During a panel held in Singapore, Netflix VP (Product) Todd Yellin revealed that might help us give an estimate about Netflix’s distribution network. “Now, two out of three of our viewers who watched Sacred Games were outside of India, and it did really work in India. But that’s what we want,” Yellin was quoted in this report by Hindustan Times.
“Traditionally, you made something in Bollywood, and the only place is in India. Some people would see it but very few because the distribution wasn’t there. We want to spread that kind of storytelling for people who love it,” he further added, indicating at how the Indian show matched up to the worldwide popularity of German show Dark.
Unbelievable. Two out of three viewers of #SacredGames are from outside India. Confirmed by #Netflix VP of Production, Todd Yellin, who put it right up there with Germany’s Dark and Brazil’s 3%@VikramMotwane and @anuragkashyap72 did good.
— Rohan (@RohanNaahar) November 8, 2018
This is massive news for the directors, Vikramaditya Motwane and Anurag Kashyap, who have again cemented their popularity among the digital audience. And considering the way Gaitonde’s punchlines, Bunty (and his umbrella), and “sirf Trivedi bach jaayega” have entered daily conversations in the urban centres of India, is proof for the large audience that has seen Sacred Games. And now take that estimated number and multiply it by three to get an estimate of Sacred Games’ worldwide audience. This is most surprising considering the local Indian roots of the show that fluently switches between Punjabi, Marathi and Hindi. Such viewership is reminiscent of one of Netflix’s flagship shows, Narcos, that’s majorly in Spanish and still enjoys worldwide popularity.
Netflix announced 8 original films and one original series, that will make its way to the streaming platform in the next year. Among the films, is Abhay Deol’s next, called Chopsticks and starring Mithila Palkar and Vijay Raaz. The original series will be directed by Sujoy Ghosh, and is reportedly set around a haunted house in Goa. An original spy thriller called Bard Of Blood is already in the works, that is being co-produced by Shah Rukh Khan’s Red Chillies Entertainment and stars Emraan Hashmi.
The production for the second season of Sacred Games is already in full swing, with Vikramaditya Motwane returning to his role as showrunner, with Neeraj Ghaywan coming on board as director.
