Streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Disney+, are investing in sizable global markets to generate additional revenue as the streaming market becomes increasingly aggressive.
Because of its enormous potential for expansion and engagement, India, which has over 600 million registered web users with everyday media usage of almost six hours, is one of the sought-after countries for streaming platforms.
Hindi-language entertainment is among the most famous non-English content streamed in the UK; many fans enjoy watching Desi entertainment over western hits.
Because of the high desire for unique Indian original content, platforms like Voot, Hotstar, and Sonyliv in the UK traditionally held most of the market for viewing Indian content in the UK. This year, Netflix and Amazon video made significant advances by launching a small number of locally produced materials that went on to become wildly successful.
Check out the gallery below as we reflect on some of the most popular Indian hits of the year.
Indian originals were a huge hit on streaming services
1. SonyLiv
There is a range of shows online on SonyLiv dubbed in English, Tamil, Malayalam, and Telugu.
The SonyLiv Channel does have a history of being able to air popular shows in a variety of genres, spanning humor, thriller, sci-fi, or fantasy. Furthermore, subscribers to its premium subscription plan have access to SonyLiv’s library of original web shows.
With mystical shows like A discovery of witches and crime series like Your Honour, the service can draw audiences’ attention in the UK.
2. Amazon
In attempting to surpass its rivals mostly in Indian streaming wars, Netflix and Prime Video are said to have invested up to a half-billion USD for original programming on streaming services this past year.
Amazon raised the stakes by declaring in April this year that it would be doubling its spending within India over the next five years. The platform also highlighted the arrival of 40 fresh films in Telugu, Tamil, and Hindi.
Nine of them are returning to the original show, whereas there are 26 new ones. It comprises season 3 of Mirzapur, which would be scheduled to debut in December this year and is expected to be the UK’s most-watched original series of 2024.
With the third season of The Boys, which received 9.6 million views, Amazon had a big impact on UK audiences. The eagerly anticipated Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power’s premiere episode was also viewed by nearly 7.3 million visitors from the UK, representing roughly 12% of the series’ overall global audience.
We are eager to see how Amazon performs in the UK in 2024, particularly when contrasted with its strong competitor Netflix, which is currently gaining steam there. Amazon does have a comprehensive library of original programming prepared and is making significant efforts further to invest in the Indian region.
3. Netflix
No service seems to have been capable of performing better than Netflix whenever it pertains to the original content. Featuring shows such as Dahmer, Stranger Things, Manifest, Cobra Kai, Ozark, and Bridgeton, the streaming titan has cemented its status as the leading platform in 2024, one pattern that the UK market has managed to pick up on.
Parrot Analytics statistics show projected in the first half of 2024, Netflix held a dominating 46.1% share of the market for streaming originals in the UK. Relatively speaking, Amazon Prime Video or Disney+ Hotstar occupy 15.9% and 9.4% of the share, respectively.
This remarkable share of the market is partially due to renowned shows such as Stranger Things, which gained approximately 15.8 million UK viewers for season 4, in addition to the other titles noted above, but there is also a great deal to do with Netflix’s recently released binge-worthy Indian originals.
Among them are the action-packed Aranyak, which garnered 22.49 million views, and season 2 of the Emmy Award-winning television series Delhi Crime (one of the most viewed series on Netflix).
There’s no dispute that Netflix would continue to dominate the streaming originals marketplace due to the huge enthusiasm shown in upcoming movies notably The Ghost, My Darling, and Monica, each of which is expected to be released after 2024.
It’s worth noting that Netflix is collaborating with Tollywood to keep UK Indian viewers on its service throughout 2024 and even beyond in addition to acquiring additional markets within the country.
Netflix has allegedly begun producing at least 6 new series in Tamil and Telugu, as per multiple sources. Considering the growing opposition it receives from Amazon and Disney+Hotstar, this strategy is sensible.
4. Disney+ Hotstar
Disney+ Hotstar is the leading platform for Indian content in the UK.
This is primarily due to its cricket rights for the Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2024 also it televises HBO and Disney original programming, notably, the House of Dragons and Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Furthermore, Disney+ Hotstar features only the top Bollywood films, and it has produced a good amount of popular Indian quality content. This comprises the films A Thursday, which got 25.2 million views, and Rudra: The Edge of Darkness (35.2 million views), which featured renowned Indian superstar Ajay Devgan.
Having 23.4 million streams, its American series Moon Knight, which has been inspired mostly by similar Marvel Comics publications, is the most popular English show on the Web.
Disney+ Hotstar also excelled whenever it came to original films. The streaming platform received 20.2 million spectators on Kaun Pravin Tambe, which became a massive success. Part One of the Brahmastra Its early November premiere of Shiva, which stars the famous couple Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor, also turned out as a massive hit.
Disney+ Hotstar announced that it had no plans to slow down soon during this year’s D23 global Disney fan event, which was held in Anaheim. Mahabharat, a movie based on the mythical historical tragedy Mahabharata, or season 8 of the extremely popular talk series Koffee with Karan will be offered to viewers in 2024.
It’s going to be entertaining to see if the platform can maintain sufficient customers with its innovative, creative programming if it is forced to split the IPL rights for the 2024- 2027 loop with Times Internet and Viacom18.
Conclusion
We hope you enjoyed reading this article and were able to get an insight into the most renowned Indian Originals that were highly appreciated by audiences. If you have missed any of these series or films, you should stream them right away…
