Mumbai: The popular American business reality show Shark Tank is making headway into India. StudioNEXT, an independent business unit of Sony Pictures Network (SPN), has announced its collaboration with Venture Catalysts as the startup ecosystem advisor for the very first edition of Shark Tank India.  

The StudioNEXT-produced show is all set to provide an opportunity and a platform to entrepreneurs with interesting business ideas, business prototypes, or active businesses that will be evaluated by experienced investors & business experts, the production company said in a statement. Registrations for the very first edition of Shark Tank India have commenced in June and are currently underway on SonyLIV.

SPN head – StudioNEXT, Indranil Chakraborty, said, "The format of Shark Tank is revolutionary, and we are excited to be producing the very first edition of Shark Tank India. The show will certainly give a boost to the dynamic entrepreneurial ecosystem in the country and we are looking forward to showcasing some interesting ‘pitches’. Will the ‘Sharks’ bite the bait? That remains to be seen. Given the nature of the show, we are glad to have collaborated with Venture Catalysts as the Startup Ecosystem Advisor for Shark Tank India."

Venture Catalysts co-founder, Anuj Golecha, said, "In the last 12 years, Shark Tank has helped create multi-million-dollar companies across geographies. Venture Catalysts is excited to partner with Sony Entertainment Television for Shark Tank India as it aligns our Ideology of spreading entrepreneurship bug across the smaller towns and cities in India. Together we hope to see some really interesting ideas coming from far-flung Indian towns too or the entrepreneurs from the ‘Bharat’. For entrepreneurs, Shark Tank is not just about monetary gains but the exposure, mentoring, and support that they receive. It also provides founders with a direct go-to-market strategy and that is very valuable. We are extremely delighted to have partnered for the show as Startup Ecosystem Advisor to provide our deep expertise in entrepreneurship and building business to make the show a great success."

Since its first launch in 2001, as Tigers of Money in Japan, created by Nippon TV, the format was later adapted as Dragon’s Den in 2005 in the UK and the show premiered in the US as Shark Tank in the year 2009. The format is distributed internationally by Sony Pictures Television.