Arattai, the Made-in-India instant messaging app, is making headlines day after day. The app is giving stiff competition to rivals like WhatsApp and Weibo. Arattai is already enjoying the number one position on app stores in the social networking category. Zoho CEO posted on ‘X’ saying that Arattai traffic has increased 100X in 3 days, which is partly due to the exceptional feature it is providing due to the competition.
However, there are a lot of Arattai features that went under the radar. Therefore, in this article, we have mentioned some features of the Arattai instant messaging application.
Pocket: This personal cloud storage feature allows users to save messages, media, and notes for future reference, accessible across multiple devices. Unlike WhatsApp, which often requires users to create a personal group to store important messages, Pocket simplifies the process and keeps content organised.
No Forced AI: While WhatsApp recently integrated Meta AI, many users found it distracting and intrusive. Arattai keeps the experience clean by not imposing any AI functionality on its users.
Meetings: Arattai allows users to create, join, or schedule meetings directly within the app, removing the need for additional platforms such as Zoom or Google Meet. The Meetings option is conveniently located on the bottom dock, making it easily accessible.
Mentions Tab: Inspired by Slack, this feature ensures that whenever a user is mentioned in a group chat, it is listed in a dedicated tab. This prevents important notifications from getting lost among other messages.
Ad-Free Experience: Arattai provides an ad-free interface, storing all user data in Indian data centres and avoiding commercial exploitation. While voice and video calls are end-to-end encrypted, text messages are not yet fully encrypted, unlike WhatsApp’s complete encryption model.
Originally launched quietly in 2021, Arattai—Tamil for “casual chat”—is now grabbing national attention. It offers encrypted messaging, file sharing, audio-video calls, and even Android TV integration. But its real differentiator is Zoho’s public stand on privacy: no data monetisation, no backdoors.
Other Features and Privacy Focus!
Arattai adopts a familiar feature set: one‑to‑one and group chat, voice notes, media sharing, voice/video calls, stories, and channel broadcasting. It also supports multiple devices, including desktop and Android TV.
What differentiates it, to many users, is the promise of not monetising personal data and a commitment to strong privacy. While many global platforms face criticism over user data usage, Zoho asserts that Arattai will remain lightly governed by user privacy principles.
That said, some protections are still a work in progress: end‑to‑end encryption currently applies to calls, but chat encryption is not yet fully implemented. Zoho says it is actively developing that feature.
Infrastructure Under Strain
With its sudden rise, Arattai is facing challenges typical of overnight sensations. Zoho has acknowledged issues such as delayed OTPs, slower contact sync, and occasional lag during sign‑ups, all due to the surge in server load. The company says it is “working hard to expand servers” and hopes to mitigate these glitches within a few days.