The Most Streamed Content in India
The Amazon India Fire TV Streaming Trends Report
Hey Streamers 👋,
Welcome to the 23rd edition of “Streaming in India”, your weekly news digest about streaming players, OTT trends and more in one of the fastest growing video markets. If you are not already a subscriber, please sign up and join 2,400+ others who receive it directly in their inbox every Wednesday.
Three US media giants have announced a new sports streaming platform to be launched this autumn.
Walt Disney's ESPN, Fox Corp and Warner Bros. Discovery own a wide range of portfolios of sports rights including those for the FIFA World Cup, Formula 1, NFL, NBA and Major League Baseball. They hope to capture younger audiences and save costs. On the other hand, whether we like it or not, India is heading towards a one horse race for live sports (starts with J)!
Today’s program:
Amazon Fire TV Streaming Trends Report* Deep Dive, but first a note on the Fire TV stick.
The Most Popular Content in India 2023.
And….Action!
The Amazon Fire TV Stick
Let’s start by sharing a visual representation of the Amazon Fire TV Stick and the optionality, streaming offerings and functionality it provides to Indian audiences as illustrated above.
The Fire TV Stick with Alexa Voice Remote (includes TV and app controls) | HD streaming device is available for Rs. 4,499 ($55) on Amazon India.
The Amazon Fire TV Streaming Trends Report: The Most Popular Content in India, 2023
No surprise that Indians spent more hours streaming cricket compared to entertainment content in the season of domestic and international cricket tournaments in 2023 (majority on JioCinema).
Interesting to note that besides cricket, users also enjoyed streaming Formula 1 (F1) races in the year. Viewership for F1 races saw an increase of 50 per cent from 2022.
The most voice-searched Indian titles on the platform (in order of ranking):
Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah, (translated as Taarak Mehta's inverted spectacles) abbreviated as TMKOC, is an Indian sitcom on SonyLIV.
Bigg Boss (with Salman Khan as the superstar host) is an Indian reality show franchise based on the Dutch reality show Big Brother on JioCinema.
Anupamaa (translated as Incomparable) is an Indian Hindi-language television drama series that premiered on 13 July 2020 on Star Plus (Disney Star owned) and streams digitally on Disney+ Hotstar.
Ramayan (also known as Ramanand Sagar's Ramayan) is an Indian Hindi-language epic television series based on ancient Indian epic Ramayana. The show was created, written, and directed by Ramanand Sagar. It originally aired between 1987 and 1988 on state owned television broadcaster Doordarsha. During its run, the show became the most watched television series in the world. Streaming successfully on ShemarooME, 35 years after it’s first run on television!
CID is an Indian cop / Indian police focused television series originally aired on Sony Entertainment Television from 1998 to 2018, making it one of the longest running television series in India. Streaming on SonyLIV.
The most streamed Indian movies on the platform (in order of ranking):
Shah Rukh Khan's Pathaan is a 2023 Indian Hindi-language action / thriller co-produced by Aditya Chopra under Yash Raj Films (YRF). The fourth instalment in the YRF Spyverse involves Pathaan, an exiled RAW agent, working with an ISI agent Rubina to take down Jim, a former RAW agent (RAW and ISI are India and Pakistan’s CIA equivalent), who plans to attack India with a deadly virus. Streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
Varun Dhawan and Janhavi Kapoor's Bawaal, (translated as “Commotion”) is a 2023 Indian Hindi-language romantic / drama showcasing a troubled married life, a doubt regarding World War II and a European tour! Streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
Alia Bhatt and Ranveer Singh-starrer Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani (translated as Rocky and Rani's Love Story), is a 2023 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy directed by Karan Johar. The film showcases a couple with contrasting personalities who decide to live with each other's families for three months before getting married. Streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
Rajnikanth’s Jailer is a 2023 Indian Tamil-language action / comedy revolving around a retired jailer seeking to apprehend an eccentric idol smuggler. Streaming on Amazon Prime Video. A retired jailer goes on a manhunt to find his son's killers. But the road leads him to a familiar, albeit a bit darker place. Can he emerge from this complex situation successfully?
