iWorld
Zee5 gives viewers a reel treat with free Friday movie premieres
MUMBAI: Popcorn’s optional, but the binge is guaranteed. Zee5 has rolled out a free film fest with its new Friday Box Office initiative, letting users across India stream top movies without paying a rupee and yes, they’re bringing out the big titles. Starting 20 June, Zee5 will premiere one major hit every Friday free for all across seven Indian languages: Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada. It’s not a one-off either. Each film stays on the platform for a few weeks, giving users time to discover, watch and rewatch at their own pace.
The lineup reads like a pan-India film award show: Tarla, Pad Man, Lost, Projapoti, Aparajito, Vikram Vedha, Valimai, Bangarraju, Geetha Govindam, Drishya 2, Tonic and more representing not only Zee5’s vast catalogue but its regional storytelling might.
“At Zee5, we believe great stories should be within everyone’s reach,” said Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd chief marketing officer, Kartik Mahadev. “Friday Box Office is our way of democratising entertainment and inviting new users into the Zee5 world.”
The move isn’t just a generous crowd-pleaser, it’s a savvy growth play. By opening up premium content for free, Zee5 is aiming to build user habit, grow engagement, and reaffirm its positioning as India’s go-to platform for inclusive, multilingual streaming.
With India’s streaming audience getting younger, hungrier, and more language-diverse, Zee5’s new box office is taking blockbuster Fridays from theatres to screens subscription not required.
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iWorld
Shemaroo buys OHO Gujarati’s entire content library for ShemarooMe
The deal lands over 30 original web series and 450-plus actors on ShemarooMe, with Pratik Gandhi’s Vitthal Teedi leading the charge
MUMBAI: Shemaroo Entertainment has moved fast and moved big. The company has snapped up the entire content library of OHO Gujarati for its streaming platform ShemarooMe, a consolidation that has no precedent in the Gujarati OTT market.
The haul is considerable. More than 30 original Gujarati web series, featuring the work of upwards of 450 local actors, will now sit under ShemarooMe’s roof. For a platform that has spent years quietly building its Gujarati credentials, including originals, curated libraries, and culturally rooted narratives, this is the kind of bulk acquisition that changes the competitive arithmetic overnight.
Saurabh Srivastava, chief operating officer for digital business at Shemaroo Entertainment, made clear the company’s ambitions stretch well beyond the subcontinent. “As we bring the well-established catalogue of OHO Gujarati onto ShemarooMe, our focus remains on making high-quality Gujarati stories more accessible while continuing to invest in compelling content,” he said. “With our strong connection to Gujarati viewers across the world, we believe these stories from the OHO catalogue can travel far and create an exciting entertainment offering for viewers.”
The first title out of the traps will be Vitthal Teedi, which hits ShemarooMe on April 10th. The series stars Pratik Gandhi, a name that needs no introduction to Gujarati audiences, and has the distinction of being the only Gujarati web series he has appeared in to date. Set in the heartland of Saurashtra during the 1980s, it traces a small-time gambler torn between personal ideals and the brutal logic of his circumstances. Character-driven, culturally embedded, and backed by a soundtrack featuring folk artists Aditya Gadhvi, Jigardan Gadhavi, and Geeta Rabari, the show arrives with considerable pedigree.
For Shemaroo, the deal fits neatly into a digital growth playbook built on sustainable expansion and deeper regional engagement. The Gujarati diaspora is large, dispersed, and underserved by mainstream streaming giants. If the company can deliver the goods, the OHO library may prove to be the most valuable land-grab in regional OTT this year.
