Who we are
Video Gallery
Media, Award & Accolades
Sebi Registered Investment Advisory
Contact us
The Phoenix Mills Ltd. (PDF)
Stocks Screener
Trending Sector
Top Losers
IPO
Current IPOs
Closed IPOs
IPO Performers
Listed IPOs
Financial Calculators
CAGR Calculator
SIP Calculator
Retirement Planning Calculator
Popular Stocks
Adani Ports and SEZ
Macro Dashboard
Portfolio Analysis
5 in 5 Strategy
Mispriced Opportunities
Combo
Dhanwaan
Informed InvestoRR
Fade in.
The year is 1999. India’s movie-goers are still lining up outside theatres—sometimes hours before showtime. There are no apps, no seat selection, just chaos, shouting, and black-market hustlers charging extra for the front row.
Scene: A backpacker in South Africa.
Sitting under a tree, with a beer in hand and rugby on the radio,, the hero listens to an ad for match tickets -booked with a simple call. And just like that, a lightbulb goes off. What if India could skip the queue?
Starring a 24-year-old ad man tired of the 9-to-5: two brave co-founders and a dream to make booking tickets easier than buying groceries. They had no smartphones, funding, fancy offices, dial-up internet, or a will to build something India hadn’t seen before.
From that first click to ~₹1,400 crore in revenue by FY24, it is not just a tech startup story. It’s how three rebels rewrote India’s entertainment script and ensured you never miss a show again.
So sit back, relax, because what you’re about to read isn’t fiction. Are you ready? Let’s go
To The Red Carpet
Sometimes, a big idea starts with a beer and a broadcast. For Ashish Hemrajani, it was during a backpacking trip to South Africa, fresh off his master’s degree and a stint at J Walter Thompson.
Sitting under a tree, tuned into a radio ad to book rugby tickets, he wondered why buying tickets in India couldn’t be as easy as just making a phone call.
That moment under African skies became the starting line for a revolution in Indian entertainment.
That Started it All
Back in India, Ashish didn’t wait. He quit his job, rolled up his sleeves, and transformed his bedroom into a makeshift office.
With just an idea and endless conviction, he convinced two friends, Parikshit Dar and Rajesh Balpande, to join him. The trio, fondly called the Three Musketeers, launched Bigtree Entertainment Pvt. Ltd. in 1999.
Their mission? Simplify ticketing in a country where the internet was still a luxury.
Like most parents, Ashish’s parents were skeptical. But over time, they came around and backed his vision, leading to the launch of GoForTicketing, the early avatar of what we now know as BookMyShow.
The Dot-Com Doom
Imagine a promising business going bust within a few years. That’s what happened to GoForTicketing. The Dot-Com crash hit hard in 2002, within three years of its launch. Investors bailed.
The company had to buy itself back from News Corp., trim down operations, and lay off 144 employees, leaving behind just a 6-member crew. Offices shut down, and operations scaled back to Mumbai and Delhi.
But Ashish and his team didn’t fold. They sold ticketing software to multiplexes and ran call centers for clients.
That hustle paid off. By 2007, the company was back on its feet, earning ₹24.1 crore in revenue. And this new beginning called for a new name.
That Took the Center Stage!
In 2007, the trio decided to have a naming contest for their venture. The prize? An iPod Touch. An engineering intern casually submitted “BookMyShow”—a name that clicked like the sound of an online booking confirmation.
Before that, the company had also toyed with “India Ticketing.” But nothing stuck like BookMyShow.
The Box Office
Business for BookMyShow was rolling, and what started with movie tickets soon expanded its scope.
From stage plays and stand-up gigs to cricket matches, concerts, fairs, and even global exhibitions—BookMyShow wasn’t just booking shows anymore, it was booking everything.
Their “Nearby Events” feature brought hyperlocal entertainment into the spotlight, letting users explore and book activities happening just around the corner.
By 2012, BookMyShow was in your pocket with the launch of its mobile app—and by 2017, it levelled up with a Progressive Web App.
The platform transformed into a full-fledged entertainment concierge, letting users check show timings and trailers to book snacks and parking.
Since then, whether it’s live concerts or cricket in Colombo—if there’s a ticket, chances are, BookMyShow has it.
Of the Showrunners
From a scrappy startup to a market titan, BookMyShow now operates in over 650 cities, covering more than 5,000 screens and even making waves in Southeast Asia.
As of a 2018 report by Kalagato, it commanded a whopping 78% share of India’s online movie ticketing space.
And the numbers speak for themselves—BookMyShow clocked an operating revenue of ₹976 crore in FY23 with a profit of ₹85 crore. That momentum only surged in FY24, as revenue jumped to ₹1,397 crore and profits rose to ₹109 crore.
It’s not just movies anymore—BookMyShow has inked significant global and national heavyweight partnerships.
It became the exclusive ticketing partner for the Formula 1 race in India, partnered with IMAX to elevate premium cinema experiences, and broadened its entertainment empire by partnering with brands like IndiGo Airlines, the POP UPI app, and the Lanka T10 Super League.
From More Than Ticketing
BookMyShow’s business model goes deeper than ticketing. At its core is a tech-savvy engine powered by exclusive integration with Vista ERP APIs, which allows real-time ticket availability.
But the magic doesn’t stop at movie seats—the platform cleverly upsells everything from food combos and retail perks to parking, making it a one-stop shop for a complete entertainment experience.
Revenue pours in from two robust streams: ticketing, which includes convenience fees, commissions, and a cut from every seat sold; and non-ticketing, where brands pay for ad space, promotional tie-ups, and access to BookMyShow’s vast, engaged audience.
And the Controversy
In 2025, BookMyShow found itself in the spotlight for the wrong reasons. Tickets for the Coldplay concert in Mumbai—originally priced at ₹2,500—were allegedly being resold for up to ₹3 lakh. The police summoned Ashish and the tech head.
BookMyShow responded swiftly, filing an FIR against 30 suspects, including websites like Viagogo. The legal battle is ongoing, but the company has clarified its stance—it doesn’t tolerate fraud.
Mobile, and More
BookMyShow isn’t stopping anytime soon. It plans to launch a merchandise section—think official tees, hoodies, and fan apparel—and will double down on the mobile experience, where 25% of bookings now happen.
With India’s entertainment appetite growing and a loyal fan base in place, the company is ready for its next big intermission-breaker, and even exclusive merchandise.
Not Released Yet
From a tree in South Africa to the top of India’s entertainment pyramid, BookMyShow is more than a company—it’s a cultural movement.
Driven by vision, steered through storms, and always evolving, the brand is a testament to what happens when instinct, innovation, and relentless grit collide.
As the credits roll on this chapter, one thing is clear: BookMyShow’s biggest show is yet to be released.
I’m Archana R. Chettiar, an experienced content creator with
an affinity for writing on personal finance and other financial content. I
love to write on equity investing, retirement, managing money, and more.
