From garage startup to Rs 9,204 crore net worth: The man behind Ranbir Kapoor's Ramayana

Ranbir Kapoor’s Ramayana is one of the grand opuses the world is waiting to watch. On April 2, the makers released the teaser, introducing audiences to the massive scale at which the film is being made. Not only this, the movie is reportedly being made on a huge budget of Rs 4000 crore, making it one of the costliest films ever made in Indian cinema. While the investment in the film is enormous, did you know that the producer of the movie is Namit Malhotra?

Malhotra, who has been brought up in the world of cinema, is the founder of Prime Focus, CEO of DNEG, and the producer of the upcoming Indian epic Ramayana.

As Ramayana and the movie's VFX continue to make headlines, here we take a look at Namit Malhotra's net worth, his work in cinema and the company, which he started from his father's garage.

Namit Malhotra and the world of cinema

Born in Mumbai, Malhotra is not the first person from his family to be in the cinema business. His family has been involved in the industry for three generations. His grandfather, M.N. Malhotra, was a cinematographer for the 1953 film Jhansi Ki Rani, one of the first Indian movies shot in colour. Then comes his father, Naresh Malhotra, who was a producer and director. He was involved in films like Shahenshah (1988), Duniya Meri Jeb Mein (1979), and Sahari Bagha (1985), among others.

Namit Malhotra and his garage startup

Apart from traditional filmmaking, he was initially fascinated with the world of technology and gaming. According to several reports, he started his own video workshop in his father’s garage and even hired his teachers from a computer graphics school to join his startup. Soon, he merged his small business with his father’s company to create Prime Focus in 1997.

They expanded their work and went global. Later, he went and merged his company with Double Negative (DNEG), a renowned visual effects studio of UK. Serving as the Chairman and CEO of DNEG, which is behind Oscar-winning film Dune, Christopher Nolan's Tenet, Interstellar, Ex Machina and Blade Runner 2049. His company has won eight Oscars for Best Visual Effects.

Before Ramayana, he was associated with Brahmāstra: Part One. However, he was not the main producer, but his company was involved in the movie's visual effects (VFX)

What is Namit Malhotra's net worth

In 2026, he was among 57 new entrants in the Hurun Global Rich List 2026 with an estimated net worth of Rs 9204 crore.