Variety Magazine has come up with its annual list of 500 ‘most influential business leaders shaping the global entertainment industry’. The list features 362 personalities from the US, 28 from the UK, 20 from China, 16 from France, 15 from Germany, 12 from India, 8 from Italy, 6 from Spain and 4 from Mexico.
This list is indeed a proud one because it features 12 Indian personalities, including Salman Khan, Priyanka Chopra, Aditya Chopra and Karan Johar among other notable names. Here’s the whole list of Indian influencers:
- Salman Khan:
Salman Khan to Bollywood is what Rajinikanth is to south cinema. Sallu bhaijaan has been ruling over the industry for decades now and the craze for him isn’t going to die down any sooner! He entertains on TV by hosting shows like Bigg Boss and is the heart and soul of films by working on movies like Bajrangi Bhaijaan. His production house Salman Khan Films too has achieved targets like no other. His last release Tubelight was one of the first Indo-Chinese co-productions under the treaty signed by the two countries in 2014. Salman also finalized a worldwide streaming deal with Amazon Prime for rights to his catalog and upcoming titles. Salman has also joined hands with Karan Johar to produce a period war epic starring Akshay Kumar.
Currently Salman Khan is being appreciated as the TV show host of Bigg Boss 11 and will soon be seen in the much-awaited movie Tiger Zinda Hai, which is a sequel to his 2012 blockbuster Ek Tha Tiger.
- Priyanka Chopra:
Priyanka Chopra might be one of those, actually the rare one, who has achieved so much in 17 years! From being Miss World in 2000, Priyanka is now conquering the world in 2017. She not only made her mark in Bollywood with some remarkable films, but also turned a singer (one of the first as an actress-turned-singer). Priyanka is now shining bright even in Hollywood, whether with her TV show Quantico or her movie Baywatch. PeeCee has even given a voice-over, as well as turned a producer with her mother. Her production house is called Purple Pebble Pictures. This production house has been working towards promoting regional languages in India.
Apart from her this, Piggy Chops is also a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador for Child Rights. She has even opened her own foundation to help the needy kids.
- Ekta Kapoor:
From being the Czarina of Indian television – being a producer who changed the game to now being the only woman entrepreneur to bring a revolutionary change on the digital platform, Ekta Kapoor is truly a force to reckon with, hence it comes as no surprise that the Balaji head honcho was recently named one of the most influential people in the world by Variety magazine.
Ekta’s colossal contribution to television, movie entertainment and now in the digital space with Alt Balaji, she continues to shape and have a huge impact on the Indian culture. The successful producer has explored a variety of genres, set trends and given actors and directors an opportunity to showcase their talent.
- Karan Johar:
Karan Johar started as an assistant director with Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (DDLJ), the movie which has achieved the cult status today. He then ventured into direction with Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, starring Shah Rukh Khan, which again instantly became a hit. Post that, Karan Johar has created milestones in Indian cinema, as a director as well as a producer. The most memorable of them is Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (K3G as it is fondly called). His production house Dharma Productions has become legendary and one of the most looked-upon.
KJo today is the VVIP who is also a huge influencer. He has the most followed show Koffee With Karan, which gives us a hot insight into the personal lives of celebrities, as well as has published his own book called ‘The Unsuitable Boy’.
- Aditya Chopra:
Aditya Chopra worked as an assistant director on notable films like Chandni, Lamhe and Darr. At 23, he made DDLJ. From there on began his journey with Yash Raj Films. YRF, like Dharma Productions, is one of the most sough-after production house. It has given innumerable hits and is the proud owner of the Dhoom franchise, which always stars the youngest Chopra, Uday Chopra. The production house has ventured into satellite, music, regional Indian film production (especially South) along with the many tie-ups. YRF is currently awaiting the release of Tiger Zinda Hai, starring Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif. This production house has not only worked with but also is the reason for most successes of the 3 Khans.
- Siddharth Roy Kapur
Siddharth was the head honcho of UTV Motion Pictures. He learnt under Ronnie Screwvala. Apart from that, he is also the current president of Film and Television Producers’ Guild of India, and is also extensively working towards improvement. He has opened up a new production house Roy Kapur Films.
- Mukesh Ambani:
When you live in India, you know Mukesh Ambani has the ultimate power, and he has proven so by not only taking his father Dhirubai Ambani’s business legacy forward, but also venturing into innumerable projects. He is one of the richest men in India. His latest transformation was introducing Jio to Indians.
- Kishore Lulla
Bajirao Mastani, Golmaal 3, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, Namastey London – these movies are a venture of Eros Now, which owned by Kishore Lulla. In the year 2017 itself, Eros Now had success with content-driven films Shubh Mangal Savdhan and Newton.
- Uday Shankar
It is a well-known fact about how Star reformed the Television industry. It gave India some of the most memorable shows and news. Uday Shankar, CEO of Star, has truly been an influencer.
- Punit Goenka
Just like Star, Zee has grown, and it is a landmark because of venturing into the regional section like Marathi, Tamil and Telugu apart from Hindi cinema. It in fact has some remarkable films from the brand is Lai Bhaari, Katyar Kaljat Ghusali and Natsamrat. The CEO of this brand is none other than Punit.
- Subhash Chandra
Subhash Chandra is the chairman of Essel Group, which is a part of Zee.
- Anil Ambani
Anil, Mukesh Ambani’s younger brother, owns Reliance Power, and he has also invested in Steven Speilberg’s Dreamworks Studios.
