iWorld
ALTBalaji onboards Snehil Dixit Mehra as head of content & digital media
Mumbai: A wholly-owned subsidiary of Balaji Telefilms ALT Digital Media Entertainment appointed Snehil Dixit Mehra as the head of content & digital media. Earlier, Mehra worked with filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali as associate director.
Mehra has a vivid professional portfolio and worked as a writer, director and digital influencer. He recently forayed into acting with her stellar performance in Jio Studios’ Apharan Season 2.
Mehra brings with her an enviable experience in the media and entertainment space and over 16 years of experience in the broadcast industry. She has held various leadership positions at Bhansali Productions, Star India, Sony Entertainment Television & Endemol India. Ektaa R Kapoor is keen on expanding her digital footprint with producing more originals and after the immense success of her digital reality show Lock Upp she aspires to create more original formats for the non-fiction audiences. Thus, a high-profile acquisition was expected, given the content powerhouse wanted the leadership to work in close association with content creators and producers.
In her new role, Snehil will be leading the content and programming division for ALTBalaji and will be responsible for managing the upcoming original content line-up and the platform’s creative strategy.
Talking about joining the team, Snehil said, “This is my second innings at ALTBalaji, a homecoming for me, however with a larger mandate now. I am looking forward to planning a roadmap for further accelerated growth of ALTBalaji as a leading digital content hub.”
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.
