Chai Bisket Raises $5 Mn To Launch Microdrama OTT Platform

Digital content startup Chai Bisket has raised $5 Mn in its seed funding round led by InfoEdge Ventures and General Catalyst to launch a regional-first OTT platform called Chai Shots.

The funding round also angel investors, including Swiggy cofounders Sriharsha Majety and Nandan Reddy, redBus cofounder Phanindra Sama, Darwinbox cofounder Rohit Chennamaneni, PhysicsWallah cofounders Alakh Pandey and Prateek Maheshwari, Rapido cofounders Aravind Sanka, Rishikesh SR and Pavan Guntupalli, Virgio cofounder Amar Nagaram, and film actor Rana Daggubati. 

The funding came at a post-money valuation of INR 134 Cr, a source close to the company told Inc42. 

Chai Shots, which will launch in early access soon, will be a mobile-first, short-form platform. The platform aims to release over 100 original shows in the first six months.

In a statement, Chai Bisket said that the app will launch with original content in Telugu and scale across multiple languages over the next few months.

Founded by Sharath Chandra and Anurag Reddy in 2015, Chai Bisket is a digital content startup that produces and distributes regional content, manages talent and influencers, and runs a film marketing agency. 

It creates a wide range of digital content, including YouTube videos, Instagram reels, movies, web series, podcasts, and shows for its mobile-only platform. It claims to have more than 5 Cr monthly views and has produced over 1,000 YouTube videos and over 3,000 Instagram Reels/ YouTube Shorts to date.

The startup also said that Krishna Mohan Varma has joined Chandra and Reddy as the cofounder of Chai Shots. As per his LinkedIn profile, he was earlier a software development engineer. 

“Chai Shots was born out of a clear shift in consumer behaviour. While platforms like YouTube Shorts and Instagram Reels have proven the massive demand for short-form video, the space is still dominated by user-generated content. We believe it’s time to elevate the format to blend the emotional power of fiction with the speed and convenience of short-form…” cofounder Chandra said on the launch of the OTT platform.

The Microdrama Boom 

The launch of Chai Shots comes at a time when microdramas, which break soap operas into 60-120 seconds episodes, are gaining rapid popularity in the country.

A number of startups like Reelies, Kuku, and ReelSaga are building a content library focused on microdramas. Meanwhile, major studios, production houses, and OTT platforms are also testing the waters with this format. Amazon-owned MX Player is offering short films and series under its MX Fatafat banner, and JioHotstar is exploring micro-style versions of its creator-led shows through Sparks. 

Last month, Zee Entertainment also announced an investment in content startup Bullet to enter the 60-second content space. 

Driving this push is the growing microdrama market. The microdrama or ultra-short, mobile-first fiction market was valued globally at $6.54 Bn in 2024 and is projected to reach nearly $12 Bn by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 10.5%.