Mumbai: Ali Fazal and Richa Chadha will be narrating the 10-episode podcast ‘Virus 2062’ on Spotify that will be released September 3.
From a series of podcasts, Hindi-audio thriller Virus 2062 will be the first to go live. Based on a time travel story, the show is an adaptation of Caso 63, a Spotify Original from Chile.
There will be a slate of new Spotify-commissioned Originals, narrated by Bollywood actors.
Up next will be two other fiction audio thrillers. First, a crime drama ACP Gautam with Ronit Roy, set in New Delhi of the 90s. It is the story of a legendary cop who, despite his inner demons and troubled past, is intent on solving the toughest of cases in search of justice.
The second podcast is Gangistaan with Pratik Gandhi, Saiyami Kher, and Dayashankar Pandey, where the ghost of an underworld goon and a no-nonsense veteran journalist narrate the story of Mumbai’s underbelly.
‘Awaiting Justice’ with Vivek Oberoi is the fourth podcast in this slate. It tells the true stories of people who have been impacted by wrongful convictions.
With these releases, Spotify will now have over 50 Originals from India.
Dhruvank Vaidya, Head of Podcasts – India, Spotify said, “Spotify is committed to expanding the universe of non-music audio entertainment for audiences in India. Each of our new launches, with reputed Bollywood actors, explores different facets of storytelling in the crime and thriller genre.”
“The audio medium opens up new experiences for both content creators and listeners. We will continue to explore these opportunities as we bring new forms of audio storytelling to our listeners,” he added.
Last week, Spotify also released another Original – The Mythpat Podcast, hosted by one of India’s most popular gamers, Mythpat. In the podcast, he deconstructs the gaming industry and the thriving internet culture, alongside some of India’s prominent influencers and pro-gamers.
This podcast has hit the global charts on Spotify within the first week of its launch. The audio streaming platform also recently signed on sisters – Kritika and Deeksha Khurana for their podcast, ‘What’s Up Sister?’, which frequently features in the local podcast charts on Spotify.
Non-music audio entertainment is gaining rapid popularity in India, and there is a tremendous interest around the creation and listening of podcasts in the country.