Mumbai: Pratilipi has announced the launch of Double Tap Films, positioning it as India’s first data-backed microdrama studio aimed at redefining short-form storytelling for mobile-first audiences. Built on Pratilipi’s vast IP ecosystem of over 20 million stories, the new studio will produce vertical-first cinematic narratives designed for high engagement across digital platforms.
Double Tap Films enters the market with a debut slate of over 150 microdramas spanning multiple languages and genres, distributed across platforms such as Amazon Prime Video, MX Player, Hungama OTT and others. The studio’s offerings are rooted in audience-validated content drawn from Pratilipi’s ecosystem, which sees over 800 million monthly reads, enabling data-led storytelling decisions even before production begins.
The studio’s model focuses on what it calls a ‘format lab to franchise pipeline,’ leveraging microdramas as a testing ground for scalable intellectual properties that can expand across OTT, gaming, and global markets. With growing consumption of short-form content, particularly in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, Double Tap Films aims to establish itself as a key content engine in a segment projected to cross $1 billion by 2030.
“India has always been a country of storytellers. What has changed is the screen. The mobile phone is now the primary relationship that hundreds of millions of Indians have with narrative forms and Double Tap Films exists to define what great storytelling looks like within it. We are not making short content. We are building a new cinematic language for the mobile era, rooted in stories that India already loves,” said Ranjeet Pratap Singh, Co-Founder & CEO, Pratilipi.
The studio’s initial productions include titles such as Avnika Ki Shaadi, Apavitra, Aag Se Takkar, Raavan, Boss Bahu, and CEO Se Romeo, among others. Each project is conceptualised specifically for vertical viewing, catering to the speed, intimacy, and behavioural patterns of mobile consumption.
“India has already crossed 250 million cumulative downloads of micro-drama apps, and that number continues to climb each month. Double Tap Films is built to become the studio powering this surge, creating and scaling the content audiences are actively consuming. We are not just producing content for the format; we are defining what the format can be. Every frame is designed for maximum emotional impact per second – mobile-first, story-first, and audience-obsessed. When you start with over 20Mn stories that readers choose to read over 800Mn times a month; and you build for the screen they carry in their pocket, the result is not short-form entertainment. It is the most direct line between a story and its audience,” said Sharlton Menezes, Vice President IP & Key Partnerships, Pratilipi & Double Tap Films
Double Tap Films will produce content across Hindi, Bengali, Kannada, Gujarati, and other languages, with plans for further expansion through 2026. The launch underscores Pratilipi’s strategy to extend its storytelling ecosystem beyond written formats into high-growth digital video segments, combining data intelligence with creative execution to build scalable entertainment properties.
