Balaji Telefilms and YouTube are taking their content partnership deeper into the living room, with five premium shows set to be produced in 4K and released directly on the video platform as YouTube looks to strengthen its position in long-form entertainment and Connected TV.
Gunjan Soni, Country Managing Director, YouTube India, said the platform now reaches more than 75 million adults through living-room screens in India, underscoring the scale of the audience YouTube is looking to address with premium programming.
“A new generation of digital-first audiences is demanding the best of both worlds: cinematic storytelling on the biggest screen in the house, with the flexibility to watch on their own schedule,” Soni said in a social media post.
She said Balaji Telefilms, led creatively by Ekta Kapoor, will bring five premium shows in 4K directly to audiences on YouTube.
The development adds a sharper Connected TV lens to the partnership between Balaji Telefilms and YouTube, which will see five original shows spanning around 200 episodes launch directly on the platform.
Under the partnership, Kapoor will lead the creative vision while Balaji will retain ownership of the intellectual property. YouTube will provide global distribution and monetisation opportunities through advertising and brand partnerships.
The slate includes Haq Se Season 2, Phir Pyar Ki Yeh Kahani Suno, Kehne Ko Humsafar Hai Season 4 and other projects under development. The shows will be made available to audiences globally.
The move comes as YouTube increasingly positions the television screen as a key consumption surface rather than an extension of mobile viewing. The platform has been pushing its pitch to advertisers and traditional entertainment companies around long-form viewing, premium content and monetisation on Connected TV.
Soni said YouTube was “shaping the future of TV” by creating new distribution and monetisation pathways for studios and storytellers.
“The future of TV has to be designed around a digital-first audience that wants the best of both worlds: high-quality shows on the biggest screen in the home, with the flexibility of on-demand. With Ekta Kapoor and her extraordinary instinct for human emotion and creative storytelling, we’re making that future possible today on YouTube,” she said.
The partnership gives Balaji access to a large and growing audience consuming YouTube on television screens while allowing the production house to retain ownership of its shows and build revenues through digital advertising and branded integrations.
YouTube had earlier said it reached more than 75 million people aged 18 and above on Connected TV in India in April 2025. According to Comscore data cited by the company, YouTube ranked No. 1 in reach across CTV screens among media platforms in India in May 2025.
For traditional production houses, the model also creates an alternative to commissioned-content arrangements with streaming platforms, where economics and IP ownership can vary significantly depending on the deal.
Commenting on the collaboration, Ekta Kapoor, Joint Managing Director, Balaji Telefilms Ltd., said, “Every story begins with a feeling, one that has the power to touch hearts, spark memories, and bring people together. For me, storytelling has always been about creating emotional connections that stay with audiences long after the screen goes dark.”
“As more and more viewers turn to YouTube to discover and engage with content, it presents an exciting opportunity to connect with audiences in the most innovative ways. Through this partnership with YouTube India, we’re opening a new chapter to share stories that entertain, inspire, and truly move people across the globe,” Kapoor added.
The YouTube partnership also fits into Balaji Telefilms’ broader attempt to reduce its dependence on television and build a larger films and digital business.
In a recent conversation with Storyboard18, Sanjay Dwivedi, Group CEO and Group CFO of Balaji Telefilms, said the company expects its traditional revenue mix to change significantly over the coming years, with motion pictures becoming its largest contributor, followed by digital and television.
“Primarily it was led by TV, then motion pictures, then digital. I think it will just turn upside down. Motion pictures will be the major contributor, followed by digital and then TV,” Dwivedi said.
Balaji’s digital commissioned-content order book currently stands at more than ₹350 crore. The company is also looking to build a more IP-led films business, producing around four to five films annually over the next three years and increasingly favouring projects where it can retain intellectual property.
“We are not shying away from the commissioning model. But we will be building more where there is reward and where we retain IP. That’s the model to go,” Dwivedi had said.
The YouTube deal reflects a similar approach, combining Balaji’s ownership of content IP with YouTube’s distribution, advertising and increasingly significant Connected TV reach.
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First Published on September 7, 2026, 12:58:08 IST
