Talentube launched in India; To promote newbies in showbiz

Talentube, a global talent discovery, launch and opportunity platform, has announced its launch in India with $12 million in cash and committed funding from Amit Dalmia and Neeraj Goenka.

As part of the deal, both have joined the board of Talentube.

Dalmia represents a consortium of investors who have promoted multiple brands such as iBall, Portico New York, 109F and DC Designs. An alumnus of the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, he also serves as the promoter and managing director of Creative Global, Viaton Energy and Bedbathmore.

Goenka represents a consortium of investors with investments in several US-based businesses. He is also the promoter and director of Texport Garments and co-founder of Robert Graham. Goenka is an MBA from the Washington University in St. Louis, US.

The Indian arm will focus on Indian film and entertainment industry and provide opportunities to aspiring talents. The capital involved will be utilised to build a community of talents, launch them successfully and also to enhance their showbiz careers.

The founding team of Talentube includes Vinod G Nair (ex-MD and CEO of Clea Public relations) and Ravi Nagpurkar and Rakesh Sreekumar.

An MBA from Bharathiar University, Nair had previously worked for Mudra Public Relations before setting up Clea Marketing and Communications Consultancy. Nagpurkar, an MBA from Fuqua School of Business at Duke University, worked with Nakhi Enterprises, Core Objects, Personal Career Solutions, Scorechase, Infosys Technologies and Consulting and ReverbNation. He had also founded 7Sounds (acquired by Talentube), an online talent discovery and monetisation platform for independent musicians in India.

"Talentube is a result of the passions we share and our burning desire to democratise Bollywood, and the entire Indian entertainment industry," said Nair.

Initially, Talentube will be focusing on Bollywood and Hindi films but from next year onwards, it will also focus on film projects in regional languages, such as Punjabi, Marathi, Malayalam and Bengali. It will also make foray into the world of TV serials and TV commercials. Talentube will produce its own films, tele serials, events, shows and other properties, and the Talentube community members can avail all home production opportunities on an exclusive basis.

The company is also in talks with others to get co-producers. "We are even in talks with a channel to produce a reality show. And we intend to set up a community of 2 lakh aspiring actors, producers, directors and dancers by end of this year," said Nair.