History has been created! Not one but two animated shows have taken the top two places on Disney+ Hotstar’s viewing charts (Hindi) for the first time. “Baahubali: Crown of Blood” and “The Legend of Hanuman Season 4” have earned the top two spots on the streamer’s viewing charts (June 3 – June 9). What makes this scenario even more exciting is that both animated shows are made for Indian adults instead of being kid-oriented. The Indian animation market is prominent for being heavily dependent on the “kids” genre. Are we looking at the rise of Indian animation?
“Baahubali: Crown of Blood” lured over 11 million viewers within its first three weeks of premiere. This 2D-animated beauty from Sharad Devarajan (founder of Graphic India) and acclaimed helmer of both “Baahubali” movies, S.S. Rajamouli, has earned mostly positive responses from both critics and viewers across India.
On the other hand, Season 4 of “The Legend of Hanuman” earned the top spot on June 7, and attracted the attention of over 11.4 million viewers within its first three weeks of release. Devarajan also created this series alongside Jeevan J. Kang.
Traditionally, live-action and Bollywood content have dominated Indian viewership. This is the first time animated shows have secured the top two spots on a major streaming platform, indicating a bright future for the Indian animation. In addition, both animated series draw inspiration from Indian mythology, a formula that could inspire Graphic India to bestow more animated entries inspired by Indian mythology in the near future.
This is what Devarajan said about the streaming success of both animated shows:
“Over the last two decades my mission has been to recruit, train and showcase India’s amazing artists, writers, creators and disruptors at our studio with one defining mission – to help transform the perception of India in animation from being an ‘outsourcer’ to being ‘the source’ – to create stories, heroes and characters that are uniquely Indian but spark the imaginations of audiences all across both India and the world. That’s the goal of our company and the personal driving mission of my life. The rise of India’s animated pop-culture renaissance has just begun.”
Devarajan’s comments make sense given the ongoing rise of the Indian animation market. A study published by Credence Research projects the country’s animation market size to reach up to $25.20 billion by 2032, from a value of $1.9 billion in 2023. This represents a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 38.2% from 2024 to 2032. This growth is fueled by factors such as increased internet penetration and a rising demand for visual content. This scenario presents an excellent opportunity for Disney+ Hotstar and Indian animators like Graphic Media to leverage this growth and contribute significantly to the rise of Indian animation. Stay tuned for more updates.