Business EconomyPosted at: Jul 15 2026 12:18AM


Non-metro creators now dominate India's creator economy: ISB-Hashfame report

Hyderabad, Jul 14 (UNI) India's creator economy has entered a new phase, with creators from non-metro cities now accounting for the majority of the country's digital content ecosystem, according to a report released jointly by the Indian School of Business (ISB) and creator platform Hashfame.
The report, titled Understanding the Canvas of India's Creator Economy, says the country's creator base has expanded more than fourfold over the past five years, rising from 0.96 million in 2020 to 4.12 million in 2025, with 66 per cent of creators now coming from non-metropolitan regions.
The study found that the number of creators from non-metro markets grew 6.4 times during the period, compared with 2.6 times in metropolitan cities, indicating rapid expansion of regional creator ecosystems.
Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra together account for nearly one-fourth of India's creators, while Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Gujarat have a disproportionately high number of creators relative to their population.
The report also noted a sharp increase in audience engagement despite the surge in content creators.
Average engagement rates rose from 1.8 per cent in 2020 to 7.2 per cent in 2025, while annual creator-led brand campaigns increased from about 14,000 to 42,000 and average campaign spending grew 3.6 times.
However, the study highlighted that monetisation remains uneven. Although the number of non-metro creators participating in brand campaigns increased from around 38,000 to over 4.08 lakh, most creators still undertake only one paid campaign a year, underscoring the need for sustainable business models and long-term brand partnerships.
Regional languages are also driving the sector's growth. While Hindi creators account for 42 per cent of the creator base, those producing content in Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Marathi, Bengali, Malayalam, Gujarati, Bhojpuri and other regional languages collectively form the majority, presenting significant opportunities for brands to engage regional audiences.
Madhu Viswanathan, Associate Professor of Marketing and Executive Director of the Srinivasa Raju Centre for IT and the Networked Economy (SRITNE) at ISB, said the next stage of growth would depend on helping creators build sustainable businesses through stronger creator-brand relationships and better monetisation opportunities.
Hashfame Co-founder and Head of Product Anirudh Sridharan said businesses need to move beyond one-off influencer campaigns and build long-term partnerships with creators who have established trust within their communities.
The report concludes that future growth of India's creator economy will depend on improving the quality of economic opportunities available to creators and recognising them as an important part of the country's digital entrepreneurship ecosystem.
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