Dubai — India’s Carnival Cinemas and a partner in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are in talks to buy Qatar-based Novo Cinemas’ theatres in the UAE and Bahrain, sources told Reuters. The potential deal highlights moves to separate cross-border businesses in the Gulf following a boycott imposed on Qatar by Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt since June 2017. Carnival Cinemas has been in talks with UAE-based Emirates National Holdings as a potential co-investor, one of the sources said. Carnival operates in 115 cities in India. Foreign companies typically partner with local ones in the Gulf due to ownership laws. Bollywood films are popular in the UAE and Gulf, where there are many South Asians. Qatar’s Elan Group has been working with an adviser to sell Novo Cinemas’ theatres in the UAE and Bahrain. Elan Group and Emirates National Holdings were not immediately available for comment on Monday. Carnival Cinemas declined to comment. The potential deal suggests some Qatari firms see...
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