Amazon Prime Video announces further investment in India with 40 new titles
Unveiling its biggest slate to date in India, at its maiden Prime Video Presents India showcase event in Mumbai, Amazon Prime Video today announced over 40 new titles, in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu, across original series, original movies and co-productions that it plans to launch over the next 24 months.
Dialling up its strategy of bringing the best and latest movies to consumers across languages, Prime Video announced new multi-year licensing deals and co-productions with some of India’s biggest and most successful studios. Prime video also announced its foray into original movie production in India with films in Hindi and Telugu, to be released directly on the service.
The service recently completed half a decade of super-serving customers in India, and announced that it will more than doubling its investment in Prime Video India over the next 5 years.
The upcoming Amazon Originals will enthral customers by offering a wide gamut of genres, ranging from cutting-edge thrillers, high-octane action, engaging dramas to light-hearted comedies and heart-warming romances. The service is augmenting its original programming for young adult audiences, and also exploring genres like supernatural and horror for the first time in its India journey. Furthermore, Prime Video is enhancing the scope of its unscripted series catalogue to explore genres like biographies, true-crime and investigative docudramas.
Prime Video aims to be a home for talent. It is working with a wide set of diverse creators with unique, cinematic voices from across the country. Almost 70% of the new upcoming titles will feature new talent – both in front of and behind the camera.
After launching Prime Video Channels last year, in another significant step towards creating a video entertainment marketplace, Amazon today also launched Prime Video Store, its transactional video-on-demand (TVOD) movie rental service in India. Customers can now get early access to the latest Indian and international movies, including a rich catalogue of popular movies (award winners and franchises) from around the world on a transactional (per-movie) basis. Prime Video’s customer footprint is set to expand even further as the TVOD rental service will be available to all Prime members, as well as, anyone who isn’t a Prime member. Customers will get early rental access to movies across languages and the rental service can be accessed via the STORE tab on primevideo.com and the Prime Video app.
“In the last 5 years, we have built a strong slate of locally produced content across languages, super-serving the diverse entertainment needs of Indian customers. With increased access and distribution, we have helped these great stories travel far and wide in India, and around the world. We have played a key role in helping expand the linguistic palette of Indian customers, thereby, increasing the audience base for creators and talent. Prime Video India today sees viewership from 99% of the country’s pin-codes. India continues to be one of Prime Video’s fastest-growing & most engaged locale globally. We are humbled by the love we have received from our consumers and continue to be deeply committed to delighting our customers with great content, while also fuelling the creative economy,” said Gaurav Gandhi, country head, Amazon Prime Video India.
Speaking about the multi-pronged approach on expanding the movies segment in India, Gaurav added, “In tune with our vision to become the most-loved entertainment hub, we have steadily innovated in the way we offer movies to our consumers, from offering films in a post-theatrical early-window to direct-to-service premieres bringing the most anticipated movies to consumers’ living rooms and preferred devices. We are deeply committed to grow this segment further and are going bigger on our film licensing partnerships, expanding our co-production initiatives and are now excited to announce our foray into original movies. In addition to our investments in great content, we are super excited about the launch of our TVOD movie rental service, that will not just give even more expanded reach to these films but also give customers more choice in how they want to access and watch content.”
Elaborating on the expansive content slate announced today, Aparna Purohit, head of India originals, Amazon Prime Video said, “Our mission has been to tell compelling, authentic and rooted stories that not just connect with audiences in India but resonate with audiences across the world. We feel humbled that the characters of our shows and films have inspired new archetypes, blazed a new trail, and in fact, become a part of the cultural zeitgeist. As we move forward, we are excited to partner with some of the most prolific creators to bring forth powerful stories across different formats, genres and languages for our customers. We are confident that our upcoming slate of shows and films will transcend all barriers of language, nationality or formats.”
Original new projects commissioned by Amazon Prime Video
1. Adhura (Hindi)
A supernatural thriller set in an elite boarding school which hides a secret so dark and dreadful, it will shake the very foundations of the school and the lives of everyone connected to it.
