iWorld
Zee5 highlights regional offerings in a new campaign
Mumbai: Video streaming platform ZEE5 has announced the launch of the second edition of its campaign- ‘Dekhtey Reh Jaogey’ starring Sara Ali Khan and Amol Parashar. Revolving around the FOMO theme, the campaign showcases the platform’s content library, particularly the regional offerings.
ZEE5 currently features 160+ live TV channels and 500,000+ hours of on-demand content spanning over 3,500 films, 1,750 TV shows, and 700 originals, in 12 Indian languages (English, Hindi, Bengali, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Marathi, Oriya, Bhojpuri, Gujarati, and Punjabi), all available in a new subscription of Rs. 599.
The SVOD viewers on the platform get access to the range of movies and web series behind the paywall, along with AVOD content before they are aired on TV. The AVOD content roster at ZEE5 includes catch-up episodes of the most popular TV shows on ZEE Network and other properties which are available for audiences to watch anytime, and anywhere.
Over the past 12 months, ZEE5 has become the fastest growing OTT platform in India as per AppAnnie’s latest industry report. The platform’s monthly active users (MAU) rose to 101.9 million and global daily active users (DAUs) touched 9.6 million in December 2021. ZEE5 users watched an average of 201 minutes of content per month during the last quarter, with the platform releasing 51 shows and movies, including 11 originals during the period.
ZEE5 has planned a high-frequency promotional outreach for the campaign across TV, social media, and the internet as part of a 360-degree approach.
“At ZEE5, we have always aspired to democratise entertainment and provide quality content to our audiences at a price that is convenient for the majority of the viewers,” says ZEE5 India chief business officer Manish Kalra. “While ZEE5 has a large content library that spans across various languages, the second leg of the ‘Dekhtey Reh Jaogey’ campaign will help us exhibit our diverse content offerings, especially regional content and further our aim of deeper regionalisation by making deeper inroads into the country. With the new subscription package, viewers will have access to an endless supply of compelling and binge-worthy entertainment at an annual price of Rs. 599.”
Lowe Lintas chief creative officer Sagar Kapoor adds, “Today, content has become the perfect conversation starter and enabler. Conversations are invariably peppered with references to dialogues and characters from content pieces across OTT platforms. It is the “conversation drama” that people miss out on when they miss content. We decided to build on this idea for ZEE5 to pull in their audiences every week to watch new shows and movies and stay above content FOMO, so they never miss out on the excitement on and off the screen.”
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.
