PRATILIPI
Story TV parent Eloelo raises $80 million from Hornbill, NBCUniversal
The funding follows a surge in Story TV’s business, which has helped lift annualised collections more than tenfold to around $250 million over the past year, according to people familiar with the company. Eloelo said Story TV offers over 5,000 dramas in six languages, while its apps have more than 40 million monthly active users.
Eloelo in talks to raise $50-60 million at $400 million valuation
The potential funding follows a sharp expansion of Eloelo's micro-drama business, Story TV, which has helped lift annualised collections more than tenfold to around $250 million over the past year. The Bengaluru-based company has used aggressive performance marketing to scale up Story TV, which offers short, vertically filmed fiction across genres such as romance and thrillers, the people said.
Flipkart launches standalone Minutes app, rolls out food delivery pilot ahead of BBD sale
Flipkart has launched a standalone app for its quick commerce arm Flipkart Minutes, ahead of its Big Billion Days sale. The company is also piloting food delivery service ‘Eat In’ with a select group of employees. This comes as Flipkart’s MAU share declined as customers shift to quick commerce platforms.
Flipkart launches microdrama on main app to drive platform engagement
The vertical is placed within Flipkart's main ecommerce app under 'Play' – which has a content-led shopping discovery platform ‘Explore’ and microdrama vertical ‘Drama’. The move is intended to attract users to the platform and boost engagement ahead of the upcoming festive season.
India’s microdramas could soon play the consolidation script as retention trumps acquisition
The landscape of India's microdrama industry is evolving, shifting from an emphasis on acquiring users to nurturing and monetizing them. Currently, active paying users represent a small fraction of the total users. Analysts predict that the market will converge around a few dominant firms as they navigate global competition and find ways to lower production expenses. To thrive, platforms must prioritize user engagement and sustainable revenue streams.
Mohalla Tech partners with Pratilipi’s Double Tap Films to distribute 75+ stories as microdramas
Mohalla Tech, parent of ShareChat, Moj and QuickTV, has partnered with Pratilipi’s Double Tap Films to adapt more than 75 stories into microdramas. The content will be distributed across Mohalla Tech’s platforms, targeting growing demand for regional, short-form and episodic entertainment.
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ET Startup Awards 2026 | Comeback Kid: Mukund Jha returns stronger with AI bet
Emergent cofounder Mukund Jha has won the Comeback Kid award at the ET Startup Awards 2026, marking a return after the collapse of Dunzo. The jury recognised his second act with AI startup Emergent, which recently raised $230 million at a $1.5 billion valuation and built more than 12 million applications through its AI-powered platform.
ET Startup Awards 2026: Nominees for Comeback Kid
This award celebrates failure and recognises those who have survived to tell the tale. It will be given to entrepreneurs who rebuilt or launched a more successful business.
Pratilipi to start IPO banker talks in September, eyes October appointment
Pratilipi is preparing for an IPO, targeting banker appointment by October and FY27 revenue of Rs 400 crore. Its expansion into publishing, microdramas, comics and IP licensing is driving growth, while its TikTok partnership has delivered 500 million views. The company is also leveraging AI to accelerate content production and multilingual adaptations, supporting its broader IP ecosystem ambitions.
Double Tap Films takes 21 Hindi microdramas global with TikTok partnership
Double Tap Films, a Pratilipi studio, is distributing 21 Indian microdrama shows on TikTok in the US, Canada, Brazil, and Japan. This marks a significant international deal for Indian vertical-format content. The partnership aims to test global demand for these short-form stories. Indian microdrama is rapidly growing, attracting investor interest as global audiences embrace short-duration video.
Pocket FM hits $450 million ARR in April after accelerating AI-led content creation
Pocket FM hits $200 million ARR after six years of operations in Q4 of FY25, and it achieved about $400 million ARR in Q4 of FY26. Currently, the platform has over 300,000 creators producing more than 80,000 hours of content monthly.
India gets its first data-backed microdrama studio as Pratilipi launches Double Tap Films
Pratilipi has launched Double Tap Films, India's first data-backed microdrama studio. This new venture will create short, vertical videos using insights from Pratilipi's vast story ecosystem. The studio leverages user-validated intellectual property from its author network. Double Tap Films aims to identify engaging narratives for mobile-first consumption. Its debut slate features titles across multiple Indian languages.