Production Company: Emmay Entertainment
Creative Producer – Nikkhil Advani
Directors: Gauravv Chawla and Ananya Banerjee
Writers: Ananya Banerjee and Anand Jain
Key Cast: Ishwak Singh, Rasika Dugal
2. Bambai Meri Jaan (Hindi)
In his quest to clean the mean streets of Bombay from the rise of organised crime in post-Independence India, an honest cop puts everything on the line including the thing he wants to protect the most, his family.
Production Company: Excel Media and Entertainment
Creators: Rensil D’silva and Shujaat Saudagar
Executive producers – Ritesh Sidhwani, Kassim Jagmagia and Farhan Akhtar
Director: Shujaat Saudagar
Writers: Stoy – Hussain Zaidi; Screenplay – Resnil d’Silva, Sammer Arora and Chaitanya Chopra; Dialogues and Additional screenplay – Hussain Dalal and Abbas Dalal
Key Cast: Kay Kay Menon, Kritika Kamra, Avinash Tiwary, Amyra Dastur
3. Call Me Bae (Hindi)
Bae, billionaire fashionista is disowned by her ultra-rich family, owing to a salacious scandal and for the first time in her life, has to fend for herself. On this journey, she overcomes stereotypes and discovers who she really is.
Production Company: Dharmatic Entertainment
Writers: Ishita Moitra, Samina Motlekar, Rohit Nair
4. Crash Course (Hindi)
A fictional account of two warring coaching institutes, and the effect it has on a group of young students who are preparing for their competitive exams, with dreams in their eyes and expectation of their families on their back.
Production Company: Owlet Films
Creator: Manish Hariprasad
Director: Vijay Maurya
Writers: Manish Hariprasad, Raina Roy
Key Cast: Annu Kapoor, Bhanu Uday, Udit Arora, Pranay Pachauri, Siddharth Kak, Chirag Vohra, Gaurav Sharma, Bidita Bag
5. Dahaad (Hindi)
A serial killer drama set in a small town, the show follows the investigations of a female inspector into a crime that shakes her core.
Production Company: Excel Media and Tiger Baby
Creators: Reema Kagti and Zoya Akhtar
Executive Producers: Ritesh Sidhwani, Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti and Farhan Akhtar
Directors: Reema Kagti and Ruchika Oberoi
Writers: Reema Kagti, Ritesh Shah, Mansi Jain , Sunayana Kumari, Karan Shah , Chaitanya Chopra; Dialogues – Sumit Arora
Key Cast: Sonakshi Sinha, Vijay Verma, Gulshan Devaiah, Sohum Shah
6. Dhootha (Telugu)
In this supernatural horror, possessed inanimate objects wreak havoc on the lives of people who commit deadly sins.
Production Company: Northstar Entertainment
Executive Producer: Vikram K Kumar
Director: Vikram K Kumar
Writers: Vikram K Kumar, Dondapati Venkatesh, Poorna Prajna, Sripal Reddy, Naveen George Thomas
Key Cast: Naga Chaitanya, Parvathy Thiruvothu, Priya Bhavani Shankar, Prachi Desai, Tharun Bhascker Dhaassyam
7. Farzi (Hindi)
A small-time artist working out of his grandfather’s printing press has designed the ultimate con job – a crime uniquely suited to him – and gets pulled into the murky, high stakes world of all that it demands. A fiery, unorthodox task force officer has made it his mission to rid the country of the menace this poses in this fast-paced, edgy one-of-a-kind thriller.
Production Company: D2R Films
Creators: Raj & DK
Directors: Raj & DK
Writers: Raj & DK, Suman Kumar, Sita R Menon; Dialogues – Hussain Dalal; Additional Dialogues – Raghav Dutt
Key Cast: Shahid Kapoor, Vijay Sethupathi, Raashi Khanna, Kay Kay Menon, Regina Cassandra, Zakir Hussain, Bhuvan Arora, Amol Palekar, Kubbra Sait
8. Gulkanda Tales (Hindi)
A new series from the house of Raj & DK.
Production Company: D2R Films
Creator: Raj and DK
Director: Rahi Anil Barve
Writers: Mitesh Shah, Raj & DK, Rahi Anil Barve; Dialogues – Yogesh Damble Rahi, Anil Barve
Key Cast: Kunal Khemu, Pankaj Tripathi, Patralekha
9. Happy Family Conditions Apply (Hindi)
A light-hearted family comedy about a quirky but lovable joint family that is always at loggerheads with each other.
