- India generated 223 million annual YouTube views for BLACKPINK as the group crossed 100 million subscribers, a first for any musical act.
- India now ranks among the top streaming markets for BTS, Stray Kids, SEVENTEEN, ENHYPEN, and BLACKPINK's solo artists.
- HYBE's expansion into Mumbai signals that K-pop companies are treating India as a long-term commercial bet, not a passing trend.
India now ranks among the world's top markets for K-pop on YouTube, with streaming data placing the country alongside established strongholds like South Korea and Indonesia. The shift points to a structural change in how the genre's biggest acts build and sustain global audiences.
How India powered BLACKPINK's path to 100 million YouTube subscribers
BLACKPINK made digital history in February 2026 by becoming the first musical act to cross 100 million YouTube subscribers. YouTube recognized the milestone with its Red Diamond Creator Award.
India is a significant part of that number. Over the past 12 months, BLACKPINK accumulated 223 million views from India alone, close to the 277 million views from South Korea. The gap between BLACKPINK's home market and India has narrowed to a point where the two are near-equivalent in streaming volume.
The group's latest single, GO, debuted on Feb. 27, 2026, and pulled 5.3 million views and 1.2 million likes within three hours of release.
India ranks in the top 10 for most major K-pop acts
India's influence on K-pop streaming extends well past BLACKPINK. According to Music Ally, India ranked in the top 10 YouTube markets over the same 12-month period for Lisa and Rosé (BLACKPINK's solo acts) at No. 3, BTS at No. 4, Stray Kids at No. 7, SEVENTEEN at No. 8, and ENHYPEN at No. 9.
This is not a recent phenomenon. BTS has charted consistently on Indian streaming platforms since Spotify launched in the country in 2019, and the genre's listenership has since spread from metro cities into smaller towns. BTS currently has 26.2 million monthly Spotify listeners and BLACKPINK has 22.2 million, according to Spotify data.
South Korea's own government data has acknowledged the economic weight of K-pop's global soft power push, with India figuring prominently in that calculus.
Why HYBE and other K-pop companies are investing directly in India
Streaming numbers alone don't explain the full picture. In September 2025, HYBE opened a subsidiary in Mumbai, marking one of the first direct investments by a major K-pop company in the Indian market. Months earlier, the Seoul-based company had already tested the waters with "Hybe Cine Fest," an Asia-wide event held across 10 countries in July 2025 that screened official concert films in over 90 PVR INOX cinemas across Indian cities including Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, and Bengaluru.
The move represents a shift from passive digital consumption to active, on-the-ground commercial operations. For an industry that has historically concentrated its physical presence in East and Southeast Asia, a Mumbai office is a deliberate bet on India's long-term value.
India's K-pop economy now touches fashion, food, and live entertainment beyond music streaming. Fan conventions, Korean food pop-ups, and regional fan clubs have grown steadily across Indian cities, creating a commercial ecosystem that K-pop labels are only beginning to monetize directly.
