Mukesh Ambani one of India’s wealthiest business magnates has built a vast empire with numerous influential partnerships. One of his most significant collaborations is with Rishi Malhotra the mastermind behind JioSaavn a music streaming platform often referred to as India’s answer to Spotify. JioSaavn has revolutionized India’s digital music industry offering a diverse collection of songs podcasts and audiobooks. At the heart of its success is Rishi Malhotra the company’s co-founder and CEO whose vision and leadership propelled JioSaavn into one of the country’s most popular music apps. His expertise in music trends and digital innovation played a key role in shaping the platform. Rishi Malhotras musical roots Born and raised in Nashville Tennessee Malhotra grew up in a city known for its deep musical culture. He was influenced by a mix of Indian music legends like Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and Lata Mangeshkar alongside Western icons such as Led Zeppelin and Miles Davis. This unique blend of musical influences gave him a broad perspective on the evolving music streaming industry. Building Saavn: From B2B to a household name Recognizing a gap in the market Malhotra joined forces with Vinodh Bhat and Paramdeep Singh to launch Saavn in 2007. Initially the company worked behind the scenes helping digitize Indian music for global platforms like iTunes and Amazon. This business model proved highly profitable. However Malhotra had a bigger vision. He once shared in an interview with Mint: We wanted a platform where people could find any song—whether by title movie composer or actor. Even if they made a typo they should still find what they’re looking for. This simple yet powerful idea—to make music search and discovery effortless—laid the foundation for Saavn’s transformation into a leading music streaming app in India. The Birth of JioSaavn In 2010 Saavn took a major step forward by launching its music streaming app tapping into India’s rapidly growing smartphone market. At a time when Spotify had just begun reshaping the global music landscape Saavn focused on catering to Indian audiences offering a vast collection of regional and Bollywood music across multiple languages. The app quickly gained traction drawing the attention of Mukesh Ambani. Mukesh Ambanis investment and the Jio merger Recognizing Saavn’s potential Mukesh Ambani made a strategic move in 2018 by investing in the platform and merging it with Jio his telecom giant. The deal valued at over USD 1 billion (approximately Rs. 8300 crore) marked the birth of JioSaavn—a platform that seamlessly blended Jio’s vast user base with Saavn’s extensive music library. JioSaavns impact and market dominance The newly formed JioSaavn introduced both free and premium services making music more accessible than ever. Whether on Android or iOS users could enjoy their favorite songs without barriers thanks to Jio’s high-speed internet services.