Those headhunting for the next MD and CEO of Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI) have their work cut out. Incumbent NP Singh, who is set to step down after a decade at the helm, will be leaving behind an act difficult to replicate. “He has been a great leader of people. The best thing is he actually listens to those around him… there’s no arrogance in that man,” says Shashi Sinha, CEO – India, IPG Mediabrands, and one who considers Singh a dear friend.
Many wondered if Singh’s moving has anything to do with the termination of the $10-billion merger agreement with Zee Entertainment Enterprises. The deal had been in the works for more than two years before ending in a bitter fallout in January 2024 when Sony decided to walk away. Insiders say, there are no dots to connect here. That Singh would move on had been decided at least three years ago — he was to stay on to oversee a transition, if it were to happen.
A quintessential organisation man, Singh said he will continue to lead the company till his successor is chosen. “Having reached many significant milestones with our team, I am now ready to focus on social change and shift from operational roles to advisory ones,” he said.
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An alumnus of the Delhi School of Economics, Singh joined SPNI — then Sony Entertainment Television India or SET India —in 1999 as chief financial officer (CFO) four years after the network launched its first channel in the country. The same year, SET India launched its second channel Sony Max, which broadcast Hindi movies and sporting events, and proved to be a massive success.
Singh was elevated to the position of COO in 2004, a year before SET India Network bought SAB TV from Sri Adhikari Brothers and rebranded it as Sony SAB. In 2006 SET India launched the English movie channel Sony Pix. In December 2007, SET India was renamed Multi Screen Media and it was rebranded once again in December 2015 when the company came to be known in its current avatar of Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI).
In his 25 years with the network, Singh has catalysed the network’s growth, and witnessed the evolution of the media industry in the country. “His biggest achievement is running a tight ship post Covid,” says an industry analyst who didn’t want to be identified. “If you are looking for proof, there has been very little attrition at Sony in all these years and the network is seen as a stable workplace.”
While general entertainment has been SPNI’s bread and butter, under Singh’s watch the network forayed into sports in 2002 after acquiring the media rights for International Cricket Council (ICC) matches from 2002 to 2007 that were beamed over SET and Sony Max. Sony also held the broadcast rights for the coveted Indian Premier League (IPL) for 10 years starting 2008.
But when IPL moved from Sony to Star India for the 2018-22 season, Singh threw his weight behind sports like wrestling that didn’t find many takers among channels. After acquiring exclusive TV broadcast rights and non-exclusive digital transmission rights for the World Wrestling Championship 2019, Sony went on to grab rights to broadcast both Pro Panja League and TNA Wrestling.
One project close to his heart was the launch of the network’s OTT platform. SonyLIV was launched in 2014 as a sports streaming service. After its second revamp in 2020, SonyLIV started to stream content from Sony Pictures Entertainment, Sony Pictures Television Studios, ITV and Reliance Entertainment. It also began streaming original movies and series.
Singh was not one to let an opportunity go by, say his contemporaries.
He began wooing ace comedian Kapil Sharma when the latter was having trouble with then host Colors. Comedy Nights With Kapil moved from Colors in 2016 and found a new home in Sony that same year.
Perhaps, the biggest coup for Sony under Singh’s watch was whisking away Kaun Banega Crorepati from Star Plus in its fourth season in 2010.
It is not easy to be a convergent thinker when your industry is evolving furiously. Singh made that job look like a cakewalk.
From: financialexpress
Financial News