Production Company: Hats Off Productions
Directors: Aatish Kapadia, Jamnadas Majethia (JD)
Producers: Jamnadas Majethia (JD), Aatish Kapadia
Key Cast: Raj Babbar, Ratna Pathak Shah, Atul Kulkarni, Ayesha Jhulka
10. Hush Hush (Hindi)
The lives of five women intersect in unexpected ways when an unforeseen event unravels the façade of their lives.
Production Company: Abundantia Entertainment
Directors: Tanuja Chandra, Ashish Pandey, Kopal Naithani
Writers: Story – Shikhaa Sharma, Ashish Mehta; Screenplay; Ashish Mehta; Dialogues – Juhi Chaturvedi
Key Cast: Juhi Chawla, Ayesha Jhulka, Soha Ali Khan, Karishma Tanna, Shahana Goswami, Kritika Kamra
11. Indian Police Force (Hindi)
An action thriller from one of the foremost name’s in the business, about a young Delhi Police officer who will go to any length to track down and bring to justice the terrorist mastermind behind a series of deadly bomb blasts around the country.
Production Company: Rohit Shetty Picturez and Reliance Entertainment
Creator: Rohit Shetty
Directors: Rohit Shetty and Sushwanth Prakash
Writers: Screenplay – Rohit Shetty, Anusha Nandakumar, Sandeep Saket; Dialogues – Anusha Nandakumar, Sandeep Saket; Dialogues – Ayush Trivedi
Key Cast: Sidharth Malhotra, Shilpa Shetty, Vivek Oberoi, Isha Talwar
12. Jee Karda (Hindi)
A coming of age series that delves into the lives of a close-knit group of seven childhood friends, trying to steer their way through adulthood.
Production Company: Maddock Films
Director: Arunima Sharma
Writers: Arunima Sharma, Hussain Dalal, Abbas Dalal
Key Cast: Tamannaah, Suhail Nayyar, Aashim Gulati, Anya Singh, Hussain Dalal, Samvedna Suwalka, Sayan Banerjee
13. Jubilee (Hindi)
Set in a newly independent India, Jubilee is a period drama that unveils the stories and dreams that gave birth to Bollywood, as we know it.
Production Company: Reliance Entertainment Studios
Creators: Vikramaditya Motwane, Soumik Sen
Director: Vikramaditya Motwane
Writer: Atul Sabharwal
Key Cast: Prosenjit Chatterjee, Aditi Rao Hyadri, Aparshakti Khurana, Wamiqa Gabi
14. Modern Love Chennai (Tamil)
The Chennai chapter of the widely loved US original anthology series, Modern Love Chennai explores six diverse yet universal stories of different facets, shades and moods of love, all set in the city’s many unique milieus.
Production Company: Tyler Durden and Kino Fist
Creative Producer: Thiagarajan Kumararaja
Directors: Bharathi Raja, Balaji Sakthivel, Raju Murugan, Krishnakumar Ramakumar, Akshay Sundher
Writers: Balaji Tharaneetharan, Rajumurugan, Reshma Ghatala, Pratheep Kumar, Thiagarajan Kumararaja
Key Cast: Kishore, Ramya Nambeesan, Ashok Selvan, Ritu Varma, Vijayalakshmi, TJ Banu, Gouri Reddy, Samyuktha Vishwanathan, Vasudevan Murali, Chu Khoy Sheng, Sanjula S
15. Modern Love Hyderabad (Telugu)
The Hyderabad chapter of the widely loved US original anthology series, Modern Love Hyderabad explores six diverse yet universal stories of different facets, shades and moods of love, all set in the city’s many unique milieus.
Production Company: SIC Productions (Films)
Creative Producer: Nagesh Kukunoor
Producer: Elahe Hiptoola
Directors: Nagesh Kukunoor, Venkatesh Maha, Uday Gurrala, Devika Bahudanam
Writers: Nagesh Kukunoor, Shashi Sudigala, Bahaish Kapoor
Key Cast: Aadhi Pinisetty, Nithya Menen, Ritu Varma, Suhasini Maniratnam, Revathy, Naresh, Malavika Nair, Abijeet Duddala, Naresh Agastya, Komalee Prasad, Ulka Gupta
16. Modern Love Mumbai (Hindi)
The Mumbai chapter of the widely loved US original anthology series, Modern Love Mumbai explores six diverse yet universal stories of different facets, shades and moods of love, all set in the city’s many unique milieus.
