iWorld
Netflix launches ‘Take Ten’ initiative to support emerging filmmakers
Mumbai: Netflix on Monday announced the launch of ‘Take Ten,’ a short film workshop and competition, that aims to discover and support emerging filmmakers from diverse backgrounds in India.
‘Take Ten’ is sponsored by Netflix Fund for Creative Equity, which has dedicated $100 million a year over five years to support the next generation of storytellers from underrepresented communities.
As part of this initiative, ten filmmakers will be given an exciting opportunity to attend workshops by the best in the creative industry and then to make a fully-funded short film with a $10,000 grant, a statement said. The films will be showcased on Netflix India’s YouTube channel.
“Take Ten is a celebration of storytelling and originality. The workshop and competition aim to be inclusive and showcase the diverse voices behind and in front of the camera in India,” said film critic, author and Film Companion editor Anupama Chopra, who is leading the programme. “I hope Take Ten enables artists across India to find their footing and soar.”
Applicants who want to apply for ‘Take Ten’ must be a citizen or resident of India and over the age of 18 years. The registrations will open on 7 February. To enter, applicants are to submit a film of up to two minutes based on the topic ‘My India,’ which should be shot with their phone and represent who they are as a filmmaker, said the statement.
The shortlisted participants will not only get to bring their short film idea to life but they will also get a chance to learn about writing, direction, production and more from award-winning talent including Abhishek Chaubey, Hansal Mehta, Juhi Chaturvedi, Neeraj Ghaywan and Guneet Monga, it added.
e-commerce
Visa report tracks rise of India’s affluent, experience-led spending
Affluent base doubles to 130 lakh, travel 58 per cent of elite spends.
MUMBAI: In India’s new luxury playbook, it’s less about owning more and more about living better. A new whitepaper by Visa Consulting and Analytics (VCA) maps a decisive shift in India’s affluent economy, where spending is becoming more intentional, experience-led, and closely tied to personal identity rather than pure income growth.
Titled India’s Affluent Economy 2025–2026, the report draws on a Visa-commissioned Yougov study and VisaNet data across travel, dining, retail and lifestyle categories. The headline number is hard to miss: individuals earning over Rs 10 lakh annually have nearly doubled from 69 lakh to 130 lakh, significantly expanding the country’s discretionary spending base.
But it’s not just about scale, it’s about behaviour. As consumers move up the affluence ladder, discretionary categories are taking a larger share of credit card spends, positioning cards as key enablers of premium, lifestyle-driven consumption.
The geography of wealth is shifting too. Affluence is no longer confined to metros such as Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru, with cities like Ahmedabad, Surat, Jaipur and Lucknow increasingly mirroring metro consumption patterns.
The report highlights a clear pivot from ownership to access. More than 50 per cent of affluent consumers now use cards for elite memberships, while 7 in 10 are drawn to limited-edition drops and curated collections. Increasingly, luxury is defined by seamless access be it concierge-led travel or curated dining where time saved is as valuable as money spent.
Spending patterns reinforce this shift. Among the ultra-elite, travel accounts for 58 per cent of discretionary spends, far outpacing retail and luxury combined at 28 per cent. Cross-border spending penetration stands at 63 per cent, signalling a growing global outlook among India’s affluent.
Closer home, indulgence is becoming routine. Nearly 4 in 5 affluent consumers dine at premium establishments at least three times a year, while 1 in 4 visit luxury venues more than five times annually. Dining spends are also climbing, with Rs 20,000 emerging as a new entry-level benchmark per experience and Rs 50,000 marking premium territory.
Retail, meanwhile, is becoming more selective. Three in four affluent consumers make a high-end purchase at least once a quarter, while one in four shops premium every two weeks. Luxury retail intensity is also rising, with 2 in 5 consumers spending over Rs 5 lakh annually, and a smaller but significant segment exceeding Rs 10 lakh.
Technology and wellness are carving out new roles in this ecosystem. High-end gadgets now see average spends of Rs 60,000 or more per purchase, while ultra-elite consumers are eight times more likely to visit spas and show five times higher engagement with cosmetic stores than non-affluent groups.
The broader takeaway is structural. Affluent consumers are no longer buying products, they are buying ecosystems. Integrated experiences across travel, dining, wellness and payments are becoming central to how this segment lives and spends.
As India’s affluent base expands beyond metros and aligns more closely with global consumption patterns, the real opportunity lies not just in size, but in speed. For brands, the message is clear: relevance will be defined by how early and how seamlessly, they plug into this evolving lifestyle economy.
