From Baahubali to Tripurantak: The Business of Mythology in Modern Entertainment How Indian mythology is evolving from sacred storytelling to a billion-dollar creative IP - blending emotion, economy, and enterprise.
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When Baahubali set a new benchmark for Indian cinema's scale in 2015, it not only shattered records – it also carved out a new commercial niche: the mythology business. Nearly ten years later, the mythology territory is still enthralling India's visual imagination, with high-profile upcoming projects like Kalki 2898 AD, Hanuman, Ramayana: The Legend Retold, and now, Jio Studios' ambitious Tripurantak plowing new ground on the mythic storytelling front, literally on the world stage.
But the original creative inspiration has formed a new calculated strategy. Mythology is no longer simply a focus on divines and netherworlds, because it is an intellectual property (IP) ecosystem that is multi-layered in appeal with nostalgia, visual grandeur, and scalable to the market.
The Mythology Boom: Emotion Meets Economy
India's connectivity to mythology has always been a deep emotional connection. This emotional connection can now be seen fueling a booming entertainment economy – from streaming to animation, games to merchandise. Baahubali: Crown of Blood (Netflix) and Kalki 2898 AD (Vyjayanthi Movies) have demonstrated how mythological universes are under way to being reborn into franchises with appeal across platform and linguistic barriers.
Jio Creative Labs' upcoming Tripurantak aims to take this momentum to the next level. Described as a mythological epic imagined for the "world stage," the project signals Jio's growing creative ambition and its belief in mythology's commercial durability.
"I think it started as creative inspiration, an attempt to reimagine familiar stories with scale and emotion," says Aditya Bhat, Head of Jio Creative Labs.
"But over time mythology has evolved into a language of its own within Indian cinema. The audience's relationship with these stories is emotional, not just nostalgic, so the opportunity isn't purely commercial - it's cultural. With Tripurantak, we're exploring that intersection: storytelling that's rooted in mythology but imagined for the world stage."
The Fine Line Between Reverence and Reinvention
While mythology's visual potential is immense, it comes with an equally big responsibility - cultural sensitivity. For creators, the challenge is to respect faith while still innovating for modern audiences.
"You can't treat mythology as source material alone — it's part of people's faith and identity," explains Bhat.
"So we approach it with deep research and respect, but we also ask — what is the universal emotion here? Love, purpose, ego, redemption, those themes are timeless. It's not about modernizing the gods, it's about making their stories resonate with modern audiences."
This equilibrium is the difference between projects that feel authentic and projects that feel opportunistic. For Jio Creative Labs, it's not just about pure spectacle, but substance, crafting mythical experiences that are both emotionally and visually transformative.
Is Mythology the Next Big Goldmine for IP?
In a franchise-building obsessed market, mythology has unlimited narrative resources at their disposal. However, intention, as Bhat points out, is what is most important.
"Mythology as a genre isn't fatigued — repetitive storytelling is," he says.
"If every project is a retelling of the same battles or deities, then yes, fatigue sets in quickly. But if creators use mythology as a lens rather than a template, the possibilities are endless. Tripurantak isn't about recreating what's already been done, it's about expanding the visual and emotional vocabulary of myth."
The Future of the Mythverse
What is at the heart of this contemporary "mythverse" isn't just storytelling, it's synergy. Production companies are establishing cross-medium mythological intellectual properties (IPs), which range from OTT, cinema, animation, comics, and collectibles. The combination of scale, emotional touchpoints, and cross-generational appeal creates a rare form of market resilience.
With Tripurantak, Jio Creative Labs is also hoping for the same formula, where mythology is not an object from the past but a versatile, evolving brand of the future.
Because in India, the gods live not just in temples or textbooks anymore, they now live in cinematic universes, streaming platforms, and billion-dollar business strategies.
