Sun TV Network launches Sun NXT Shorts for short-form streaming

MUMBAI: Sun TV is cutting to the chase, quite literally. The broadcaster is taking a shorter route to younger viewers with Sun NXT Shorts, a new short-form entertainment offering embedded within its existing streaming platform, Sun NXT.

The new feature targets mobile-first Gen Z audiences, as well as viewers moving between television and digital screens. Its line-up will include original short-form series, dubbed international content and reworked versions of films and television serials from Sun TV Network’s existing library.

Content will be available in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam, giving the format a distinctly southern-language focus.

Rather than launching another standalone app, Sun TV Network is placing Shorts inside Sun NXT, allowing it to build on the platform’s existing subscriber base and extensive content catalogue. Sun NXT currently houses more than 65,000 hours of multilingual content, a sizeable library that can be repackaged for shorter viewing sessions.

Films and popular Sun TV serials will be remastered, resized and re-edited into shorter, faster-paced episodes designed for quick consumption, while new originals will be created specifically for the format.

“Audiences aren’t just consuming more content, they’re consuming it differently, across more screens, in shorter bursts, with far less patience for friction. Sun NXT Shorts is a deliberate strategic bet on that shift,” said Kaviya Maran, Executive Director, Sun TV Network.

The launch comes as streaming and entertainment companies increasingly explore micro-dramas and vertical short-form storytelling, seeking to capture audiences accustomed to consuming entertainment in brief sessions on smartphones.

For broadcasters, the format offers a second life for older content too. Films and television episodes can be broken down into snackable chapters, while established characters and franchises can be repurposed for audiences that may not have the patience for a conventional full-length episode.

Sun TV Network’s move also follows the launch of KadhaiShorts, a multilingual micro-drama platform founded by Karan Dayanidhi Maran, son of former Union minister Dayanidhi Maran, marking another Maran Group-linked entry into the emerging short-form entertainment space.

With Sun NXT Shorts, Sun TV Network is essentially shortening the distance between its vast regional content library and a generation that increasingly watches across mobile, connected TV and traditional television. The bet is simple: if viewing habits are getting shorter, the content may as well keep up.