iWorld
360 million Airtel customers get free access to Adobe Express Premium
NEW DELHI: Bharti Airtel is sweetening the telecom bundle, handing its entire customer base free access to Adobe Express Premium as telcos race to add value beyond data and voice.
Under the partnership, all 360 million Airtel customers across mobile, Wi-Fi and DTH will get Adobe Express Premium worth Rs 4,000 free for one year. The subscription can be activated through the Airtel Thanks app, with no credit card required, lowering the barrier for mass adoption.
The move puts professional-grade creative tools into the hands of users regardless of design experience, allowing them to create resumes, posters, videos and social media content using Adobe’s AI-powered features.
“This partnership is about more than technology. It is about empowering millions of Indians with cutting-edge AI tools to create and innovate,” said Siddharth Sharma, ceo, connected homes and director, marketing at Bharti Airtel. “From a student crafting their first resume to a small business owner designing a poster or a creator editing videos for followers, we want to empower every Airtel customer with the tools for self-expression. With Adobe Express, world-class creative tools are no longer a luxury. They are a reality for every Indian.”
Adobe Express Premium offers access to thousands of professional templates, including designs tailored for Indian festivals, weddings and local businesses. The subscription also includes AI features such as instant background removal, custom image generation, one-tap video editing, premium Adobe Stock assets, more than 30,000 professional fonts, 100GB of cloud storage, auto captions, instant resize and watermark-free exports, with seamless syncing across devices.
“We are committed to empowering everyone to create and stand out with Adobe Express, the quick and easy create-anything app,” said David Wadhwani, president, digital media at Adobe. “We are excited to partner with Airtel to bring Adobe Express Premium to millions of people across India for free, accelerating the growth of India’s vibrant creator economy and enabling people to easily produce standout content, whether boosting their careers, growing their businesses or promoting their passions.”
The app is available in English, Hindi, Tamil and Bengali, allowing users to create content in their preferred language. From festival greetings and wedding invitations to promotional material for local shops or WhatsApp status updates, the platform is designed to make creative expression widely accessible.
The partnership also gives Airtel customers access to Adobe Express’s generative AI capabilities, enabling faster creation and higher-quality output across formats.
As competition tightens, Airtel’s Adobe tie-up underlines a broader shift. Indian telcos are no longer just selling connectivity but stacking AI tools, cloud services and content to keep customers locked in.
iWorld
Hari Om OTT bets on AI-first filmmaking after Bharat Next Gen takeover
Platform plans six devotional series yearly, with Dronacharya set for June 2026 release.
MUMBAI: Lights, camera… algorithm. In a move that blends mythology with machine learning, devotional streaming platform Hari Om OTT is placing artificial intelligence at the heart of its filmmaking playbook. Founded by media entrepreneur Vibhu Agarwal and recently acquired by Bharat Next Gen Digital Pvt Ltd, the platform has announced a full scale AI first content strategy that positions artificial intelligence as the backbone of its film production model. The company plans to launch six original devotional series annually, beginning in the upcoming financial year.
Rather than treating AI as a post production shortcut, Hari Om OTT says it has spent the past 14 months building a full 360 degree in house AI ecosystem designed to power the entire creative pipeline. The platform has assembled a specialised internal team that includes AI Creative Directors, devotional content researchers and dedicated scriptwriters, bringing everything from concept development to execution under one roof.
The studio already has multiple films in production and is targeting at least three theatrical releases in the coming financial year. Leading the slate is Dronacharya, scheduled for release in June 2026, followed by Khatushyam Ji, Salasar Balaji and Rani Dadi Sati. Additional projects in development include stories centred on Agrasen Maharaj Ji and Chatthi Maiya.
Beyond feature films and series, Hari Om OTT is also expanding into a documentary vertical that explores the cultural heritage and temples of different Indian states. Designed as a state wise tourism promotional series, the project will use AI driven visual tools to offer immersive glimpses into India’s spiritual and architectural legacy, aiming to connect devotional storytelling with heritage tourism for global audiences.
Bharat Next Gen director Kanhiya Mittal described the upcoming slate as the start of what he calls a new cinematic movement powered by artificial intelligence.
“With Dronacharya, we are initiating a new cinematic movement powered by AI. This technology allows us to present India’s sacred history and cultural legacy with greater scale and authenticity. Our vision aligns with the prime minister’s emphasis on AI first innovation for India’s growth. We believe storytelling rooted in tradition, enhanced by technology, can position India as a global leader in human centric AI creativity,” he said.
Backed by Bharat Next Gen, Hari Om OTT is now positioning itself as a technology forward devotional content studio operating at the intersection of artificial intelligence and culturally rooted storytelling, where epics from the past may soon be shaped as much by code as by creativity.
