Netflix marks a decade of operations in India.
Leadership highlights pricing, innovation, and premium positioning.
Local and multilingual stories drive global strategy.
India is seen as central to Netflix’s future growth.
Netflix 10 Years in India: Ted Sarandos, Bela Bajaria Say India Drives Global Streaming Future
As Netflix marks 10 years in India, its top leadership highlights why local storytelling, multilingual content and constant product evolution are central to its global strategy.
Summary
As Netflix completes 10 years in India, the streaming platform's leadership has made one thing clear: India sits at the heart of its global ambition. Reflecting on the journey so far, Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos, Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria, and Netflix India Vice President of Content Monika Shergill spoke about scale, storytelling, and why entertaining the world is impossible without India.
Expanding access without losing the premium edge
Speaking to The Times of India, Sarandos said Netflix has widened access in India while protecting its premium identity. “We have expanded our pricing and product options to make Netflix accessible to more people, without moving away from being premium,” he said. He added that growth has depended on constant reinvention across user experience, recommendations, pricing, and partnerships, noting that competition pushes Netflix to improve faster.
Netflix India’s content evolution
Shergill described the Indian slate as a carefully curated mix. "We make premium soaps and movies, and the biggest cinemas stream on Netflix. We are programming for the broadest audiences," she told TOI. She added that speed and scale matter as much as quality, explaining that delivering content quickly requires deeper investment.
She also stressed that Netflix has not diluted its creative standards. According to her, the cinematic benchmark set by Sacred Games and Delhi Crime remains intact, even as the platform adds lighter, more relatable entertainment.
Why India is central to Netflix’s global future
For Bajaria, local storytelling is non-negotiable. "If our ambition is to entertain the world, you definitely cannot entertain the world without having incredible local stories from India and in multiple Indian languages,". She added that India's regional markets remain under explored and present enormous growth potential.
Looking back, Shergill said shows like Masaba Masaba, Little Things, Kota Factory, and Mismatched reshaped Netflix's understanding of Indian audiences. She also rejected claims that Netflix sidelines new creators, stating that fresh voices are essential to surprise viewers.
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As Netflix enters its next decade in India, the message from its leadership is firm: India is not an experiment but a foundation.
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