Microdramas now take a macro share of viewers' interest

Mumbai: In less than two years of its existence in India, microdrama content is no longer just an able alternative for an Instagram reel. It is drawing depth of audience engagement similar to long-form content. Microdrama is attracting the same share of viewers as long-form-14% each-among those who watch content for more than two hours in a day, showed a recent study by Kantar, a market research and consulting firm.

There are two aspects which have increased consumption of microdrama content. One is it has immediacy of the structure of a short-form video, which addresses viewers' low attention span. And the other is cliffhanger storytelling found in long-form content.

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"Our study found that 80% of consumers today prefer microdrama putting it at par with short-form video (81%) and significantly ahead of long-form content (63%)," said Ebu Isaac, head, Media & Analytics Business, South Asia, Kantar. "Microdrama format creates high depth of engagement. 86% of viewers spend at least 15 minutes in a day watching microdrama. In fact, 54% return to the same story on the very same day," he added.

This shows that the short length of episodes in a microdrama-less than two minutes-does not mean small or short viewing time. "Viewers are not necessarily choosing between short-form and long-form content. They are choosing how they want to consume a story," said Anshita Kulshreshta, co-founder, Tuk Tuki, a microdrama platform. Like most microdrama platform owners, Kulshrestha shared the view that bite-sized consumption of microdrama content containing engaging hooks and storytelling inevitably translates into several viewing sessions in a day which when measured amount to long hours.

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A key distinction which industry players pointed out about the study is microdrama content is not replacing long-form content. The audience profile of both formats of content may either be disparate or overlap. "Microdrama is finding a different way to earn people's time. Our data shows viewers watch about 55 minutes of microdrama content in a day in typically two to three sessions. They easily watch 60-80 episodes,' said Neha Markanda, chief business officer, ShareChat, which operates microdrama platform QuickTV. 'The format demands small pockets of time in a day: commuting, waiting or an afternoon break. It is almost like prime time every time. Viewers are watching microdrama at night, during day or whenever they have time," she explained.

Microdrama content is discovered through social media platforms. Relatable stories, engaging hooks and small episodes provide a sense of completion and finality to a viewer compared to passive scrolling and numbing of mind he or she experiences after consuming reels. "Microdrama is creating a net-new screen time. It is not taking away time dedicated to streaming platforms. Our users spend over 95 minutes a day on Story TV with viewing peaking in morning, evening and late at night,' said GSN Aditya, COO, Eloelo Group, which runs Story TV.