Drishyam 2: The Resumption is an Indian Malayalam-language crime/thriller and a gripping tale of an investigation and a family which is threatened by it. Will Georgekutty be able to protect his family this time?
Georgekutty, a cinema hall owner, thrives in life but is a changed man. However, when his family gets entangled in a criminal investigation, he must protect them from the legal institution yet again. Streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
Pippa is a 2023 Indian Hindi-language biography / war movie based on the life of Captain Balram Singh Mehta of India's 45 Cavalry regiment who, along with his siblings, fought on the eastern front during the Indo-Pakistan war.
Named after the Russian amphibious war tank “PT-76”, which floats on water like an empty ‘pippa’ (tin) of ghee, the film traces Mehta's coming-of-age as he steps up to prove himself in a war to liberate Bangladesh. Streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
Mast Mein Rehne Ka is a 2023 Indian Hindi-language drama / comedy starring Neena Gupta and Jackie Shroff. A man chooses an old widower's home for his first robbery, kicking off a set of events that have them both look at life in a new way and with new companions in the starkness of the city of Mumbai. Streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
Viewers who prefer original web series tuned into:
Shahid Kapoor and Vijay Sethupathi-starrer Farzi (translated as “Fake”) is an Indian Hindi-language black comedy / crime thriller web series starring Shahid Kapoor & Vijay Sethupathi, and tells the story of a disillusioned artist who decides to make counterfeit money.
The eight-episode series was released on Amazon Prime Video on 10 February 2023. Farzi received positive reviews, and emerged as the most-watched Indian streaming series. By the end of February 2023, Kapoor confirmed that the show would return for a second season.
Sonakshi Sinha-led Dahaad (translated as Roar) is a Hindi-language crime thriller created by Reema Kagti and Zoya Akhtar. The show is inspired by Mohan Kumar, also known as Cyanide Mohan, a serial killer who preyed on women looking for marriage. Dahaad is the first ever Indian web series to premiere at Berlin International Film Festival. You can watch it here.
The Vikramaditya Motwane directorial "Jubilee" is a gripping tale set against the backdrop of India's independence, featuring a web of ambition, betrayal, and tragedy. Follow the intertwining lives of producer Shrikant Roy, theater actor Jamshed Khan, and playwright Jay Khanna as they navigate love, ambition, and deception in the tumultuous pre-independence era. Streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
Sobhita Dhulipala's Made In Heaven is a 2019 Indian romantic / drama that premiered on Amazon Prime Video on 8 March 2019. Produced by Excel Entertainment, the series chronicles the lives of Tara and Karan, two wedding planners in Delhi running an agency named Made in Heaven. Streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
*The study was conducted by NielsenIQ and commissioned by Amazon for TV streaming trends in December 2023 among 800 consumers aged 25 to 45 in 12 major cities. Hard to believe that none of the Netflix shows made it to the lists!
Kids’ related apps saw approximately 31% increase in monthly streaming hours per customer. Some of the popular apps include YouTube Kids, ChuChu TV, HappyKids and others.
That’s all for today folks. If you enjoyed this breakdown, please consider sharing it with your friends and colleagues.
If you want to be shocked, bewildered, & amused, then look no further than the French docuseries “Rael, The Alien Prophet” on Netflix.
Thanks to a plethora of firsthand accounts and actual footage from events that spanned nearly 30 years, this latest docuseries titled Raël: The Alien Prophet will have viewers glued to your screens.
Netflix recently expanded its extensive library in the docuseries genre. Its latest entry, Raël: The Alien Prophet, explores an ongoing religious cult called Raëlism, led by one of the most controversial figures in modern religion - Claude Vorilhorn, who now goes by Raël.
Raël claimed to have been visited by an alien in the early 1970s. This extra-terrestrial told him that its people, the Elohim, were the creators of the world and human life. Amazing!
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