Last year, Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos confessed that their slate in India should’ve launched with something “more populist” than Anurag Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane’s crime thriller show Sacred Games in 2017. He added that if he could do it all over again, he’d push Sacred Games to a couple of years later and start with something what is colloquially described as ‘massy’. Speaking at the Indian Express Adda in New Delhi on Thursday, Sarandos chose captive reality show Lock Upp as a contender for the opening slate for Netflix in India. “I wish we’d done something like Lock Upp at the same time as we did Sacred Games, knowing that eventually, we’d do both.”
Audience don’t see classy vs. massy
Sarandos’ confession coincides with Netflix India acquiring arguably more ‘massy’ titles including comedy show The Great Indian Kapil Show, Samay Raina’s roast show India’s Got Latent, and most recently, Ekta Kapoor’s reality show Lock Upp, season 2 of which concluded this week.
Sarandos explained the strategy behind expanding from the ‘classy’ content to the seemingly ‘massy’ one, claiming that it goes back to Netflix’s early days of selling DVDs. “What we learnt was people’s tastes were remarkably diverse. Nothing didn’t rent. People wanted to try different things,” said Sarandos. He was in conversation with Indian Express Executive Director Anant Goenka.
“What it taught us then was that if you want to entertain the world, and that’s our mantra, you got to have something for everybody. I don’t think people see it as classy or massy. Maybe thought leaders and executives think about that way. But the consumers don’t love their massy choice any less than you love your classy choice. So, we’ve got to be able to serve both,” added Sarandos.
Alia Bhatt recently appeared on season 2 premiere of Samay Raina’s show India’s Got Latent on Netflix India.
He pointed out that even in the US, Netflix kicked off original programming back in 2013 with Beau Willimon’s “arguably high-end scripted series” House of Cards, before expanding into original movies, documentaries, stand-up comedy, unscripted shows, and competition shows. “It was never like we started here and we’d move into this direction. It was always that we’ve to do all of it,” argued Sarandos.
He also claimed that he doesn’t consider Lock Upp any less classy. “People really liked Lock Upp right now. It’s enormously popular. I’m not judging it. I think it’s quite classy. But at the same time, there’s Musafir Cafe, which you’d probably call classy. But they sit right next to each other, serving a gigantic audience,” said Sarandos, referring to the recently released romantic show headlined and produced by Vikrant Massey. Sarandos added that in hindsight, he wishes Netflix India would’ve done Lock Upp at the same time as Sacred Games back then, “knowing that eventually, we’d do both.”
He also acknowledged that given the prevalent culture of star worship in India, Netflix does take into account the number of eyeballs they bring to the screens. “Stars are very, very important,” said Sarandos, adding, “It does give you an open door, a reason to check this out.” Netflix India’s slate has boasted of stars like Saif Ali Khan (Sacred Games, Kartavya), Madhuri Dixit (The Fame Game, Maa Behen), Raveena Tandon (Aranyak), Ishaan Khatter and Bhumi Pednekar (The Royals) among others.
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India’s Money Heist moment
Sarandos also addressed the question that keeps coming his way — when is India going to have its Money Heist moment? The Spanish show, launched in 2017, broke out globally, putting Spanish entertainment on the world map. Sarandos insists that while there’s no one defining moment that’s done the same for India, the country has broken 0ut globally multiple times already.
“We’ve had an Indian movie or series in the Global Top 10 every week since 2024. And this is the result of an algorithm that’s unintuitive and recommends a thing I’m going to love. We’ve had 3.5 billion hours of watching Indian content on Netflix around the world this year,” revealed Sarandos, adding that Aditya Dhar’s 2025 spy thriller Dhurandhar was the most watched non-English movie on Netflix this year.
Ranveer Singh’s Dhurandhar is the most-watched non-English title on Netflix India this year.
Why Netflix succeeded in India
Sarandos argued that Netflix managed to succeed and sustain in India over the past 10 years, unlike several American entertainment giants, because of two reasons. “I know that India is dramatically under-screened. For a country with the biggest appetite to see movies, there are fewer movie theatre screens per person than any other country in the world. The beautiful thing is we’re living at a time when we can solve that problem with smaller screens like television and smartphones,” reasoned Sarandos.
He admitted that running the business in India has been a “long journey” and a constantly challenging one, which explains why global giants like Disney and Fox Studios shut shot up in the country in the past. “Many American companies have failed at this because they think they understand India because they made a movie that worked. Turns out, there’s a lot more than one India. So, even to be successful locally, you’ve got to travel across India,” said Sarandos, adding, “We don’t do that from California. We do that from Mumbai.”
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It’s not Netflix vs. cinemas or smartphones
Sarandos, who has maintained that theatres are “dying” post pandemic and “never coming back” to its old glory, clarified that Netflix is not competing with movies that release in the theatres. “It’s an observation of stats and figures of behaviour that’s happening. Our average member watches seven movies a month on Netflix and sees one or two in the theatres. That’s just the reality. I’m not saying one is better than the other. It’s a beautiful, rich ecosystem,” he claimed.
He clarified that Netflix’s recent failed attempt at acquiring Warner Bros didn’t stem from its primary growth model. “We mostly look at organic growth. We keep looking for opportunities. You’d be crazy to not look, kick the tyres, and figure out. We have a very strong organic growth model,” said Sarandos. He also argued why Netflix had a good chance at the bidding game, but had to back out eventually.
“We don’t have a hundred years of IP like a major studio has. Is it a handicap or a blessing? I think it’s a blessing because it forces us to make some of the most original creative stories on the planet. Also, you don’t get trapped in IPs,” pointed out Sarandos. “The Warner Bros deal, at the right price, would’ve accelerated our business model a little bit. But when it no longer was the right price, we were fine to walk away from that,” he added.
Also Read — Ted Sarandos on bringing Samay Raina’s India’s Got Latent to Netflix: ‘Big built-in audience’
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Sarandos clarified that Netflix’s only competition is with screentime. “We become that first great place you check out for something to watch, and the last place you’d ever cancel,” he said. Sarandos also clarified that Instagram or TikTok isn’t a competitor for Netflix either because unlike the OTT platform, it’s only consumed on the smartphone. “What people watch on phones are mostly very short, vertical, and free. We’re not necessarily in those businesses. But by screentime, I mean when you get into your living room and face a (television) screen. YouTube is on that screen too,” he added.
