Amazon looks to cash in on booming interest for K-dramas in India with an expanded slate

Amazon's video streaming service Amazon Prime Video is looking to capitalise on the growing interest for Korean dramas among Indians.

The service has forayed into K-dramas genre by adding 10 titles across various genres including romance, mystery, thriller, and horror. Some of these titles will start streaming from October 21, while others will be released later, going up to November 11. The company said this launch follows the success of Oscar-winning titles Parasite and Minari on the platform.

Among the shows being launched on October 21 include romantic comedy True Beauty, mystery thriller Strangers from Hell, action thriller Taxi Driver, and supernatural shows Tale of the Nine Tailed and Hotel Del Luna. In November, the service will start streaming historical comedy Mr. Queen, romantic comedy Secret Garden, crime thriller Voice, and medical drama Doctors.

“Video streaming has brought a host of varied cultures into our living rooms. Users are now enjoying watching content from different regions of India and from around the world, finding resonance in stories, characters, and cultures. Korean content, in particular, has made significant inroads into India’s mainstream popular culture” said Manish Menghani – Head, Content Licensing, Amazon Prime Video, India.

It's worth noting that several of these titles are already available on rival platform Netflix.

On October 13, Netflix had announced that the survival drama Squid Game had become its biggest-ever television show with 111 million member households watching it since its release on September 17. This further increased to 142 million member households, the streaming giant said in a letter to its shareholders on October 19.

In December last year, Netflix had stated that viewing for Korean language dramas in India had increased by more than 370% in 2020.

The success of these K-dramas is also rubbing off on what people eat. Online food ordering sites such as Zomato have witnessed a 45 percent increase in Korean cuisine orders in the last few weeks, Moneycontrol reported on October 21.