Digital storytelling startup Pratilipi is eyeing international expansion, starting with the US. Although around 4% of the current footfall for the platform comes from outside India, the startup has so far focused only on the domestic market. After the recent funding round, the self-publishing and audiobook firm has accelerated its focus on markets outside India.
Earlier this month, the startup raised $20 million in a Series E round led by Jungle Ventures. The round included $12 million in primary investment and $8 million through secondary share sales.
With the newly infused capital, Pratilipi has begun its pilot experimentation in the US. It has started with literature, one of its most popular formats in India. Seventy-seven per cent of the firm’s revenue comes from literature, 12% from Westland Books (publishing wing), 6% from IVM Podcasts (podcasting platform) and 5% from other business units. “India is our home country. With any new product we launch, we will start with India. What’s already proven here is what we will take outside. Since literature is our biggest product, we started with the same in the US,” Ranjeet Pratap Singh, co-founder and CEO, Pratilipi, told FE.
After literature, the UGC (user-generated content) platform plans to introduce other formats. “We started in 2014 with a vision to democratise storytelling across formats, languages and geographies. We have proven ourselves in format and language expansion. Now that we have a reasonable user base in India, it’s probably time to start expanding outside India,” he added. The startup specialises in text and audio narratives in over 12 languages, including Hindi, Gujarati, Bengali, Marathi, and Malayalam, across formats such as audiobooks, podcasts, comics, web series, and movies. “We will also continue to experiment with new formats of storytelling, such as animation. Format innovation is also an area we want to double down on, particularly short drama,” he said. The startup has more than 1.6 million writers and 12 million active monthly readers and offers more than 10 million stories. “The thought process is that once we have launched in one new country, we will be able to understand what works and what doesn’t. Then, launching the third or fourth country becomes a little easier and faster.”
The company not only wants to focus on the Indian diaspora in the US, but others as well. It has hired consultants who understand the nuances of the US market to help them create new content. The startup is also licensing content from agencies and different companies in the US. It is also using its existing English content, which is already published in India, for the new market. “We are trying out different strategies. We will see what works. But the main difference between India and the US is that in the US, we cannot depend completely on the UGC till we take off. The problem with the UGC approach is that on day zero, you have to solve for the chicken and the egg. How do you get writers if you don’t have readers, and vice versa?” he said. In India, the most popular genres for the firm are suspense, thriller and love. In the US, too, the startup will be trying out these formats to begin with.
With this expansion and other efforts, Pratilipi aims to touch Rs. 150 crores in revenue by FY26. It will be closing FY26 at Rs 84 crores (approx) in topline. Pratilipi’s revenue from operations grew to Rs 57.8 crore in FY24 from Rs 35 crore in FY23. The company’s net loss decreased by 62% to Rs 58.13 crore in FY24 from Rs 152.6 crore in FY23. “International expansion has been part of our vision from the beginning. Great stories deserve to be told in as many formats, languages, and geographies as possible,” the co-founder said.