MUMBAI: Qyuki Digital Media, the media start-up of Shekhar Kapur and AR Rahman, has appointed Samir Bangara as the managing director and CEO, with effect from 3 June. Bangara will succeed Poonacha Machaiah who has moved on from the company after a tenure of over two years.
Commenting on the appointment, Kapur said, “More than his track record in building companies, what is important to me and AR Rahman are that the goals and dreams of people that join our endeavour are equal to ours. We welcome Samir in joining us both as part of the founding team, confident of his commitment, aspirations desire and abilities to venture with us beyond where individually we are capable of.”
Prior to this appointment, Bangara was the managing director of digital business at Disney UTV, specializing in games, audio and video content. With 15 years of extensive experience in the media and technology space, he was responsible for driving growth and scaling the digital business of the company in various avatars.
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Commenting on his new role, Bangara said, “Unlocking the creative potential of India is an incredibly compelling idea. I was in the midst of starting my own venture focussed on this when I met Shekhar Kapur. The ability to partner Shekhar Kapur and AR Rahman and coming aboard Qyuki added terrific synergies to my own ambitions and propel them to the next level.”
If reports are to believed, Bangara has invested an heavy sum in Qyuki and the amount he had to put in is way larger than a typical angel round.
Kapur added, “We at Qyuki are indebted to Poonacha Machaiah for being able to take the broadest of visions of myself and AR Rahman and giving it form and structure based on which we are able to drive our goals forward.”
Meanwhile, Machaiah has moved on from the company to explore future business propositions. Refusing to divulge any details, he told Radioandmusic.com, “I am indeed exploring some options right now and will share all the details of my future plans soon.”
Rahman stated, “Any start up in this space is like sailing into the high seas with sails being ripped by uncertain storms. Machaiah has been a great captain at the helm and kept the ship steady and on course. He will be missed and we wish him luck.”
