Mumbai: Content and IP creator Applause Entertainment, a venture of the Aditya Birla Group, and microdrama platform Story TV, have announced an exclusive partnership to develop a slate of premium microdramas aimed at redefining short-form storytelling for mobile-first audiences.
Applause Entertainment, known for titles such as ‘Black Warrant’, ‘The Hunt’, ‘Criminal Justice’ and ‘Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story’ will collaborate with Story TV to co-produce and distribute a range of new age microdramas across multiple genres. As part of the partnership, Story TV will also acquire rights to the romantic-thriller series Hello Mini and adapt it into a vertical microdrama format.
Story TV, which launched in July 2025, has rapidly emerged as a leader in India’s microdrama space with a growing library of over 1000 titles across romance, thriller, action and family drama in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu. Today Story TV is the 2nd most downloaded app worldwide in the entertainment category as per Sensor Tower.
Talking about the importance of the partnership and impact of the same on the sector, Saurabh Pandey, founder, CEO, Story TV, said, “As an early entrant into microdramas in India we are at the forefront of blending storytelling and technology to expand this emerging format into mainstream territory. Phones are the primary content consumption devices and Story TV is building for this new age TV. Changing attention spans, our massive user base and with our tech led innovation pedigree we are continuously pushing the barriers of microdramas.
“Our partnership with Applause Entertainment will further expand the audience of microdramas with a focus on premium storytelling that is yet to be seen in the India microdrama and entertainment industry.”
Prasoon Garg, chief business officer, Applause Entertainment, said, “At Applause, our focus has always been on building strong stories across formats. As newer storytelling formats like microdramas gain momentum, we see value in engaging with them through meaningful collaborations. Our unique partnership with Story TV enables us to explore this emerging space alongside a platform that has demonstrated strong understanding of the format and its audiences, while we continue to assess its creative and viewer potential.”
