iWorld
Viu India plans to expand in Tamil market
MUMBAI: As over-the-top (OTT) service Viu completed its two-year journey, it launched its latest digital series Kaushiki which is set to release on 27 April. Going forward, the platform plans to deliver more than 20 originals this year along with entering the Tamil market very soon.
The platform promises more regional content like this exciting thriller Kaushiki, comedy film High Jack, new seasons of already popular shows like What the Duck and adaptations of popular international entertainment formats such as Tollywood Squares.
For Kaushiki, Viu will release four episodes in a go and then one a week. “When we launched Pelli Gola and PillA in last year in Telugu, we had extremely high number of viewers coming back repeatedly week on week, when we were releasing episodes,” Viu India CMO Shantanu Gangane said.
Viu has already launched seven new originals in Q1 2018 and has lined up 20 originals from now until the end of the year in Hindi, Telugu and Tamil. Viu plans to launch into the Tamil market by this year with the six new originals. For the new content, both syndicated and original content is on offer. Other than Indian content, Korean content also has also got a niche following across India.
“Since day one, Viu has emphasised global expertise coupled with local execution, as you can clearly see from our track record. We’re doubling down on that for 2018, ramping up our offering of quality originals at an exciting pace and engaging viewers in new ways, including bringing fresh content to the Tamil market. I couldn’t be prouder of what our team has accomplished in India and I’m certain that our best years are ahead,” Viu India country head Vishal Maheshwari said.
While cross-platform partnership has been one of the best options to surge users, Viu is not an exception. It has made content available to digital and non-digital audiences through partnerships with TV channels like Gemini, Star Maa and digital platforms such as Dailyhunt. The highly-rated No.1 Yaari is one example of Viu’s cross-platform content association.
In addition to that, Viu has had success with advertising partners such as with Hong Kong tourism for It Happened in Hong Kong, a romantic comedy that redefined wanderlust. It has many other strategic partners including Samsung, Amazon Pay TV, Amazon Fire TV Stick, Daily Hunt and Xiaomi.
While the channel owns IPs of all the originals, syndication has been one of the revenue streams for the platform. To stand out in the crowd, the platform has got tech as a strong backbone. Moreover, the company has massive set up in Pune which after the technical aspect. Along with an in-house team, the company also relies on partners to remain agile.
The OTT platform has some unique strategies to attract consumers. Rather than putting original premium content behind pay-wall, it has kept it in front of the wall. The company wants to go forward in the future with fresh content as well as entering into a new market.
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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.
