You must have seen Ronnie Screwvala in the Shark Tank India season 3 and might be thinking who is this guy? You may have heard his name in movies but as a shark??
You may be thinking what qualifies him to be a Shark Tank India judge?
Rohinton Soli Screwvala also known as Ronnie Screwvala is a famous producer and a successful entrepreneur.
He is the founder of UpGrad and UTV Group. A lot of good movies have been produced under his production including Barfi!, Jodhaa Akbar, Chennai Express, etc.
Still thinking why a movie producer as a Shark Tank India judge? Let me give full details about him and his entrepreneurial journey.
| Full Name | Rohinton Soli “Ronnie” Screwvala |
| Date of Birth | September 8, 1962 |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Education | Bachelor’s degree in Commerce from Sydenham College, Mumbai |
| Early Career | Started as a cable TV operator in Mumbai; founded Network in Entertainment |
| Key Achievements | Founder of UTV Group; instrumental in producing several successful movies |
| Major Productions | Movies like “Rang De Basanti,” “Jodhaa Akbar,” “Barfi!,” and “Chennai Express” |
| Media Ventures | UTV Software Communications, UTV Motion Pictures, UTV Bindass |
| Acquisitions | UTV acquired by The Walt Disney Company in 2012 |
| Post-UTV Ventures | Co-founder of UpGrad, an online education platform; Founder of RSVP Movies |
| Philanthropy | Founder of Swades Foundation, focusing on rural empowerment in India |
| Books | Author of “Dream with Your Eyes Open” |
| Awards and Honors | Named among the 25 Most Powerful Global Executives by Fortune in 2009 |
| Personal Interests | Active in sports, involved with the Indian Super League (football) |
| Family | Married to Zarina Mehta, co-founder of UTV and Swades Foundation |
Success Story of Ronnie Screwvala
Ronnie was born in Mumbai and comes from a humble Parsi family. His father used to work at J L Morrison and Smith& Nephew which was a British company.
Ronnie always had an interest in the movies and theatre and used to act in theatre during his college days.
After completing college at the prestigious Sydenham he started his journey as an entrepreneur. He started a toothbrush manufacturing company but his love for movies never faded.
In 1981, he took his first step in the film industry as a cable TV operator when no other was working in this area apart from Doordarshan.
He started UTV Software Communications, the first independent production house in India, which was later acquired by Walt Disney.
You must remember the famous channels UTV Action, UTV Movies, etc. Ronnie produced many successful movies in his career and founded the popular Edu-tech platform UpGrad in 2015.
Ronnie Screwvala Movies
Ronnie Screwvala is a very well-known face in the Indian film industry and has produced many blockbuster movies including Rang De Basanti, Rajneeti, Haider, Sanju, URI: The Surgical Strike, etc.
| Movie Title | Release Year | Director | Notable Cast | Genre |
| Rang De Basanti | 2006 | Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra | Aamir Khan, Siddharth, Sharman Joshi | Drama |
| Jodhaa Akbar | 2008 | Ashutosh Gowariker | Hrithik Roshan, Aishwarya Rai | Historical Romance |
| Dev.D | 2009 | Anurag Kashyap | Abhay Deol, Mahie Gill | Romantic Drama |
| Kaminey | 2009 | Vishal Bhardwaj | Shahid Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra | Action Thriller |
| Raajneeti | 2010 | Prakash Jha | Ranbir Kapoor, Katrina Kaif | Political Thriller |
| Udaan | 2010 | Vikramaditya Motwane | Rajat Barmecha, Ronit Roy | Drama |
| Barfi! | 2012 | Anurag Basu | Ranbir Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra | Romantic Comedy-Drama |
| Kai Po Che! | 2013 | Abhishek Kapoor | Sushant Singh Rajput, Rajkummar Rao | Drama |
| Chennai Express | 2013 | Rohit Shetty | Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone | Action Comedy |
| PK | 2014 | Rajkumar Hirani | Aamir Khan, Anushka Sharma | Comedy-Drama |
| Haider | 2014 | Vishal Bhardwaj | Shahid Kapoor, Tabu | Drama, Thriller |
| 2 States | 2014 | Abhishek Varman | Arjun Kapoor, Alia Bhatt | Romantic Drama |
| Tamasha | 2015 | Imtiaz Ali | Ranbir Kapoor, Deepika Padukone | Romantic Drama |
| Sanju | 2018 | Rajkumar Hirani | Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma | Biographical Drama |
| Love Per Square Foot | 2018 | Anand Tiwari | Vicky Kaushal, Angira Dhar | Romantic Comedy |
| Karwaan | 2018 | Akarsh Khurana | Irrfan Khan, Dulquer Salmaan | Road Comedy-Drama |
| Kedarnath | 2018 | Abhishek Kapoor | Sushant Singh Rajput, Sara Ali Khan | Romantic Drama |
| URI: The Surgical Strike | 2019 | Aditya Dhar | Vicky Kaushal, Yami Gautam | Action, War Drama |
| The Sky Is Pink | 2019 | Shonali Bose | Priyanka Chopra, Farhan Akhtar | Biographical Drama |
| Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota | 2019 | Vasan Bala | Abhimanyu Dassani, Radhika Madan | Action Comedy |
Ronnie Screwvala Investments in Shark Tank India
Ronnie has invested in some of the startups in Shark Tank India that have given him multi-fold returns.
