Prime Video has unveiled a 69-title 2024 slate of new and returning series and original and licensed films. The slate was revealed at a star-studded event in Mumbai on Tuesday hosted by Indian media personality Karan Johar.
Amazon executives present at the event included Mike Hopkins, head of Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios, Kelly Day, VP Prime Video International, James Farrell, VP, international originals, Gaurav Gandhi, VP, APAC and MENA, Sushant Sreeram, country director, India, Aparna Purohit, head of originals, India and Southeast Asia, Manish Menghani, director, content licensing, India, and Nikhil Madhok, head of Hindi-language, India.
Jonathan Nolan and Ella Purnell were on hand to provide a preview of upcoming series “Fallout.” The stars of all the Indian originals were also present.
“As we look at the next 250 million subscribers that we’re going to acquire, they are definitely going to come from outside of the United States. And we’re not going to be able to achieve that unless we do a really good job for customers in India as well. So obviously, India is a key geographic area for us,” said Hopkins in a chat with Johar.
“We also believe in the story of India and the growth that’s been happening here over the last several years. In fact, when I think about streaming television and I think of India, what’s remarkable is that I’ve heard many people say this week that more people are streaming TV and film than they’re watching it on linear television or satellite cable. And what’s remarkable about that is that streaming has only really existed for seven or eight years. So, this is all happening remarkably fast,” Hopkins added.
The streamer’s 27-strong original Indian series slate includes the anticipated Indian instalment of the Russo bros’ “Citadel” universe, “Citadel: Honey Bunny” from hit making duo Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK, starring Varun Dhawan and Samantha Ruth Prabhu. The duo also has satirical comedy drama “Gulkanda Tales” bowing on Prime Video. Both are part of the streamer’s Hindi language slate, which also includes Siddharth Roy Kapur and Nagraj Manjule’s illegal betting series “Matka King,” starring Vijay Varma; and Smita Singh’s supernatural horror series “Khauf.”
Serial killer chiller “Daldal,” headlined by Bhoomi Pednekar; Tamannaah Bhatia, Diana Penty, Jaaved Jaaferi-starring alcohol startup tale “Daring Partners”; village-set comedy “Dupahiya”; unscripted show “Follow Karlo Yaar,” led by influencer Uorfi Javed; Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti and Ayesha Sood’s “In Transit,” a documentary series that explores the lives of trans and non-binary individuals; “Rangeen” that explores ideas of manhood and morality; “The Great Indian Code” that looks at the birth of India’s software industry; Nikkhil Advani’s “The Revolutionaries,” following Indian freedom fighters; and unscripted show “The Tribe,” about Indian influencers in Los Angeles are also in the Hindi lineup.
The Hindi language slate also includes a plethora of shows aimed at young adults including Ankur Tewari and Swanand Kirkire’s musical “Bandwaale,” comedy-drama “Call Me Bae,” headlined by Ananya Panday from Johar’s Dharmatic Entertainment, Sooni Taraporevala’s dance-themed “Waack Girls,” Gen Z drama “Ziddi Girls,” math-themed “Ma Ka Sum” and coming-of-age drama “Dil Dosti Dilemma.”
Prime Video’s original series slate also includes supernatural horror “Inspector Rishi,” period action drama “Gangs Kuruthi Punal,” kids action “Snakes and Ladders” in the Tamil language; and suspense drama “Arabia Kadali” and talk show “The Rana Connection,” hosted by “Baahubali” star Rana Daggubati in Telugu. There are also “Sivarapalli” and “Thalaivettiyaan Paalayam,” the Telugu and Tamil-language versions of hit Hindi-language comedy-drama “Panchayat.”
The eight Amazon original films include Anil Kapoor‘s action drama “Subedar”; small-town comedy “Supermen of Malegaon,” from Ritesh Sidhwani, Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti and Farhan Akhtar and starring Adarsh Gaurav; Indian independence-themed “Ae Watan Mere Watan,” featuring Sara Ali Khan; Abhishek Bachchan-starring “Be Happy”; actor Boman Irani’s directorial debut “The Mehta Boys”; and superstition-themed “Chhorii 2” in the Hindi language; and “Cheekati Lo,” an investigative crime thriller; and satire “Uppu Kappu Rambu Cheekati Lo” in Telugu.
The five returning series include “Panchayat 3,” “Mirzapur 3,” “Paatal Lok 2” and “Bandish Bandits 2” in the Hindi language and “Suzhal – The Vortex 2” in Tamil.
The 29 licensed films that will bow on the service after their theatrical release pack the most star power. Two of them are Amazon MGM Studios co-productions with Johar’s Dharma Productions – Sidharth Malhotra starrer “Yodha,” that is currently on release; and “Bad Newz,” starring Vicky Kaushal and Tripti Dimri. Both are in the Hindi language.
Hindi-language films also include the continuation of Rohit Shetty’s cop universe, “Singham Again,” starring Ranveer Singh, Ajay Devgn, Deepika Padukone, Kareena Kapoor, Tiger Shroff and Akshay Kumar; “Stree 2,” the sequel to the hit 2018 horror-comedy; war film “Ikkis”; Shahid Kapoor and Kriti Sanon romantic comedy “Teri Baaton Mein Aisa Uljha Jiya”; and Farhan Akhtar’s “Don 3,” the next in the franchise rebooted, with Ranveer Singh stepping into Shah Rukh Khan’s shoes.
The highlights of the Hindi-language slate also include Kunal Khemu’s caper comedy “Madgaon Express”; action film “Yudhra”; fire-themed action thriller “Agni,” from Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar; Emran Hashmi’s “Ground Zero”; Kabir Khan’s sports drama “Chandu Champion,” starring Kartik Aaryan; Varun Dhawan-starring thriller “Sanki”; Shahid Kapoor starrer “Ashwatthama – The Saga Continues,” where the mythological meets the modern; and the next in the “Baaghi” and “Housefull” franchises, headlined by Tiger Shroff and Akshay Kumar respectively.
Films in the southern Indian language cluster include Dhanush’s action drama “Rayaan” and Suriya’s time travelling “Kanguva” in Tamil; S. Shankar’s action thriller “Game Changer,” featuring “RRR” star Ram Charan, and action drama “Ustad Bhagat Singh” and period action adventure “Hari Hara Veera Mallu,” both starring Pawan Kalyan, in Telugu; and the prequel to 2022 sleeper hit folk tale “Kantara” in Kannada.
“For the last several years, outside of the U.S. more people have signed up for Prime in India than anywhere else in the world. And in India more people sign up for Prime Video than any other benefit. Last year, India had the highest percentage of Prime Members stream Prime Video than any country in the world,” Hopkins said. “In any given week in 2023, Indian content was watched in over 210 countries and territories. In fact, Indian programming trended in the Top 10 on Prime Video worldwide for 43 of thelast52weeks.
