The rise of streaming has not displaced India's long-running television soaps. Instead, it is extending their reach, with audiences increasingly watching familiar shows on digital platforms rather than abandoning them for newer formats.
According to media consulting firm Ormax, television staples such as Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah (4.9 million views) and Anupamaa (3.1 million views) ranked among India's 10 most-watched OTT properties during the week of 13-19 July. Industry executives say the migration is reshaping how shows are written and distributed, even as broadcasters remain constrained by the economics of daily television.
Across screens
Daily soaps were once built almost exclusively for fixed television time slots. Broadcasters and producers now say they are designing content to travel across linear TV, catch-up viewing, YouTube and OTT, responding to audiences that increasingly decide when—and where—to watch.
“Our differentiation lies in bringing premium content across linear television, mobile and Connected TV into one seamless consumer journey. For us, this isn't about TV versus OTT; it's about extending the reach, relevance and longevity of great content. The future is not platform-led; it's audience-led,” a JioStar spokesperson said.
Whether it’s Naagin, Laughter Chefs, Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai, or Anupamaa, audiences are engaging with the stories and characters they love across screens and on their own terms, the person added.
“We now focus on platform-agnostic consumption, creating content that works seamlessly across linear TV, YouTube, and OTT platforms,” said Akshat Singhal, director of Enterr10 TV Network, which owns Dangal TV.
The shift has required tighter narrative pacing, stronger episodic hooks and storytelling that works regardless of where audiences choose to watch, Singhal said. He cited the success of Pati Brahmachari, which helped Dangal TV's YouTube channel reach 60 million subscribers and the company's YouTube network generate 400 crore monthly views.
“Audiences today simply do not have patience for lengthy, drawn-out narratives. Our writers' room has shifted toward fast-paced storytelling with minimal fillers, where every scene serves a purpose and every episode moves the story forward. We are investing in better cinematography, higher-quality VFX, and location shooting. We are also incorporating AI in post-production to enhance our creative output while maintaining production efficiency,” Singhal said.
Executives say broadcasters are also relying more heavily on audience data from streaming, catch-up viewing and social engagement to guide commissioning decisions, while leaning on established franchises and intellectual property in a fragmented market where familiarity helps reduce risk.
Dhruv R. Jain, content head for television at Rose Audio Visuals, said broadcasters and creators are also limiting soaps to 150-200 episodes rather than extending them indefinitely.
Nivedita Basu, Indian television producer, director and creative leader, said broadcasters and producers are now forced to think beyond time slots. While television still thrives on habit viewing and family co-viewing, OTT is influencing expectations around pacing, storytelling and accessibility. The content itself may remain rooted in mass-market emotions, but the way it is packaged and consumed is definitely evolving.
“Viewers today are exposed to a much wider range of storytelling styles, which means themes, writing, and production values can no longer remain completely static. Even audiences that primarily consume television are becoming more visually and narratively aware because of what they encounter elsewhere,” said writer, filmmaker and creator Priyanshu Modi.
Economics still dictate
Even as storytelling evolves, broadcasters say the economics of television continue to limit how far they can experiment.
Producing daily shows means delivering episodes at a relentless pace while protecting ratings, satisfying advertisers, remaining suitable for family viewing and appealing across age groups and markets.
According to Ratnakar Bharti, vice president-media at Mudra, television remains heavily dependent on advertising revenue. When the business model relies on scale and predictable ratings, broadcasters are naturally cautious about taking creative risks that could alienate their core family audience.
At the same time, OTT platforms have also become more disciplined on spending, Bharti said. After an early phase of aggressive investment in content, platforms are rationalizing budgets and becoming more selective about big-ticket projects, making the assumption that streaming automatically enables unlimited experimentation less valid.
“Television depends on advertising, ratings consistency and mass reach, which naturally makes risk-taking more difficult. Daily production schedules also leave less room for experimentation than the limited-series model of OTT,” Samar Khan, chief executive officer, EPIC Studios (OTT & Television), said.
“Ratings pressure, advertiser expectations and audience fragmentation further encourage safer programming choices. While niche and experimental stories can thrive on streaming platforms, television still needs to attract large audiences at scale. The industry is therefore moving less towards a TV-versus-OTT model and more towards serving audiences seamlessly across platforms,” Khan added.