ZEE5 Global reaffirmed its commitment to viewers and content partners from South India by unveiling a slate of 11 Telugu originals at an event in Hyderabad, India. ZEE5 Global’s Telugu viewers will have an extensive slate to watch ranging from thrillers to comedy, drama, romance, and many more. In addition, viewers can also watch blockbuster movies along with a line-up of original content and movies from ZEE5 Global’s library that has been specially dubbed in Telugu to cater to the viewers’ preferences.
Talking about the success of Telugu content in the global market, Archana Anand, chief business officer, ZEE5 Global said: “At ZEE5 Global, we cater to multiple South Asian language-speaking communities by bringing them the most diverse range of content in the language of their choice. In the last few years, the global markets have seen an expanding appetite for Indian regional language content, especially Telugu.
“Furthering our commitment to exploring new genres and content formats across languages, we are thrilled to announce a content line-up of 11+ Telugu Originals and movies to enthral and entertain our audiences across the globe and especially now, just as we complete a hugely successful year in the US, one of our biggest Telugu audience markets” Anand added.
The platform comprises crime thriller Recce, featuring Shiva Balaji, Sri Ram and Dhanya Balakrishna among others; rom com May Nell Tank, set in a small village and marking actor Sushanth’s OTT debut; heist comedy ATM, starring Subbaraju, Prudhvi and VJ Sunny; and Aha Nee Pellanta, a romance-theme show about man’s failed attempt to find a spouse.
ZEE5, which operates as the ultra-competitive streaming sector, has tapped the Telugu creative sector for its new slate, whose announcement comes soon after S.S. Rajamouli’s RRR was streamed for a cumulative one billion minutes within 10 days of its launch. Several titles have also been acquired, such as 'Karthikeya 2' and 'Hanu-Man'.
Punit Misra, president – content and international markets, ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. said: “In the recent years, we have seen a significant transition in the viewing patterns of Indian audiences across the globe, who are now sampling and consuming a diverse range of content on OTT platforms. This uptick has been significant for South Indian language content, especially that from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh which are important markets for us.”
Anuradha Gudur, chief content officer – Telugu added: “ZEE has a very strong and rich legacy in the Telugu content market, with a wider audience base. Keeping our viewers at the centre of our content strategy, we have time and again delivered authentic and relatable stories through our extensive offerings on television. Our mission is to replicate this success on ZEE5, and we are excited to collaborate with some of the most popular creators and prolific talent to narrate 11 new original stories and iconic movies as part of our fresh content slate.”
The platform has been ramping up its regional library with blockbuster acquired titles as well as original content to further consolidate its foothold in regional language content Last month, ZEE5 Global launched 'Gaalivaana', its first Telugu original series.