Update (Feb 9, 2009): Reliance ADAG has put a spanner in the works: According to Business Standard, Anil Arjun, CEO of Reliance MediaWorks has written to Fame India, asking why promoter Shravan Shroff sold his family's majority 44.28 percent share to Inox at Rs. 44/share, much lower than the Rs. 80/share that Reliance had offered. The company is expected to approach the Indian regulator, SEBI. One should expect an inquiry around shareholder interest, since Fame India is a public listed company, and the interests of minority shareholders need to be protected. More here. Feb 4, 2009: After PVR announced intent to buy DLF's DT Cinemas for Rs. 202 million plus stake, another Indian theatre chain INOX Leisure has acquired 43.28 percent stake in Fame Cinemas or Shringar Cinemas Ltd for Rs.664.8 million. Inox had earlier announced its intent to acquire Fame and has now completed the buy using funds from its promoter Gujarat Fluorochemicals Limited, taken as a shareholder loan. The company will follow this with an open offer to acquire an additional 20% stake in Fame for cash. This is Inox's second acquisition - in 2006, Inox took over Calcutta Cine Pvt. Ltd. (CCPL) a Bengal Ambuja company that ran the '89 Cinemas' chain of multiplexes. It added 9 multiplexes in West Bengal and Assam to its chain then. Inox Leisure had 30 cineplexes in 21 cities. Now, Inox adds Fame's 95 screens to its 109 screens, and overtakes PVR Cinemas to become the 2nd largest theatrical chain in…
