Mumbai: Chai Bisket, the pioneers of Telugu digital entertainment, has officially launched Chai Shots, India’s first regional short-series OTT platform built entirely for the “Third Screen” — the smartphone. The platform delivers premium, vertical, scripted entertainment with episodes under two minutes, designed to convert daily micro-moments into high-quality storytelling.
Backed by Info Edge Ventures and General Catalyst, Chai Shots aims to reshape short-form consumption in India by offering structured, high-quality content beyond the typical endless-scrolling format.
A Creator-First OTT Model with Two Major Announcements
At the launch event, the founders announced two landmark initiatives aimed at democratising OTT content creation:
1. The Creator Gateway:
Chai Shots unveiled a direct-access portal enabling storytellers to pitch ideas without intermediaries, promising a breakthrough turnaround: “From Pitch to Live in just 45 Days” — accelerating greenlighting, production, and release cycles.
2. ₹20 Crore Creator Fund:
A dedicated fund of ₹20 crore will be deployed over the next six months to collaborate with and finance 200+ creators, supporting original short-series and accelerating the rise of new-age writers, directors, and actors.
The event drew strong support from across the entertainment and startup ecosystem.
Rana Daggubati, Actor, Producer & Investor, said, “Storytelling has always been at the core of what excites me. While I have been a part of entertainment in various forms, seeing narrative storytelling adapt to the vertical, short-form medium through Chai Shots is very exciting. Anurag and Sharath are the true disruptors of the Telugu Film Industry. Nobody understands Telugu audiences better.”
Ravi Yelamanchili, Producer, Mythri Movie Makers, said, “This is a very cool initiative. I see Chai Shots not just as a great entertainment platform in the short-form space, but also as a wonderful place for young creators to sprout into the mainstream entertainment industry. Platforms like this build the foundation for the future of our industry. Production houses believe that Chai Shots would be an intermediate platform to find the next bunch of talents.”
Rohit Chennamaneni, Co-founder, Darwin Box, added, “I was a fan of Chai Bisket for a very long time. The passion of the founders to build Chai Shots from Hyderabad to the world. Really, really happy to be a part of this and be a cheerleader.”
Strong Investor Backing
Chai Shots has raised a $5 million Seed Round led by Info Edge Ventures and General Catalyst. A powerful network of angel investors includes:
- Rana Daggubati
- Sri Harsha Majety & Nandan Reddy (Swiggy)
- Phanindra Sama (RedBus)
- Alakh Pandey & Prateek Maheshwari (PhysicsWallah)
- Aravind Sanka, Pavan Guntupalli & Rishikesh SR (Rapido)
- Rohit Chennamaneni (Darwinbox)
- Amar Nagaram (Virgio)
Padma Shri Sanjeev Bikhchandani noted via video, “Short form content is the future and Chai Shot will be front and center of it. It is a challenge to tell a story in a compelling, cogent in two minutes and produce a series. But, Chai Shots is doing a very good job on that.”
Rahul Humayun, Investor at General Catalyst, said, “Content is escape, and the most resonant stories are the ones we relate to. Combine that with India’s favourite format (short video) and a team deeply obsessed with storytelling, and you have the ingredients for real magic. We’re thrilled to back ChaiShots as they build a pan-India content platform and creator ecosystem that reflects the languages, cultures, and diversity of India.”
Phanindra Sama, Founder, RedBus, added, “Chai Shots is a great reflection of Telangana Rising. To get investments from Sanjeev Bikhchandani and General Catalyst is a huge achievement. I’m very excited about the way they are building it.”
Rishikesh SR, Co-founder, Rapido, said, “With dropping attention spans, there needs to be a change in how content is consumed. And I’m happy that there is a startup in Hyderabad which is doing this in front of us. I wish to see Chai Shots as another unicorn in the entertainment industry.”
Sanjay Appan, Popular Educator, remarked, “Chai Shots tells stories that are so relatable from across the country”
Founders’ Vision for a New Storytelling Frontier
Sharath Chandra, Co-Founder & CEO, Chai Shots, said, “The world is witnessing a shift. In markets like China and the US, vertical short-drama is already a multi-billion dollar industry. India, with its rich storytelling heritage and massive smartphone usage, is ready for this revolution. With Chai Shots, we are filling the gap between the 70MM theater experience and long-form TV – providing premium entertainment for the chai breaks, commutes, and in-between moments of life. India is the king of storytellers.India is ready to lead and start the new era of entertainment. The revolution of mobile entertainment is going to start in Hyderabad with Chai Shots”
Anurag Reddy, Co-Founder & CCO, added, “At Chai Shots, we don’t just create content; we create creators. The heart and soul of Chai Shots is content and creators. We know the pain of waiting years for a ‘yes.’ With our Creator Gateway and the ₹20 Crore Fund, we are removing the red tape. We are launching today with 75+ original shows across genres like Love, Thriller, Horror, and Crime, and we are committed to releasing two new shows every single week.”
Krishna Mohan, CTO, said, “At Chai Shots, we are building an amazing product. It has a personalized feed with a smooth and seamless interface so that you can find the content you want to watch easily.”
Expansion Beyond Telugu
While the platform launches with a strong Telugu library, Chai Shots is already working on content in Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Bengali, and Assamese — aiming to become the nation’s leading destination for vertical entertainment.
