iWorld
Unravelling The Digital Video Consumer-Looking Through The Viewer Lens
MUMBAI: Eros Now, a premier Indian OTT entertainment platform with more than 155 million registered users and KPMG in India, a multinational professional services network, showcased an in-depth report on India’s OTT market at FICCI FAST TRACK INDIA 2019 in Mumbai. The study projects that India will have more than 500 million online video subscribers by FY 2023 making it the second biggest market in the world only after China. As per the study, 87% of users in India consume their content on mobile phones and spend an average time of about 70 minutes per day on OTT platforms.
The varied and innovative offerings blended with superlative services will let OTT platforms cater to the growing market. Eros Now, which is known for its extensive movie library apart from offering originals, digital movie premieres and short-format content ‘Quickie’, has been a leading OTT platform satiating increasing consumer demands across device forms like Smart TVs, tabs and so on.
The KPMG and Eros Now study highlights interesting facets for the Indian OTT market:
Love for films: Indians continue to love their movies and movie related content; 30% of the respondents prefer watching movies on OTT platforms.
Original content as a differentiator – Original and exclusive Indian content is one of the biggest drivers in the OTT space. Quality Indian narratives are traveling beyond the South Asian audiences around the world. The massive base of digital content consumers prefers new stories that this country must tell.
Online video transcending geographies – Distribution ecosystem is set to become stronger. Role of value chain partners like OEM, DTH, ISPs and Telcos is likely to grow as creators look at multiple avenues to reach the end consumer.
Innovations in pricing to boost subscriptions – New user profiles indicate that companies have to focus on smaller towns and rural markets as a sustainable business model would need to be anchored by small town viewers and eventually subscribers.
Fostering multi-format consumption and engagement – Short-format video content, movie premieres, documentaries, original music and other formats enable OTT players to engage diverse sets of online video consumers. Today, audiences look forward to enjoying varied content formats on digital platforms.
In order to cater to consumer demands, Eros Now plans to invest to create new original shows for their platform. It has also introduced ‘TV Se Pehle’, wherein movies premiere on the platform prior to their satellite broadcast and started to offer original short-format content. Soon, Eros Now plans to launch over 50 short form original series under its ‘Eros Now Quickies' category. The premium Indian OTT player’s several strategic brand associations has enabled the app to be available in smaller towns of the country and in over 135 countries across the globe.
Commenting on the key trends and insights Rishika Lulla Singh, Chief Executive Officer, Eros Digital, said, “India is one of the fastest growing entertainment and media market globally and is expected to keep that momentum. As data and digital infrastructure has become exceedingly accessible even in small cities of India, the market for OTT has widened enormously. At Eros Now, we strive to constantly engage the existing consumers and expand our reach by offering new and innovative services.”
Girish Menon, Partner & Head Media & Entertainment, KPMG in India, said, “The online video consumer in India has evolved in a significant way in the last couple of years. With consumption now going mass and viewers spending close to 8.5 hours a week on online video, we see a homogenous pattern of consumption emerging cutting across age groups, income levels and professions. Our report also touches upon the future of this consumption evolution, and how online video could potentially disrupt traditional distribution in the coming years. This represents a large opportunity for platforms to tap into the ever-expanding universe of digitally connected Indians”
The increasing internet penetration and access to digital infrastructure across India make it an important market for the OTT industry. The KPMG report is a testament that content innovation, services across device forms and partnerships has established Eros Now as a key player and will further strengthen its position in the growing market.
iWorld
Why Peaky Blinders is one of television’s biggest hits that still deserves more attention
Six seasons, multiple awards and the release of Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man bring the Shelby saga back into the spotlight
In the crowded universe of streaming content, only a handful of shows manage to leave a lasting cultural footprint. Peaky Blinders is overwhelmingly considered one of the biggest global hits of the past decade. Yet many viewers still haven’t fully explored the dark, gripping world of the Shelby family.
Originally produced for the UK’s BBC and later finding a massive global audience through Netflix, the series quietly grew from a British period drama into a worldwide streaming phenomenon.
Created by Steven Knight, the show follows the rise of the Shelby crime family in post-First World War Birmingham. What begins as a gritty street-gang story gradually expands into a sweeping narrative about ambition, politics, power and survival.
At the centre of the saga is Thomas Shelby, portrayed with extraordinary depth by Cillian Murphy. The casting of Murphy is widely regarded as perfect for the role. With piercing eyes, restrained dialogue and an almost hypnotic screen presence, he transforms Shelby into one of the most unforgettable characters in modern screen storytelling.
Murphy’s brilliance lies in his restraint. He rarely shouts or performs theatrically. Instead, a quiet stare, a calculated pause or a subtle shift in expression conveys the emotional storms within the character. Beneath the ruthless gang leader is a war veteran carrying trauma, guilt and loneliness. Murphy captures this complexity with remarkable precision, making Thomas Shelby both terrifying and deeply human.
Beyond its central performance, Peaky Blinders stands out for its unfiltered portrayal of reality. The show does not romanticise crime. Instead, it exposes the harsh social conditions of early 20th-century Britain, from poverty and class struggle to political extremism and the psychological scars left by war.
The series also presents powerful female characters who hold their own within the Shelby empire. Polly Gray, played by Helen McCrory, is the strategic backbone of the family and one of the most formidable figures in the story. Women in the series shape decisions, influence power structures and challenge the rigid social norms of the time.
Across six seasons, the narrative grows dramatically in scale. What begins in the smoky streets of Birmingham evolves into a story involving political conspiracies, fascism and international criminal networks.
The series has also earned significant critical acclaim. It won the BAFTA Television Award for Best Drama Series in 2018 and multiple National Television Awards for Best Drama, cementing its reputation as one of Britain’s most celebrated modern shows.
Another defining feature of the series is its iconic music. The show’s opening theme, Red Right Hand by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, became instantly recognisable and widely associated with the Shelby universe. Combined with a powerful soundtrack featuring artists such as Arctic Monkeys and Radiohead, the music helped shape the show’s dark, stylish identity and became hugely popular among fans.
And the Shelby story is not over yet.
In fact, its legacy is unfolding right now. The long-awaited feature-length continuation, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man, was released on March 6, 2026, bringing the Shelby universe from streaming screens to cinemas and giving fans a new chapter in the saga.
For viewers who have not yet stepped into this world, the timing could not be better.
Six gripping seasons are ready to binge on Netflix. A new film has just arrived in theatres. And at the heart of it all stands one of the most magnetic performances in modern drama by Cillian Murphy.
So if Peaky Blinders has been sitting on your watchlist for years, this weekend is your moment.
So, by order of the Peaky fookin’ Blinders, consider this your cue to finally step into the ruthless world of Thomas Shelby. Pour yourself a drink, clear your schedule and press the play button. Because when the Peaky Blinders give an order, you listen.
