meghali Gupta, Director Shri Ram Hari Ram Jewellers, Fashion – Shivan Bhatiya, Head Designer and Narresh Kukreja, Creative Director, SHIVAN & NARRESH, Comedy – PAPA CJ, Cinema – Sanjeev Kumar Bijli, Joint MD PVR Ltd. and Real Estate – Yukti Nagpal, Director Gulshan Homes. Read on to know more about their inspiring journey’s so far and plans for the future.

Sanjeev Kumar Bijli

Sanjeev Kumar Bijli, Joint Managing Director PVR Ltd. has been instrumental in the growth of India’s biggest and most loved multiplex chain. Under his leadership the group has evolved with state of the art cinemas, delectable food, an unmatched cinema going experience and is nearing the 1,000 screen mark.• When did you know you wanted to be an entrepreneur ?
Being born and brought up in a business family, I was always inclined towards entrepreneurship. I was groomed and conditioned to carry forward the baton. We have further diversified the business into various verticals however I feel the environment has always been such that doing something of my own came naturally to me.

• What according to you has been the turning point in your career ?
The turning point has to be our first multiplex, PVR Anupam in Saket. It was way back in late 90’s, it was a crucial project for us as it was futuristic for its time. It was the first of its kind in the country in the era of single screens, dvd’s. The success of PVR Anupam was vital, it was important for the public to accept the concept. It further motivated us to go ahead and establish a chain of multiplex’s across the country.• What has been the biggest challenge for you as an entrepreneur in your illustrious career ?
The biggest challenge definitely has to be the pandemic, it is something that took us by surprise. Some industries have prospered, some have had a neutral response but ours clearly has been severely hit. It is different because if it was a business challenge, we would try to navigate our way through it but with COVID things have been out of control.

• How has the pandemic impacted your business and what measures are you taking to salvage the situation?
We have been in the pandemic for one and a half years now, since March’20. To keep the company afloat we had taken steps to reduce cost as much as possible as ours is a fixed cost business. We have been very fortunate that our team has stuck by us in these dark times. We haven’t done any major layoffs and that has kept the momentum going. As we prepared to reopen our doors to the public, we have ensured that every safety measure has been undertaken to create a safe
environment for our viewers.• Which factors according to you have been instrumental in PVR becoming the most loved cinema chain in the country ?
PVR has always been a very customer centric organization, we have prioritized our viewers. Being a B2C model, it is vital that the consumer is satisfied with the customer services, sound, food, interiors, HR policies. It is a wholesome recipe, where every ingredient is equally important to make the cinema going experience comfortable and wholesome.

• Please tell us more about your future plans.
Our future plan is to get back to business, start focusing on getting things back on track. We have reopened only two weeks ago but we have been successful in getting people back to the cinemas which is extremely motivating for all of us. ‘Bell Bottom’ performed decently well, we are looking forward to the next big release ‘Fast & Furious 9’. Once things get back to normal in the next couple of months, we look forward to opening new screens. We have amazing cinemas lined up all over the country. We have recently opened PVR Director’s cut in Gurugram, we are opening a cinema in Jamnagar soon. The goal is to reach 1,000 screens at the earliest as it has already been delayed by the pandemic.