iWorld
Crunchyroll brings excitement for anime fans in India
Mumbai: Crunchyroll, the ultimate anime destination worldwide, has made two wildly popular titles available in Hindi: “My Dress Up Darling” and “Ranking of Kings,” with more on the horizon. Adding to that, Crunchyroll also announced on Tuesday that anime fans in India have much more to be excited about now and in the months & years to come.
Interestingly, the cost of a Crunchyroll premium membership is decreasing in India as the subscription tiers shift to Rs 79 per month for its fan subscription tier and Rs 99 per month for its mega fan subscription tier. The change also means that fans will be charged in local currency instead of the United States dollar. This price decrease will create consistency across Crunchyroll memberships across channels, including web, mobile, and home devices, and unlock more content for anime fans to enjoy.
In India, Crunchyroll offers nearly 5,500 episodes of anime, with 1,000 hours dubbed in English.
Crunchyroll president Rahul Purini said, “There is a massive appetite for anime in India with a growing number of fans who are craving more of what they love.”
“Our team has worked hard to expand our service—including more content and more dubs—at a more affordable price,” he added.
India’s price reduction is one of nearly 100 across international Crunchyroll territories.
Crunchyroll offers fans and mega-fans premium subscriptions. The Crunchyroll fan membership offers ad-free viewing and access to Crunchyroll’s library of anime dubs, alongside access to Crunchyroll manga and simulcast series day and date with their premiere in Japan. The Crunchyroll Mega Fan membership offers all the benefits of Crunchyroll Fan, alongside access to anime on the go with offline viewing and the ability to stream Crunchyroll concurrently across four different streams.
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.
