iWorld
Clubhouse for android to arrive in India this Friday
KOLKATA: Android users in India can finally come out of Clubhouse FOMO as the invite-only audio chat is debuting on Friday, after a week it launched the beta version in the US.
As the start-up’s android expansion continues, it will roll out in Japan, Brazil, Russia on Tuesday, followed by India and Nigeria on Friday. However, it will remain invite-only both on android and iOS despite the mass rollout. “Globe with meridians Rest of world throughout the week, and available worldwide by Friday afternoon,” the tweet added.
While it has taken its home market by storm with top Silicon-valley execs, popular Hollywood stars, artists jumping on the bandwagon, its impact in India is still very limited with less than a lakh iOS users. This move could be critical in the Indian expansion as the market has a lion’s share of android users, despite the increasing footprint of iPhones in India.
The development comes at a time when the download numbers have plateaued. Globally its downloads peaked in February with 9.6 million downloads. However, it has gradually come down to 9 lakh downloads in April, as per Sensor Tower data.
The app saw 42,000 in February followed by 20,000 in March and 14,000 downloads in April in India – a gradual decline.
Android rollout continues!
Japan, Brazil & Russia coming Tuesday
Nigeria & India on Friday AM
Rest of world throughout the week, and available worldwide by Friday afternoon— Clubhouse (@Clubhouse) May 16, 2021
In a tweet, the company said it is working on feature parity with iOS for android users. Earlier this year, the app revealed its plans to launch in India. Clubhouse is now facing stiff competition in the category as Twitter has rolled out its Spaces on a larger scale, Facebook is also working on a live audio chat feature.
Adoption, penetration can be of a lesser challenge for the audio-based social apps compared to acceptance and usage which will be driven by content on the platforms, a senior digital market executive said earlier.
“The good thing about this period is that it has shown us how universal voice is as a medium. The same types of rooms that we saw forming last year in the U.S. quickly started forming in Japan, Brazil, and Nigeria. Farmers in rural Georgia have been making friends with entrepreneurs in Tanzania. Film clubs have formed in India,” the company stated in a recent blog post along with examples of many other communities.
Throughout this period, it felt the need to be cross-platform more strongly than ever, the company added.
Gaming
Bluestone FY26 revenue rises to Rs 2,436 crore, turns profitable
Q4 profit at Rs 31 crore, full-year profit at Rs 13 crore vs loss last year.
MUMBAI: From sparkle to numbers, Bluestone seems to be polishing more than just jewellery this year. Bluestone Jewellery and Lifestyle Limited reported a sharp turnaround in FY26, with revenue from operations rising to Rs 2,436 crore (Rs 24,364 million), up from Rs 1,770 crore (Rs 17,700 million) in FY25. The company posted a full-year profit of Rs 13 crore (Rs 131.79 million), a significant recovery from a loss of Rs 222 crore (Rs 2,218 million) a year ago.
Total income for the year stood at Rs 2,486 crore (Rs 24,860 million), compared to Rs 1,830 crore (Rs 18,300 million) in the previous year, reflecting both topline growth and improved operational momentum.
The March quarter, however, told a more nuanced story. Revenue from operations came in at Rs 681 crore (Rs 6,814 million), down from Rs 748 crore (Rs 7,486 million) in the year-ago period, though higher than Rs 461 crore (Rs 4,613 million) in the preceding December quarter. Net profit for Q4 stood at Rs 31 crore (Rs 311.81 million), compared to Rs 68 crore (Rs 688 million) a year earlier, but a clear reversal from a loss of Rs 51 crore (Rs 512 million) in Q3.
Margins were shaped by higher input costs, with raw material consumption rising to Rs 2,204 crore (Rs 22,043 million) for the full year, alongside employee benefit expenses of Rs 282 crore (Rs 2,824 million) and finance costs of Rs 210 crore (Rs 2,104 million). Other expenses came in at Rs 371 crore (Rs 3,715 million), slightly lower than Rs 393 crore (Rs 3,938 million) in FY25.
On the balance sheet front, total assets expanded to Rs 4,961 crore (Rs 49,610 million) as of March 31, 2026, from Rs 3,532 crore (Rs 35,322 million) a year earlier, driven largely by a surge in inventories to Rs 2,672 crore (Rs 26,718 million). Equity also strengthened to Rs 1,803 crore (Rs 18,030 million), nearly doubling from Rs 911 crore (Rs 9,107 million).
Cash flows reflected the cost of growth. Net cash used in operating activities stood at Rs 199 crore (Rs 1,990 million), while investing activities saw an outflow of Rs 239 crore (Rs 2,392 million). Financing activities, however, generated Rs 497 crore (Rs 4,971 million), helping the company end the year with cash and cash equivalents of Rs 108 crore (Rs 1,075 million), up from Rs 49 crore (Rs 487 million).
Earnings per share for FY26 came in at Rs 1.10, a sharp improvement from a negative Rs 79.74 in FY25, underlining the shift from losses to profitability.
With revenue scaling up, costs still glittering on the higher side, and profitability finally back in the black, BlueStone’s FY26 performance suggests a business mid-transition less about shine alone, and more about sustaining it.
