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| Dilip Cherian |
Apparently, Steven Spielberg and David Geffen have been trying to regain creative independence through fresh funding at a moment when the younger Ambani is looking out to expand his entertainment business beyond Indian shores - especially after the MTN setback in Africa.
Clearly, the proposed venture makes good business sense, say moviedom insiders. After all, the Indian movie industry has been growing at an annual rate of 13 per cent compared with a mere 3 per cent for Hollywood.
Ambani's global ambitions speak for themselves. At the Cannes film festival earlier this year, Reliance had announced it would fund eight film production houses headed by Hollywood biggies.
In that sense, Ambani seems to be on target if he does nab Spielberg, the maker of the biggest Hollywood blockbusters. How's that for a multistarrer!No recession here
A recent survey ranked Dilli's small but bursting Khan Market, Connaught Place and South Extension, and Mumbai's Linking Road as among the world's top 20 premier shopping streets based on rental rates.
Says something about desi spending muscle being on the rise - eh!
Of the four, Khan Market, the shopaholics' joy, is most expensive, commanding double the rent of the priciest modern mall.
Linking Road is not trailing too far behind, with rentals shooting up between 30 per cent and 100 per cent over the past couple of years. So forget New York's Fifth Avenue or London's New Bond Street, it's all happening right here, right now!
In fact, brand experts suggest that 50 per cent of today's malls may even shut down by 2010 or after, while retailers and well-positioned malls truly focusing on consumers would thrive.
