iWorld
ALTBalaji and Josh collaborate on new web series ‘Cartel’
Mumbai: ALTBalaji has announced its association with short video app Josh for the web series titled “Cartel”. The platform has roped in more than 138 actors for the upcoming thriller.
Josh will begin promotion with the #CartelChallenge urging users to generate videos with dialogues from the series. The association with ALTBalaji will involve multiple collaborated activities including actor videos, social media content, contests, and giveaways, said the press statement.
“The association is a perfect fit as both Josh as well as ALTBalaji are youth-centric brands that are encouraging and supporting indigenous talent and creativity in India. Through our ‘#CartelChallenge’, we aim at promoting ALTBalaji’s new release by leveraging the power of bite-sized, snackable content,” said Josh, head of creator and content ecosystem, Sunder Venketraman.
Commenting on the partnership, ALTBalaji’s SVP- marketing and revenue, Divya Dixit said, “Josh is a made in India short video app catering to the youth and mass India just like our platform, which is majorly youth-centric. Also, UG content and influencers promotion enhance the surrounding noise on the show and encourage deeper audience involvement. This partnership allows us to reach and involve our target group effortlessly.”
iWorld
Micro-Dramas Surge in India, Redefining Mobile Content Habits
Meta-Ormax study maps rapid rise of short-form storytelling among 18–44 audiences.
MUMBAI: Micro-dramas aren’t just short, they’re the snack that ate Indian entertainment, and now everyone’s bingeing between the sofa cushions. Meta, in partnership with Ormax Media, has released ‘Micro Dramas: The India Story’, a comprehensive study unveiled at the inaugural Meta Marketing Summit: Micro-Drama Edition. The report maps how the vertical, bite-sized format is reshaping content consumption for mobile-first audiences aged 18–44 across 14 states.
Conducted between November 2025 and January 2026 through 50 in-depth interviews and 2,000 personal surveys, the research reveals that 65 per cent of viewers discovered micro-dramas within the last year proof of explosive adoption. Nearly 89 per cent encounter the format through social feeds and recommendations, making algorithm-driven discovery the primary engine rather than active search.
Key viewing patterns show a median of 3.5 hours per week (about 30 minutes daily) spread across 7–8 short sessions. Consumption peaks between 8 pm and midnight, with additional spikes during commutes and work breaks classic “in-between moments” that the format fills perfectly. Around 57 per cent of viewing happens in ambient mode (while doing something else), and 90 per cent is solo, enabling more intimate, personal storytelling.
Romance, family drama and comedy lead genre preferences. Audiences show growing openness to AI-generated content, 47 per cent find it unique and creative, while only 6 per cent say they would avoid it entirely. Regional languages are surging after Hindi and English, Tamil, Telugu and Kannada dominate consumption.
Meta, director, media & entertainment (India) Shweta Bajpai said, “Micro-drama isn’t a passing trend, it’s rewriting the rules of Indian entertainment. In under a year, an entirely new category of platforms has emerged, built audience habits from scratch, and created a business vertical that is scaling fast.”
Ormax Media founder-CEO Shailesh Kapoor added, “Micro-dramas are beginning to show the early signs of becoming a distinct content category in India’s digital entertainment landscape. When a format aligns closely with how audiences naturally engage with their devices, it has the potential to scale very quickly.”
The study proposes ecosystem-wide responsibility, universal signposting of commercial intent, shared accountability among advertisers, platforms, creators, schools and parents, built-in safeguards, and formal media literacy in schools.
In a feed that never sleeps and a day that never stops, micro-dramas have slipped into the cracks of every spare minute turning 30-second stories into the new national pastime, one vertical swipe at a time.
