India, Sept. 12 -- Mumbai-based Sushant Tungare, executive producer at the content company, Bulb Chamka, has made 18 micro dramas for different platforms in India in the last six months. This is just the tip of the iceberg for this format that's seeing scorching growth. More than a dozen new apps are populating their platforms with 100 to 500 micro-series each. Shot in the vertical format, micro drama comprises under 5 minute-episodes of stories around romance, crime, thrillers and comedy, aimed at mobile-first audiences. A rage in China and the US in the last few years, the format has caused a gold rush in India with tech firms, gaming companies and big streaming platforms entering the fray. Tungare has made several series for apps like Vertical TV, Flick TV and Hoichoi's micro drama brand Sooper. Now, the recently banned real-money gaming companies are calling him. "Since their original businesses disappeared overnight, they are looking to build something new very quickly. And what better than a low-hanging fruit like a micro drama app," said Tungare. It works for gaming companies which already have a loyal customer base in tier 2 and tier 3 cities. "Micro drama is the gamification of content," said Tungare, as most apps require viewers to buy coins to unlock more episodes once they get hooked to a series. On Tuesday, gaming company Zupee announced launching micro drama platform Zupee Studio offering comedy, crime and romance series to audiences in small towns. It will be competing in a crowded market where startups and content firms have already raised money to tap this opportunity. Bengaluru-based Flick TV, Telugu app Chai Shots and bite-sized Hindi micro-series platform Viralo - have got funding from individual investors and venture capital firms. Meanwhile, streaming biggies such as Z5, Amazon MX Player and SonyLIV are in various stages of launch preparations for their built-in micro dramas apps. In June, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd acquired a stake in short video app Bullet. The rollout of MX Fatafat from Amazon MX Player is also awaited. "Micro dramas. that space is still nascent in India, and what matters is not just foraying into it, but shaping it with the right content," said Amogh Dusad, director & head of content, Amazon MX Player. A viewer who enjoys a long-form series also looks for something quick and engaging in between moments. "We sensed this white space early on and are making great strides in filling up this emerging void," he added, without divulging the formal launch timeline for Fatafat. Akash Jain, associate creative director Originals (Hindi) at SonyLIV said all the big platforms, including SonyLIV, are serious about the opportunity, testing pilots and fine-tuning strategy. "All of them want to get it right and each will choose its own business model. Micro dramas are apt for branded content, traditional advertising and even innovative subscription models where you may earn coins to unlock episodes," Jain said. Announcing its partnership with Bullet, Zee had said the app will have gamification layers to increase user retention and loyalty through reward mechanisms. For content makers though, the existing micro drama platforms offer very poor remuneration for writing and production. "But right now, the push back is feeble since micro drama is what has energized the industry facing a slew of challenges with television work being flat, slowdown in web production and fewer and fewer films being made," said writer-producer Karan Kashyap. Actors, writers and directors who were sitting idle are employed. Besides, it is quick money - even if low - as the payments come in 10 days, said Kashyap, who has dabbled in the format for platforms like Kuku TV, Stage and Drama TV. Creative writer Shibani Keshkamat-Tait, who won the best micro drama series award at Content Asia for Pura-Pura Nikah for an Indonesian platform, however, said India's current business in this format follows no code of ethics, pays peanuts for content and steals concepts. "Above all, there's a glut of terrible shows and my fear is it may put Indian audiences off this format." But she hopes the market will change with bigger players launching their apps. "The format has huge potential to tell transformative stories." The real boom is expected when regional micro dramas take off, Tungare added....