| Business Name | Founders | Investment Amount | Equity Stake | Details |
| Skippi Ice Pops | Ravi and Anuja Kabra | ₹1 crore | 15% | India’s first ice pops brand offering natural flavors and preservatives-free popsicles |
| Get-A-Whey | Jash Shah, Jimmy Shah, and Dheep Shah | ₹1 crore | 15% | Protein ice cream brand offering healthy and tasty frozen desserts |
| Altor | Vidit Bajoria and Dhruv Vidyarthi | ₹50 lakh | 5% | Safety gear brand focusing on innovative and protective motorcycle helmets |
| Ariro Wooden Toys | Vasanth Saravanan and Nisha Vasanth | ₹50 lakh | 10% | Eco-friendly wooden toys designed for children to promote motor skills and creativity |
| PNT Robotics & Automation Solutions | Pratik Soni | ₹25 lakh | 25% | Robotics and automation company offering innovative warehouse automation solutions |
| Thinkerbell Labs | Aman Srivastava, Dilip R, Saif Syed, and Jitendra Chouksey | ₹1.05 crore | 6% | Ed-tech company developing devices to help visually impaired individuals learn braille |
| Tagz Foods | Anish Basu Roy and Sagar Bisen | ₹70 lakh | 4% | Healthy snacking brand offering popped potato chips with zero preservatives and low calories |
| Hammer Lifestyle | Rohit Nandwani | ₹1 crore | 40% | Consumer electronics brand specializing in stylish and affordable audio and fitness products |
| Nomad Food Project | Aditya Rai and Aditya Naik | ₹30 lakh | 20% | Gourmet food brand offering unique and handcrafted condiments and spreads |
Ronnie Screwvala’s Net Worth
| Net Worth | Approximately $1.5 billion (as of 2024) |
| Primary Sources | Media and Entertainment, Investments |
| Major Ventures | UTV Group, RSVP Movies, UpGrad, Swades Foundation |
| UTV Acquisition | Acquired by The Walt Disney Company for $454 million in 2012 |
| UpGrad Valuation | Valued at over $1 billion as of 2024 |
| Philanthropy | Significant contributions through the Swades Foundation |
| Real Estate Holdings | Luxurious properties in Mumbai and other locations |
| Other Investments | Various startups and ventures through Shark Tank India |
Who is Ronnie Screwvala?
Ronnie Screwvala is a movie producer and an entrepreneur. He is the founder of UpGrad.
How do I contact Ronnies Screwvala?
It’s not easy to contact Ronnie Screwvala but you can try to contact him through his mail at walkwithme@unilazer.com and ronnie.screwvala@onelink.me.
Ronnie Screwvala is CEO of which company?
He is the CEO of UpGrad, an Edu-tech platform.
References:
https://www.crunchbase.com/person/ronnie-screwvala
https://www.5paisa.com/finschool/ronnie-screwvala-success-story/
https://atlasuniversity.edu.in/ronnie-screwvala/
https://www.hbs.edu/creating-emerging-markets/interviews/Pages/profile.aspx?profile=rscrewvala
https://in.bookmyshow.com/person/ronnie-screwvala/1054553
https://yourstory.com/2023/12/ronnie-screwvala-bollywood-billionaire-entrepreneur-journey
https://www.finowings.com/Success-Story/ronnie-screwvala-journey-utv-upgrad