Latest news with #microdrama
Entrepreneur
09-07-2025
- Business
- Entrepreneur
Chai Bisket Raises USD 5 Mn Led by InfoEdge Ventures & General Catalyst to Launch Chai Shots
The seed round also drew backing from a stellar list of angel investors, including actor and entrepreneur Rana Daggubati, Swiggy co-founders Sri Harsha Majety and Nandan Reddy, redBus founder Phanindra Sama, Darwinbox's Rohit Chennamaneni, PhysicsWallah's Alakh Pandey and Prateek, Rapido's founding team, and Virgio's Amar Nagaram. You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media. Chai Bisket, the Hyderabad-based digital content powerhouse, has raised USD 5 million in a seed round led by InfoEdge Ventures and General Catalyst to fuel the launch of Chai Shots, a regional-first, mobile-only microdrama OTT platform. This new platform aims to deliver ultra-short, high-quality fiction content tailored for India's next billion entertainment consumers. The seed round also drew backing from a stellar list of angel investors, including actor and entrepreneur Rana Daggubati, Swiggy co-founders Sri Harsha Majety and Nandan Reddy, redBus founder Phanindra Sama, Darwinbox's Rohit Chennamaneni, PhysicsWallah's Alakh Pandey and Prateek, Rapido's founding team, and Virgio's Amar Nagaram. Founded in 2015 by Sharath Chandra and Anurag Reddy, Chai Bisket has become a cultural force in South India's digital landscape, producing over 2 billion views across its YouTube channels, and playing a key role in shaping regional storytelling through films, web series, and viral short dramas. The team also co-produced the critically acclaimed film Major and has been actively experimenting with short fictional formats since 2021. The newly announced Chai Shots platform delivers fiction in bite-sized two-minute episodes, catering to Gen Z and tier II–III users. The product is built for mobile-first consumption and will launch first in Telugu, expanding into Tamil, Malayalam, and Kannada soon. The platform, co-led by Sharath, Anurag, and new co-founder Krishna Mohan Varma (who leads tech), plans to launch over 100 original shows in the first six months. "In today's world, storytelling lives in the palm of your hand," said Rahul Garg, Partner at General Catalyst. "This team isn't just reacting to culture, they're creating it." Actor and investor Rana Daggubati stated, "The future of stories is fast, local, and emotional. Chai Shots gets that." Sharath Chandra added, "We're here to elevate short-form content by blending fiction's emotional depth with mobile convenience — in our languages and on our terms." With deep roots in content and a sharp tech vision, Chai Bisket is now betting big on microdramas as India's next storytelling frontier, redefining how Bharat watches and feels entertainment.
Entrepreneur
14-06-2025
- Business
- Entrepreneur
Chai Shots Nears $5M Round, Pehle Jaisa Secures $300K as Early-Stage Startups Attract Investor Attention
You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media. Hyderabad-based microdrama OTT platform Chai Shots is in the final stages of raising $5 million in its maiden funding round, even as Gurugram-based waste-to-fertilizer startup Pehle Jaisa has secured $300,000 in a pre-Series A round. According to sources who spoke to Entrackr, the Chai Shots funding round is being led by General Catalyst and Info Edge, with a few angel investors expected to join. "General Catalyst along with Info Edge are in advanced stages of closing a new funding round in Chai Shots," said one person aware of the deal. The platform, yet to launch officially, delivers short-form video content—episodes under two minutes—across multiple Indian languages. It comes from the creators of Chai Bisket, a widely-followed digital storytelling venture in South India. With a content legacy spanning reels, regional films, podcasts, and platforms like Studio Panchatantra and First Show, the Chai Bisket team is positioning Chai Shots as a mass-market entry into India's fast-growing microdrama segment. "The official launch and funding announcement might take a few weeks," a second source said, adding that investor interest in the short-form OTT space is intensifying. Recent moves in the segment include Flick TV raising $2.3 million and growing competition from players like Kuku TV, QuickTV, Reel Saga, and Reelies. Meanwhile, Pehle Jaisa, founded in 2022, is taking a grassroots approach to sustainability. The startup has developed a decentralized rural waste management model that converts organic waste into high-quality fertilizers, aiming to build a circular economy in Indian villages. Its latest $300,000 raise was co-led by Pantnagar Capital and Climate Angels, following a previous seed round of $169,000. Pehle Jaisa says it has already sold over 2,000 metric tons of fertilizer, generating more than INR 2.5 crore in revenue in FY25. By eliminating the high costs of the "first mile" in manufacturing and tailoring products to local soil conditions, the company aims to empower villages to become self-sustaining in energy and agricultural inputs. It plans to scale its operations to cross INR 100 crore in revenue in the coming years.
