After a year-long success of Comic Con India chapters, the ultimate fan-fest experience moved to Mumbai mid-April. For what was their first-ever trip to India, Japanese voice actors of ONE PIECE fame, Kappei Yamaguchi (Usopp) and Hiroaki Hirata (Sanji) graced the event, offering fans in the country a golden opportunity to built one-on-one rapport with them. In light of the Mumbai Comic Con‘s triumphant completion, which now stands testament to anime’s glorious and influential upward graph in India, Akshat Sahu, Crunchyroll’s senior director of marketing for the Asia-Pacific region shared exclusive insight into the streaming giant’s future.
This interview also comes on the heels of the Indian theatrical outing of Kaiju No 8: Mission Recon, which served as a primer to the rising anime series — condensed to fit the feature format — ahead of its second season premiere in July 2025. On top of that, the exclusive interaction follows the high-stakes finale of the fan-favourite Solo Leveling Season 2 in late March. These Crunchyroll-exclusive premieres equally amassed a massive fan-following in India, all thanks to the soaring demand for their dubbed counterparts in Indian languages Hindi, Tamil and Telugu.
Anime popularity in India
“Anime’s popularity in India has skyrocketed over the past few years,” says Akshat Sahu. “We’ve seen double-digit year-on-year growth in engagement and viewership, particularly among Gen Z and young millennials. Social media trends, the rise of fan communities, and strong dubbing support in regional languages have played a big part.”
Plus, with India ranking among the “top growth markets for Crunchyroll globally” — thanks to anime titles like Solo Leveling, ONE PIECE, Kaiju No.8 and Demon Slayer — this growth “reflects a shifting trend—anime is no longer niche; it’s part of pop culture.”
Crunchyroll’s immense growth is, in turn, tied to the soaring love for anime worldwide. Although notably strong fan communities exist in the United States, Latin America, Europe, and APAC, Sahu told us “India continues to grow rapidly and is among the top 10 regions” for the go-to anime hub.
The streaming platform’s marketable brand stays on top due to a balanced demand for classics like ONE PIECE and Naruto, which continue to “hold strong fan loyalty,” and new exclusive titles such as Solo Leveling, Mashle: Magic and Muscles, and Kaiju No.8, which “have quickly built large, dedicated fanbases.” As senior director of marketing, Sahu confirmed, Crunchyroll’s anime equilibrium is built around “nostalgia and novelty, which keeps the platform’s global audience coming back.
Winning over fans who still call anime dubs ‘cringey’
Despite the Indian anime voice casts brimming with unmatchable talents across the board, fans haven’t necessarily always agreed with dubbed versions of their favourite titles. While some continue to complain about authenticity and character personalities getting lost in translation, Crunchyroll India firmly believes their partnerships with “trained voice talent, culturally relevant scripts and skilled directors” ensure that the “essence of the original” is retained.
The platform’s goal has always been “to create a high-quality, immersive experience — not just translate but truly localise.” Hence, as Akshat Sahu put it, “When done right, dubs can enhance accessibility without sacrificing emotion or intent.” Regardless of some viewers finding dubs “cringey,” he highlighted how they have been “a game changer in India” by “making anime more accessible to a broader demographic — including first-time viewers.”
As of now, Crunchyroll’s library boasts over 100 titles dubbed in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu. “Titles like Solo Leveling and Kaiju No. 8 have seen strong uptake in Indian languages, particularly among younger audiences and viewers outside metropolitan areas,” Sahu noted.
Indian dubbing: Localising anime content
He credited this traction not only to the simuldub launch of Kaiju No 8 in all three Indian languages, but also collaboration with A-list actors, including Rana Daggubati and Ali Fazal, for working on Solo Leveling’s Indian dubs. In addition to the new titles climbing the popularity ladder, Crunchyroll further validated OG anime fans’ taste in content by recently launching Hindi, Tamil and Telugu dubs of the classic Japanese shonen series Naruto.
In the same breath, I asked the senior marketing director for the APAC region of the Indian branch of the anime platform about their plans to promote home-grown anime productions. To this, he replied, “We believe great stories told through anime can come from anywhere,” while making a case for “Indian stories (being) told in anime style and shared with a global audience” depending on the growth of fan interest and creator communities.
As for the evolution of localisation, it continues to be Crunchyroll’s “major focus — be it through high-quality dubs, subtitling or local events.”
Anime celeb collabs in India
Last year, acclaimed Indian actor Rana Daggubati took his villain era to a new level as he boarded the Solo Leveling anime voice cast train. At the time, Crunchyroll announced that the Baahubali superstar would be lending his daunting voice to the ruthless Ice Elf Barca across three Indian languages – Hindi, Tamil and Telugu – in both Solo Leveling Season 2 and the fan omnibus film Solo Leveling – ReAwakening.
