iWorld
Uday Sodhi bets long on short films on SonyLiv
MUMBAI: We like it short. That’s the message that subscribers of SonyLiv from Sony Pictures Networks India have been telling the programming team. Led by CEO Uday Sodhi, it noticed that its four to five million subs were rapidly lapping up its portfolio of 500 short films which were on offer to them. What was pleasantly surprising was that watch time for these shorts had rapidly grown to around 10 per cent of the total on the OTT service in just one and a half year since these were introduced.
Thus to further encourage engagement and stickiness, the team unvieled a new bunch of 50 short films last week on the app. Cherry picked from Mumbai-based content and aggregator and distributor Pocket Films’ catalogue, which included a clutch of award winning shorts, its offering has swelled to 550 now.
Says Sodhi: “Short films on SonyLiv are a very large category. We keep looking in the market to see where good quality short films are available so that we can offer a good range to our regular visitors. We have selected the top films based on their quality of content, which are award winning and critically acclaimed. Also a few films have the film festival touch in them.”
Among some of the more popular short film titles viewers can now snack or binge watch include: the Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Tejaswini Kolhapure starrer film Salt N Pepper, Tubelight ka Chand by Anurag Kashyap, sSknoia Waapasi, Umbrella, Living is Easy, Gotya, Lori, Aachor, Destiny’s Two, Viola, Kundli, ABC, Smothered, Girl in Red, Love Pichkaari, Watermelon, A Gentle Giant, The Break Up, Laugh, Aakhri Sawari, Rishtey, Kite, Aai, Anjaan, and Bhopal Diaries.
Sodhi was loathe to reveal the deal that SonyLiv had signed with Pocket Film, saying that it is a private commercial transaction between the two. However, sources reveal that Pocket Films which is among the leading aggregators of short films and videos on Youtube, has probably struck a revenue share deal with SonyLiv.
All that Pocket Films CEO and founder Sameer Mody is willing to say was that he was happy to partner with SonyLiv and that he was hopeful that the association will help “us widen the reach of our offering.”
Sodhi, on his part however, is quite confident that viewership of short films on SonyLiv will head in only in one direction: northwards, though he was not willing to bet by how much.
Says he: “We believe that digital cinema can be told in different lengths. On digital, we have found that a lot of consumption happens in the 20-40 minutes range. It is an exciting form of storytelling to tell a story in this length.”
That kind of consumption would make any OTT business head smack his chops.
iWorld
Why Peaky Blinders is one of television’s biggest hits that still deserves more attention
Six seasons, multiple awards and the release of Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man bring the Shelby saga back into the spotlight
In the crowded universe of streaming content, only a handful of shows manage to leave a lasting cultural footprint. Peaky Blinders is overwhelmingly considered one of the biggest global hits of the past decade. Yet many viewers still haven’t fully explored the dark, gripping world of the Shelby family.
Originally produced for the UK’s BBC and later finding a massive global audience through Netflix, the series quietly grew from a British period drama into a worldwide streaming phenomenon.
Created by Steven Knight, the show follows the rise of the Shelby crime family in post-First World War Birmingham. What begins as a gritty street-gang story gradually expands into a sweeping narrative about ambition, politics, power and survival.
At the centre of the saga is Thomas Shelby, portrayed with extraordinary depth by Cillian Murphy. The casting of Murphy is widely regarded as perfect for the role. With piercing eyes, restrained dialogue and an almost hypnotic screen presence, he transforms Shelby into one of the most unforgettable characters in modern screen storytelling.
Murphy’s brilliance lies in his restraint. He rarely shouts or performs theatrically. Instead, a quiet stare, a calculated pause or a subtle shift in expression conveys the emotional storms within the character. Beneath the ruthless gang leader is a war veteran carrying trauma, guilt and loneliness. Murphy captures this complexity with remarkable precision, making Thomas Shelby both terrifying and deeply human.
Beyond its central performance, Peaky Blinders stands out for its unfiltered portrayal of reality. The show does not romanticise crime. Instead, it exposes the harsh social conditions of early 20th-century Britain, from poverty and class struggle to political extremism and the psychological scars left by war.
The series also presents powerful female characters who hold their own within the Shelby empire. Polly Gray, played by Helen McCrory, is the strategic backbone of the family and one of the most formidable figures in the story. Women in the series shape decisions, influence power structures and challenge the rigid social norms of the time.
Across six seasons, the narrative grows dramatically in scale. What begins in the smoky streets of Birmingham evolves into a story involving political conspiracies, fascism and international criminal networks.
The series has also earned significant critical acclaim. It won the BAFTA Television Award for Best Drama Series in 2018 and multiple National Television Awards for Best Drama, cementing its reputation as one of Britain’s most celebrated modern shows.
Another defining feature of the series is its iconic music. The show’s opening theme, Red Right Hand by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, became instantly recognisable and widely associated with the Shelby universe. Combined with a powerful soundtrack featuring artists such as Arctic Monkeys and Radiohead, the music helped shape the show’s dark, stylish identity and became hugely popular among fans.
And the Shelby story is not over yet.
In fact, its legacy is unfolding right now. The long-awaited feature-length continuation, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man, was released on March 6, 2026, bringing the Shelby universe from streaming screens to cinemas and giving fans a new chapter in the saga.
For viewers who have not yet stepped into this world, the timing could not be better.
Six gripping seasons are ready to binge on Netflix. A new film has just arrived in theatres. And at the heart of it all stands one of the most magnetic performances in modern drama by Cillian Murphy.
So if Peaky Blinders has been sitting on your watchlist for years, this weekend is your moment.
So, by order of the Peaky fookin’ Blinders, consider this your cue to finally step into the ruthless world of Thomas Shelby. Pour yourself a drink, clear your schedule and press the play button. Because when the Peaky Blinders give an order, you listen.
