Audible launches Audible Suno; produces content to match Indian tastes

Audible, the world’s largest seller and producer of audio entertainment and audiobooks, today introduced a new service created exclusively for Indian listeners. Audible Suno, available for free on Android devices, offers unlimited, free access to hundreds of hours of audio entertainment, enlightenment and learning featuring many of India’s favourite celebrities and personalities.

At launch, Audible Suno offers more than 60 original and exclusive series in both Hindi and English. Each show is comprised of short, easy-to-digest episodes featuring stars like Amitabh Bachchan (Kaali Awaazein), Katrina Kaif, Karan Johar (Picture Ke Peechhe), Anil Kapoor, Farhan Akhtar, Mouni Roy, Anurag Kashyap, Tabu, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Diljit Dosanjh, Vir Das and Vicky Kaushal.

The range of fiction series includes horror (Kaali Awaazein), romance/relationships (Matrimonial Anonymous and Piya Milan Chowk), and suspense (Thriller Factory), while the comedy series on Audible Suno feature India’s funniest comedian (The Unexperts by Abish Mathew). Non-fiction series available on Audible Suno include intimate interviews with some of the country’s biggest stars (Kissa Khwabon Ka, Picture Ke Peechhe); socially relevant series that explore topics like mental health, sex education and the rights of the LGBTQI+ community (Azaad Awaaz, SentiMental). Dale Carnegie (translated in Hindi), Om Swami, Radhakrishnan Pillai and Divya Prakash Dubey are among the top authors featured on Audible Suno.

With Audible Suno, Audible enables listeners to turn their idle time into “found time” and unlock more hours every day to fill with entertainment and learning. Whether listeners are riding on the bus or the local train, are busy doing chores or cooking, are working out at the gym or even relaxing at home, Audible Suno offers the perfect solution to spend the time meaningfully.

“Audible Suno is a world-first for Audible, and reflects our commitment to creating exceptional entertainment for our Indian customers,” said Audible founder and CEO Don Katz. “I’ve always been passionate about the transformative power of the spoken word, and I’m delighted to be able to offer this breadth of famous voices and culturally resonant genres with unlimited access, ad-free and free of charge.”

“In India, our love of storytelling is ingrained in our culture, as we share stories generation after generation, and as we create and pass on new stories with family and friends today. Since its founding, Audible has worked in service of a singular purpose: to ignite the power of sound to entertain, inspire and move listeners, which we will now further with the launch of an India-first offering – Audible Suno,” said Shailesh Sawlani, VP, Country Manager India, Audible.

Amitabh Bachchan (Kaali Awaazein) said, “I have always believed that audio is an incredibly powerful, yet thus far under-utilized entertainment medium in India, and it is exciting that Audible is poised to change that. It is breaking new ground with spoken-word entertainment, showcasing a wide range of deeply Indian stories told by some of India’s most famous voices. The series featuring my voice, Kaali Awaazein, is a fictional psychological thriller inspired by ghost stories and supernatural sightings, designed with immersive 3D sound to make these stories come alive on Audible Suno in a way I hope my fans would enjoy. It has been a first-time experience for me and one that I have enjoyed doing.”

“As an artist and director, I’m constantly on the lookout for new ways to present riveting stories. With Audible Suno, I am thrilled by the opportunity to create cutting-edge audio entertainment in a completely new format. Audible Suno has inspired me to push the envelope when it comes to storytelling, harnessing the power of audio,” said Thriller Factory director and presenter Anurag Kashyap.

“What excites me about Audible Suno is being able to explore a completely different format as an artist. I think an audio show can spark imagination in ways that few other formats can, leading to a powerful experience as a listener. I am proud to be a part of what promises to be a wonderful and rewarding journey,” said Thriller Factory performer and actor Tabu.

“Comedy can often rely on being visually engaging. So, Be Stupid with Vir Das was a cool creative puzzle - trying to get the funny from my mouth to your ears with nothing in between! More than anything else, I got to sit down with amazing people. I'm a storyteller at heart and I can't wait to bring you their hilarious and stupid stories. I’m so glad I was able to explore this new medium with Audible Suno, and I hope my audience listens to me and other series on the app, from my particular stupid...all the way to the sensible,” said comedian Vir Das.

The Audible Suno app is now available to download for free on devices that run Android 4.4 onwards. iOS users in India can access Audible Suno content for free as well via the current iOS Audible app.

Audible Suno is a distinct offering from Audible’s audiobook service, which launched for Indian customers in November 2018 to provide members with access to a large library of over 200,000 audiobooks, including more than 250 recently added titles in Hindi and Urdu. Among the selections available in Hindi are Charag by Waseem Bareilvi, Manas Ka Hans by Amritlal Nagar and Buri Ladki by Priyanka Gupta, as well as translations of works including Meeri Gita by Devdutt Pattanaik, The Mastery Manual by Robin Sharma and Chanakya Mantra by Ashwin Sanghi. One year on, Audible is solidifying its commitment to Indian listeners and to growing the rapidly evolving category with the launch of Audible Suno, an India-first, free-of-cost audio entertainment service.