For the first season of the beloved anime adaptation, Bollywood star Ali Fazal also turned voice actor to voice the character of Song Chiyul, a Korean C-Rank Hunter who takes the protagonist Sung Jinwoo under his wing, in Hindi.
Similarly, Crunchyroll’s first-ever ad campaign in India witnessed actors Rashmika Mandanna and Tiger Shrooff boarding the anime marketing wave. The strategic alliance celebrating anime in India even resulted in the Animal actress gracing the stage as a presenter at the 2024 Crunchyroll Anime Awards in Tokyo.
All these celebrity partnerships, with stars who are now recognised as “anime superfans,” were aimed at amplifying anime’s reach beyond its core fandom. “These stars bring fresh energy and credibility, helping us bridge anime with mainstream entertainment in India,” confirmed Sahu.
Further detailing the qualities they envision in their ideal picks for such campaigns or projects, he explained, “We look for personalities who genuinely connect with the character or story, have a natural appeal to our audience, and align with the values of the anime. Passion and authenticity for anime are key.”
Crunchyroll growth / competition
In addition to serving as a standalone platform, Crunchyroll launched its add-on subscription format via Prime Video last year. Consequently, it became the third anime OTT platform to be included on the Prime Video Channels catalogue alongside Anime Times and Animax Gem. Inevitably, the big-scale integration helped the anime platform reach new audiences on the mainstream front by providing “convenience and familiarity to fans already on the platform.”
Nonetheless, it has equally met with worthy competition from free services like Muse Asia’s YouTube channel broadcasting popular anime content without charging viewers. For that reason alone, the trusted platform boasts a following of nearly 8 million subscribers on YouTube (as of now). Meanwhile, its library offers free access to massive hits like Dan Da Dan, Spy X Family, That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime, One Punch Man, Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation and more.
But Crunchyroll’s package deal still remains an unbeatable opponent leading the race, offering limited free access on its side along with paid premium content locked behind subscriptions. “As for free services, they play a role in awareness-building, especially among new or price-sensitive fans. However, premium content, official dubs, and early access to blockbuster titles keep Crunchyroll’s value proposition strong and differentiated,” Akshat Sahu clarified.
What’s next for Crunchyroll India
Despite the love for anime surging like never before, the platform firmly believes “it’s only the beginning of anime’s growth and popularity.” Crunchyroll’s senior marketing director for the Asia-Pacific region said, the “growing appetite for new genres, deeper stories, and community-driven experiences” are proof of the anime community going beyond streaming.
With focus now on events, theatrical releases, special fan activations, and community building, Crunchyroll aims “to create experiences that let fans live the anime they love. There has never been a better time to be an anime fan.” Standing tall on that promise, the streaming banner already has an exciting slate planned ahead, featuring big-screen releases, fan conventions and immersive activations across India.
While Kaiju No 8: Mission Recon already came out in Indian theatres earlier this month, the highly anticipated Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle, the beginning of the beloved anime’s final trilogy, is set for the big-screen release on September 12. Sahu said, “These are just the beginning—fans can expect more cinematic experiences and community driven events throughout the year.”
Future Comic Con India outings, iconic guests
Filling the time before these releases, Crunchyroll unleashed the best of best anime experience for fans to live out in real life at the Mumbai Comic Con 2025 on April 12 and 13. As an unprecedented, big-scale lead-up to what’s yet come, this year’s Mumbai edition of the Indian Comic Con chapter rolled out the red carpet for legendary Japanese voice actors Kappei Yamaguchi and Hiroaki Hirata of ONE PIECE fame.
In addition to the exclusive appearance of actors who lend their voice to popular ONE PIECE characters Usopp and Sanji, Mumbai Comic Con unveiled a Kaiju No.8 game activation and an Egghead Island-style laboratory installation. All initiatives are a testament to Crunchyroll’s “continued effort to deepen fan engagement and expand the anime community in India beyond just streaming.”
Fret not if you didn’t catch a glimpse of the original ONE PIECE voice cast at this year’s Mumbai event. The streaming banner is dedicated to its “incredibly rewarding” practice of bridging the gap between Japanese voice actors and their Indian fans. Although Kappei Yamaguchi and Hiroaki Hirata came out for the Mumbai leg, that’s not the end of this conversation.
“We’re exploring opportunities to expand this to other cities and events. Indian fans are among the most passionate in the world, and we want to create more memorable moments that connect them directly with the talent behind their favorite characters,” the platform’s senior director of marketing said of bringing more such iconic talents to other Comic Con venues in the future.