NEW DELHI, India (Diya TV) — JioHotstar is taking Indian streaming content overseas for the first time. The platform launched in the United Kingdom, Canada and Singapore on Sept. 2. The move gives the service access to millions of viewers in the growing South Asian diaspora.
JioHotstar operates under JioStar, a media joint venture between Walt Disney Co. and Reliance Industries Ltd., led by billionaire Mukesh Ambani. The streaming service aims to use its large Indian content library to build a wider global audience.
JioHotstar offers more than 160,000 hours of content in more than 12 languages. Its lineup includes English, Hindi and Gujarati programming. The company also plans to add popular franchises and new shows featuring Bollywood stars.
Amit Malhotra, head of international business at JioStar, said South Asian audiences maintain strong connections with Indian entertainment. He also said viewers around the world increasingly want stories from different cultures.
Therefore, JioStar sees the overseas launch as more than an expansion of its Indian streaming service. The company wants to create a platform for a broader international audience.
The move also gives JioHotstar another path for growth. India has a highly competitive streaming market, although the platform has more than 500 million active users.
The South Asian diaspora offers JioHotstar a large potential customer base. More than 37 million people of Indian origin now live outside India, according to Indian government data.
Canada has about 3.2 million people of Indian origin. The United Kingdom has about 1.3 million. Singapore has about 483,000 overseas Indians.
Meanwhile, the wider South Asian population in these countries includes growing communities from Pakistan and Bangladesh. As a result, JioHotstar sees an opportunity to reach viewers who already know Indian television, Bollywood and cricket.
The platform will offer quarterly and annual subscription plans. Viewers can access the service through its mobile app and connected TVs. Existing Hotstar subscribers can also use the same accounts for JioHotstar, according to the company.
One of the platform’s biggest attractions will be Bigg Boss. The Indian reality show has developed into a major franchise over almost two decades.
The show started as a Hindi-language television program. It has since expanded into six language editions and gained a large streaming audience.
According to Ormax Media, the latest season ranked among India’s most-watched non-fiction streaming shows last year. It attracted about 8 million viewers each week.
JioStar said all six Bigg Boss editions reached more than 500 million viewers in 2025. The company also reported a 47% increase in engagement compared with the previous year.
In addition, JioHotstar plans to use Bollywood stars to attract viewers. Actor Anil Kapoor, who previously hosted Bigg Boss OTT, now leads a new prime-time game show on the platform.
However, the international version of JioHotstar will not include Disney’s Hollywood content or HBO Max programming. Licensing agreements with U.S. studios currently limit that content to the Indian market.
Instead, JioHotstar will focus on Indian entertainment, regional programming, sports, reality shows and original productions.
The company also plans to use AI-powered personalization to help viewers find content. That feature could help JioHotstar compete for subscription revenue in overseas markets.
JioStar said it wants to combine scale, language diversity and personalization as it expands internationally. The company also aims to encourage deeper audience participation.
The launch marks an important step for JioHotstar. If the service gains traction in the United Kingdom, Canada and Singapore, it could provide a model for further international expansion. For now, the company is betting that familiar Indian stories, stars, sports and languages can connect with audiences far beyond India.
