Creative Artists Agency and Indian talent agency form joint venture

Creative Artists Agency and one of the top talent agencies in India, Kwan Entertainment & Marketing Solutions, have formed a joint venture to represent Bollywood talent, in a move that underscores the importance of the growing Asian market to the entertainment industry.

The newly formed CAA Kwan will pursue opportunities for talent in film, television, music, commercial endorsements, sports consulting and other businesses. The company will be based in Mumbai, with offices in Delhi, Bangalore and Hyderabad.

“India’s robust entertainment industry offers CAA Kwan tremendous opportunities for talent across multiple platforms,” CAA President Richard Lovett said in a statement.

India is the second most populous country in the world, with 1.2 billion people -- about 780 million of them under the age of 35. It’s also a vibrant and growing media marketplace. Box office receipts of $1.4 billion rank it among the top five movie markets in the world, according to the most recent statistics from the Motion Picture Assn. of America.

The country also has the third largest television market -- attracting investments this year from giant entertainment corporations like the Walt Disney Co. as well as individual investors like Peter Chernin.

CAA already represents actors, actresses, writers and directors in the region and played a role in structuring deals in which Indian corporations back U.S. film projects (such as Reliance Entertainment’s deal with DreamWorks Studios).

The joint venture represents the next logical step for the agency in the growing media market. CAA’s David Taghioff and Caleb Franklin, along with Kwan’s Chief Executive Anirban Das Blah and Chief Operating Officer Indranil “Niel” Blah, will run the venture.

Franklin is expected to relocate to Mumbai.

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