Mumbai: In recent years, anime has experienced a remarkable surge in popularity within India, captivating audiences across different age groups and backgrounds. What was once a niche interest has transformed into a vibrant cultural phenomenon, drawing fans into the captivating worlds of diverse animation styles, intricate storytelling, and imaginative characters. As streaming platforms make a plethora of anime titles accessible to Indian viewers, the subculture continues to thrive, fostering a sense of connection and community among those who share a passion for this captivating art form.
Crunchyroll, one of the world's most popular anime streaming platforms, was launched in India a few months back. Crunchyroll offers a wide variety of anime series and films, both classic and new, for audiences to enjoy.
Sony Pictures Entertainment acquired Crunchyroll in 2021 and later merged it with its streaming service Funimation to build a united platform. The platform has 150 million users globally and over 10 million paying subscribers.
Crunchyroll operates as an independent organisation globally, even though it is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Corp. In India, Sony Corp also owns and operates the media network, Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI).
Globally, the service has over 24,000 hours of content. In India, other than a two-week free trial, there are two subscriptions available for Rs 79 and Rs 99, both per month. The latter offers additional features such as offline viewing and more simultaneous streams.
While all content is available with English dubs, the platform is increasingly bringing in Hindi dubs, along with more experiments in languages like Tamil and Telugu.
Crunchyroll has also onboarded actress Rashmika Mandanna and Tiger Shroff who will help them at various events and activations and introduce more fans in India.
Travis Page was named Funimation Global Group CFO in 2020 and is responsible for overseeing global financial operations, including corporate strategy, financial planning and analysis, accounting and controls, and tax and treasury. Indiantelelvision.com caught up with him to raise some key questions regarding Crunchyroll’s expansion in India.
Edited excerpts
On factors which motivated Sony-owned Crunchyroll to increase its investments in India's market
There is a vibrant, passionate fan community in India that wants more access to anime so they can watch their favourite shows how and when they want to. We’re investing in the market to serve those fans and build Crunchyroll into a household name. Our goal is to be synonymous with anime, not solely associated with streaming but also through other ways of engaging with the art form, such as films, games, and events. The demand and love for anime in India is strong, and it is already a powerful force in the Indian youth community.
On any particular aim behind roping in Rashmika Mandanna and Tiger Shroff as brand ambassadors
We didn’t have to rope them much, since they love anime! We enjoy showcasing fan voices that are just as passionate about anime as we are. Both Tiger and Rashmika are big time anime fans, so they were natural partners to welcome into the family. The authenticity of their fandom matters. Based on the reception from their appearance in Mumbai a few weeks ago at the Crunchyroll fan event, we know they can help us grow the anime community across India.
On Crunchyroll setting any specific targets or goals for its growth in India, such as subscriber numbers or revenue expectations
At a high level, we are committed to growing the anime ecosystem and fandom across India. While we can’t share specifics, we can tell you that we’re already seeing strong growth in our SVOD business, and in the near future, we’ll have additional ways in which we are able to offer anime to the fans. Let’s just say that we are very ambitious about growth in India.
On the evolution of anime and streaming market in India
Similar to the growth of anime globally, the interest in anime in India has grown alongside the accessibility of content and the growth of streaming more broadly.
We spoke with anime fans in India and found that they enjoy a variety of genres, enjoy action - adventure, fantasy, and romantic comedy in particular and they watch a daily average of about an hour of anime across TV/OTT, mobile, and web. We also found that anime fans enjoy watching series in their local language, as we’ve seen quite a bit of engagement around our Hindi dubbed series. We just announced dubs coming soon in Tamil and Telugu so we’re looking forward to hearing fan reaction. Our first Tamil dub VINLAND SAGA Season 2 just premiered this week, as a matter of fact.
We want to give anime fans every reason to subscribe to our service.
On Crunchyroll facing any potential challenges or obstacles while expanding in India
India is the largest country in terms of population that we operate in and with size comes an incredible amount of diversity across regions, languages, and cultures. While anime connects different people from a variety of backgrounds, we also want to make sure we have something for all anime fans in India, regardless of where they live or what language they speak. Currently, we offer fans series dubbed in Hindi and Tamil, with Telugu dubs launching before the end of the year. Making the fan experience as enjoyable as possible – from payment options, viewing experience, a deep content library – will open up more opportunities.
On the future of anime in India for the next five years
Crunchyroll is purpose-built for fans - we want to be everything to someone, not necessarily something for everyone. India already has a very strong love of anime, and I think you will see companies like Crunchyroll work very hard to meet that demand. That means not being simply a streaming service, but building out a variety of ways for Indians to consume anime. Expect to see more theatrical releases, mobile games, and consumer products for our fans to go deeper into anime.