Legendary Tennis Star Sania Mirza launches podcast “Serving Up with Sania” featuring pickleball and candid talks
Tennis legend Sania Mirza launches her new podcast, "Serving Up with Sania," produced by IVM Podcasts. The show features candid conversations with guests after a friendly pickleball match, exploring themes from ambition to joy. This unique format aims to offer fans an unfiltered glimpse into Mirza's personality and insights beyond the court.
Indian AI talent and founders need to ‘wake up’: Google DeepMind’s Manish Gupta
“India’s private industry needs to wake up and start investing in research — so that we can be makers of these technologies, not just consumers,” said Gupta, while speaking during a panel discussion at the ET Soonicorns Summit 2025 on Thursday.
ETtech Deals Digest: Startups raise $309.7 million this week; up 3.3x on-year
Startups across seed, early, and late stages raised the funds through 25 deals, compared to 75 in the year-ago period.
After nearing ‘zero runway,’ Pratilipi closes $20 million round at a slashed valuation
The deal, however, has been struck at a significantly lower post-funding valuation of $100 million, as per cofounder and CEO Ranjeet Pratap Singh. This would be the last private financing round before it heads for a public issue following consultations with bankers in the second half of 2025, he added.
Gemba Capital ropes in Ranjeet Pratap Singh as consumer tech venture advisor
In his advisory role, Singh will guide Gemba Capital’s investment team in evaluating consumer tech deals and mentor portfolio companies with his invaluable insights and expertise.
Sebi nod for Swiggy IPO; US court holds Byju’s in default
The top court in Delaware has held that Byju’s defaulted on a $1.5-billion loan from US lenders. This and more in today’s ETtech Top 5.
Digital company Pratilipi Plans IPO in 2026, aims to raise $12 mn in pre-IPO round
Digital storytelling platform Pratilipi aims for an IPO in January 2026, depending on market conditions. The company plans to raise $12 million in a pre-IPO round at a lower valuation. Pratilipi has achieved positive cash flow and is expanding its intellectual property rights across various formats, including web series and audio.
Disney Star inks a multi-series content deal with Pratilipi
Stories on Pratilipi have an extensive readership and listener base that extends up to 15 million subscribers. These stories, written by authors from all over the country, are currently available in the form of short stories, series, audiobooks, and comics. This association also opens doors for thousands of writers across India, allowing them to envision their stories in various formats.
Fantasy novel 'Atharva: The Origin', starring MS Dhoni, to be made into a comic
The novel, written by Ramesh Thamilmani, has been recreated by Pratilipi Comics.
India to be hub of emerging market strategy for PUBG maker Krafton
The company has committed to investing more than $100 million in the startup ecosystem in India. In the last 10 months, the company has announced six deals totalling about $86 million across segments.
Pratilipi raises $48 million in funding led by Krafton
Existing investor, Omidyar Network India, also participated in the round along with a clutch of startup founders, including Gaurav Munjal, cofounder of Unacademy; Sahil Barua, cofounder of Delhivery and Vidit Aatrey, the cofounder of Meesho.
IVM Podcast hires Sanjeev Mehta as business head
The appointment follows IVM Podcasts’ acquisition by Tencent-funded publishing platform Pratilipi last month.
Bharat Stage 2.0: Small towners rev up startup engine for non-metros
These ventures, not necessarily based in the founders’ hometowns, are targeting a market familiar to the entrepreneurs and their founding teams. They are aiming to connect with the next billion users, touted as the battleground for new-age Indian internet firms.
Content firm Pratilipi raises Rs 105 crore
Nexus Venture Partners, Omidyar Network India, Shunwei Capital, Contrarian Vriddhi Fund and WEH Ventures also participated in the round, taking the total funds raised to more than $20 million.
Self-publishing platform Pratilipi earns Rs 28 crore in a series-A round
The funds raised are being used for further building out the product’s features by personalising it for users, as well as hiring tech talent.
In search of the next ‘50 Shades of Grey’, a self-publishing startup has the perfect success script
A personal quest for content in Indian languages soon transformed into a mission for the founders of this self-publishing platform to provide accessibility with affordability.
Who said Indians won’t pay for E-books
Writer trapped in an engineer’s body, Sharma plunged into entrepreneurship with the intention of liberating literature from publishers, using technology as an aid.
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