NEW DELHI : Swedish streaming service Spotify has announced a new original podcast with television actor Ronit Roy, titled ACP Gautam. The 10-episode Hindi fiction crime thriller tells the story of a cop as he takes listeners through his long career.
“Performing a variety of roles in front of the camera comes naturally to me. However, taking a character to a podcast was a whole new experience. To emote through the mic, to convert expressions into some kind of sound or pause and conveying a variety of emotions just through voice and intonation- it’s all been good fun," Roy said in a statement.
Home to over 2.6 million podcast titles from across the world, Spotify currently hosts over 36 originals from India such as Andar Ki Baat by Amit Tandon, Crime Kahaniyan, Darr Ka Raaz with Dr. Phobia and Shuddh Desi Gay, among others.
According to findings from the Media and Entertainment Outlook 2020, a report by multinational professional services network of firms, PricewaterhouseCoopers or PwC, OTT video, along with Internet advertising, video games and e-sports and music, radio and podcasts are the top four segments expected to see revenue growth in the country over the next four years.
Fuelled by the uptake of music streaming brands and people turning to motivational, spiritual, fun and fitness content during the lockdown, India has emerged as the third-largest podcast listening market in the world after China and the US, with 57.6 million monthly listeners, the report said.
The segment is expected to touch revenues of $1.7 billion in 2024, increasing at a CAGR of 13.5%. India will also see a strong increase at 30.4% CAGR in its monthly podcast listener base over the next five years, supported by the entry of foreign players and original content on topics including news, society and culture, the report said.
