Mar 02, 2026 5:57pm IST
JioHotstar To Roll Out 100 Microdramas During IPL Season (EXCLUSIVE)
The IPL (Indian Premier League) season can be a nightmare for TV and Film producers as a cricket-obsessed India catches all the action, live as well as and on small screens. In most single-TV households in India, the remote is mostly with the male members, so soaps get little or no TRPs and cricket rules the roost. However, with daily soaps taking a backseat, microdramas are taking centerstage in the Indian entertainment ecosystem.
A highly-placed source told us that JioHotstar is planning to roll out close to 100 microdramas to woo audiences, in this period. The will take place from March 26 to May 31. JHS has approximately 400 million subscribers and this development could completely change the Indian microdrama market.
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The source adds, “JioHotstar has a slate of almost 100 microdramas ready in different regional languages. The vertical format is catching up with viewers all over India. More and more players are entering the business, which includes big names like JioHotstar and Netflix. Also, there is a huge shift in how such shows are being produced. Earlier, plots from Chinese microdramas would be lifted by creators but now writers, directors and actors are being roped in big numbers.”
It should be noted that microdramas were considered as a somewhat lowly form of entertainment till some time back. That is not the case now. In an earlier interview, Sharad Malhotra told Variety India, “I beg to differ that only those belonging to the lower-income class watch microdramas. This is an elitist thought. After all, art is art and creativity is creativity.”
Well, the demographic that watches microdramas is predominantly male in the age 20-45 age bracket. It is a market everyone wants to capitalize on. By 2030, the market is expected to see a growth of 50-75% in India.
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