Devdatta Potnis has decided to part company from Cosmos-Maya after a decade long association during which the studio went from strength to strength.
Presently the studio’s chief growth officer, Potnis joined the studio as head of sales in 2011 and was instrumental in getting the animation studio’s first domestic IP, Motu Patlu off the ground. The show is the biggest animation pop-culture phenomenon in India today, celebrating its 10-year milestone this year. In 2015 he planned another strategic move, diversifying the studio’s revenue streams by establishing one of the biggest digital kids’ networks globally, WowKidz, which has over 90 million subscribers worldwide across YouTube and Facebook. With Potnis at the helm, the studio went on to produce a multitude of shows with leading kids’ broadcasters in India including Nickelodeon, Disney, Cartoon Network, Sony, Discovery and also cemented bonds with all the key OTT players like Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, Voot, Zee5 and Disney+ Hotstar among others.
After this great domestic success, the studio set its sights on international markets overseen by Potnis. He placed Cosmos-Maya on a structured growth path across the European, Asian and North American markets, and became the face of the animation studio globally. It was thanks to these consistent efforts, that the studio grew from 30 people to 1200+ artists and the coveted private equity investment came into the animation business, first with KKR backed Emerald Media in 2018 and then with TPG affiliate NewQuest Capital Partners in 2021. From one Indian series in 2012 to a market leadership position in India with a valuation of over 90 million USD as per media reports; the company has grown phenomenally in the last decade and Potnis was one of the key architects in these endeavours.
“It has been a pleasure working with this incredible company, Cosmos-Maya, and I thank the founders Ketan Mehta, Deepa Sahi and Anish Mehta who gave me the opportunity to grow this company, plan its strategic direction and take it to the stage where it is now India’s #1 animation studio. I owe a lot of my professional expertise and development to Cosmos-Maya and the team who will always be special for me, personally and professionally. I wish them all the best for the future,” said Potnis.
His next move will be announced soon.
