2024 was Netflix India's biggest year yet'

Despite the gloom-and-doom prognosis, the ₹35,200 crore (advertising plus pay revenue) Indian video streaming market had a strong 2024. Subscriptions rose to 125 million, up by 15 million, according to Media Partners Asia. The two anchor services in most markets worldwide, Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, saw revenue and subscriber numbers increase in India. Vanita Kohli-Khandekar spoke to their India heads. Edited excerpts:

- Vanita Kohli-Khandekar

What was 2024 like, and what's the thinking behind the 2025 slate?

Looking at the scale and programming we delivered, 2024 was Netflix India's biggest year yet. We had Heeramandi, Amar Singh Chamkila, and two seasons of The Great Indian Kapil Show, which opened Netflix up to a much wider audience. Films like Laapataa Ladies, Animal, Maharaja, and Lucky Baskhar were hits. We also had series like Maamla Legal Hai, IC814: The Kandahar Hijack, Mismatched Season 3, and documentaries on Nayanthara: Beyond the Fairytale, and Modern Masters: S.S Rajamouli.

Every week, we were in the global non-English Top 10. Our 2025 slate (26 shows and films) is a rich mix of dramas, heists, rom-coms, and adrenaline-pumping action. (It also includes Aryan Khan's directorial debut, The Ba***ds of Bollywood.) We're also looking forward to WWE Raw, which launches on April 1.

Is it just WWE, or will there be additional programming around it?

It's our live event, so every single WWE format - Raw, SmackDown - will be available in India. After the US, India is WWE's most important market. WWE has toured India five times.

As you push for reach, will you enter the ad-supported space, where YouTube and DD Free Dish operate? Netflix hasn't played in that territory in India yet.

That's because we're seeing strong, sustained growth in the SVOD category. We are a revenue-first company - only by being financially sustainable can we reinvest in creating the Next Big Thing. That's how our model works. We're a pure-play entertainment service.