A collage of the Hombale Films and the RCB logos.
Credit: Special Arrangement
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), who emerged as the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 champions, is reportedly up for sale, and reports suggest that the team will undergo an ownership change right before the next season.
While the current owner, Diageo India, is yet to make a formal announcement, sources suggest that the Bengaluru-based Hombale Films is a frontrunner and has reportedly acquired a part-ownership stake in the franchise.
If this becomes true, then the world of cinema and cricket in Karnataka will witness a historic merger with Vijay Kiragandur, the owner of production giant Hombale Films, becoming the owner of the Bengaluru-based franchise. Reports suggest that news of Vijay taking charge as the new RCB co-owner will soon be made official.
The production house has already been associated with the Karnataka-based IPL franchise as its official digital partner since April, 2023.
The company’s exact net worth has never been formally disclosed. However, industry insiders estimate founder Vijay Kiragandur’s net worth to be around Rs 3,000 crore.
Founded in 2012 by Vijay Kiragandur and Chaluve Gowda, Hombale Films was launched with an ambition of being a regular production house. Their motto was to produce high-calibre cinema that stands as a source of pride for Karnataka while giving audiences a completely new cinema viewing experience.
The production house made its debut in 2014 with the successful Puneeth Rajkumar-starrer Ninnindale. Their 2015 film Masterpiece with Yash boosted their profile and firmly established Hombale Films as one of the premier production houses within the Kannada cinema industry.
However, the major commercial and critical breakthrough came in 2017 with their presentation of Raajakumara, which once again featured Puneeth Rajkumar. The movie set the cash registers ringing at the box office and emerged as the top-grossing Kannada film of its time.
Few could have predicted the extent to which Hombale Films would reshape cinema, but in 2018, Prashanth Neel's K.G.F: Chapter 1, starring Yash, achieved exactly that. This blockbuster did not just break records in KFI but also completely reshaped Indian cinema, delivering one of the biggest pan-Indian hits in the history of Indian cinema.
Released in 2022, K.G.F: Chapter 2 proved to be an even greater phenomenon; the movie not just shattered box office records but also emerged as the highest-grossing film of 2022 in India, establishing Hombale Films as one of the biggest cinematic successes.
Just when the KGF series was generating noise across the globe, Hombale Films came with another gem, Kantara, with Rishab Shetty. While the movie met with a modest reception upon release in September 2022, the film’s positive word of mouth and powerful storyline pulled audiences to the theatres and quickly emerged as one of the biggest blockbusters of that year.
Made for just Rs 16 crore, Kantara collected over Rs 400 crore worldwide and became a cultural phenomenon. Not only did it become the second-highest-grossing film in Kannada cinema history.
Both the Hombale projects were suitably rewarded and garnered high honours at the National Film Awards. The 66th National Film Awards recognised K.G.F with two wins, celebrating its excellence in Stunt Choreography and Special Effects and at the 70th National Film Awards, Kantara was a double winner, claiming the Best Popular Film Award and the Best Actor Award for Rishab Shetty.