Production Company: Pritish Nandy Communications
Executive Producer: Rangita Pritish Nandy
Co-Executive Producer: Ishita Pritish Nandy
Directors: Shonali Bose, Hansal Mehta, Vishal Bhardwaj, Alankrita Shrivastava, Dhruv Sehgal, Nupur Asthana
Writers: Nilesh Maniyar, John Belanger, Hansal Mehta, Ankur Harish Pathak, Raghav Raj Kakkar, Kashyap Kapoor, Alankrita Srivastava, Jyotsna Hariharan, Vishal Bhardwaj, Dhruv Sehgal, Devika Bhagat, Nupur Asthana
Key Cast: Fatima Sana Shaikh, Tanuja, Pratik Gandhi, Ranveer Brar, Naseeruddin Shah, Meiyang Chang, Yeo Yann Yann, Ritvik Bhowmik, Masaba Gupta, Sarika, Danesh Rizvi, Ahsaas Channa, Arshad Warsi, Chitrangda Singh
17. PI Meena (Hindi)
A young, troubled, female private investigator gets thrown into a world, where she has to fathom the unfathomable and find her own self.
Production Company: QED Films
Director: Debaloy Bhattacharya
Writer: Arindam Mitra
Key Cast: Tanya Maniktala, Jisshu Sengupta, Vinay Pathak, Parambrata Chattopadhyay, Samir Soni
18. Shehar – Lakhot (Hindi)
A neo-noir series about a man who reluctantly returns to his hometown where he not only battles his past demons, but also gets drawn into an even bigger cesspool of smoke and mirrors and must now prove his innocence.
Production Company: Offroad Films
Creators: Navdeep Singh, Devika Bhagat
Director: Navdeep Singh
Writers: Navdeep Singh, Devika Bhagat
Key Cast: Priyanshu Painyuli, Shruthy Menon, Chandan Roy Sanyal, Kubbra Sait, Manu Rishi Chadha and Kashyap Sanghari
19. Suzhal – The Vortex (Tamil)
An investigation into a simple missing persons case unravels and rips the intricate social fabric of a small town.
Production Company: Wallwatcher Films
Creators: Pushkar & Gayatri
Directors: Bramma, Anucharan. M
Writers: Pushkar and Gayatri
Key Cast: Aishwarya Rajesh, Kathir, R. Parthiban, Sriya Reddy
20. Sweet Kaaram Coffee (Tamil)
Braving the unknown, three generations of women from the same family set off on an epic road trip.
Production Company: Lion Tooth Studios
Creative Producer: Reshma Ghatala
Directors: Bejoy Nambiar, Krishna Marimuthu, Swathi Raghuraaman
Writers: Reshma Ghatala, Swathi Raghuraaman, Vinithra Madhavan Menon, Krishnaswamy Ramkumar
Key Cast: Lakshmi, Madhoo, Santhy Balachandran
21. The Village (Tamil)
India’s first show based on a graphic novel, The Village follows a family on a road trip that falls victim to a clan of mutants.
Production Company: Studio Shakthi
Creative Producer: Milind Rau
Director: Milind Rau
Writers: Milind Rau, Deepthi Govindarajan, Deeraj Vaidy
Key Cast: Arya, Divya Pillai, Aazhiya, Aadukalam Naren, Thalaivasal Vijay, Muthukumar, Kalai Raani, George M, John Kokken, Arjun Chidambaram, Pooja, Jayaprakash, P.N. Sunny
22. Vadhandhi: The fable of Velonie (Tamil)
A dramatic noir thriller about the murder of a beautiful young girl, seen from the Rashomon-esque perspectives of an unrelenting obsessed cop, a novelist captivated by her grace and an opportunistic news editor.
Production Company: Wallwatcher Films
Creator: Andrew Louis
Creative Producers: Pushkar & Gayatri
Director: Andrew Louis
Writer: Andrew Louis
Key Cast: S.J. Suryah, Laila, M. Nasser, Sanjana
Other titles are non-scripted or film projects.
