Providence Equity's Gaurav Sharma: 'Private Equity Is Now a More Mature Market'

In the world of private equity, Providence Equity Partners is a specialist. The firm, whose headquarters are in Providence, R.I., specializes in deals involving media, entertainment, information and communications companies. In 2007, Providence Equity opened its New Delhi office, headed by Biswajit (Bis) Subramanian, who had earlier been a managing director in the firm's London office. By mid 2008, Providence Equity had invested more than US$1 billion in Idea Cellular, which, according to media reports, was among the largest private equity investments in India's telecom sector. What is Providence Equity Partners' strategy for India? How has it changed as a result of the global financial crisis? In an interview with India Knowledge@Wharton, Gaurav Sharma, who works with Subramanian on defining and executing Providence Equity Partners' India strategy, discusses those questions and more.