Crunchyroll: Fans Demand Better Hindi Dubs Instead of Partnerships With Bollywood Stars and Influencers

Crunchyroll has announced a partnership with Bollywood actor Tiger Shroff to “celebrate” anime in India. According to the company, this collaboration aims to “elevate and evangelize” the brand and expand its reach to fans across India. However, the announcement has received mixed reactions from anime fans, as some are disappointed with Crunchyroll’s priorities. Crunchyroll has received criticism for being unresponsive and uncommunicative, particularly regarding complaints about poor Hindi dubs that Indian fans have tried to bring to its attention.

Why are Indian fans upset with Crunchyroll?

The recent Hindi dub of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Season 3 has received significant criticism from fans for its awkward translation and poor dubbing quality. Fans also think Crunchyroll has been out of touch with the Indian fanbase for quite some time.

“Crunchyroll India’s team is highly unresponsive when it comes to fan comments and feedback,” said Ken Xyro, a prominent content creator in the Indian anime community. “They rarely engage or communicate with Indian fans, regardless of the situation. The quality of the Hindi dubs they did for some anime, particularly Demon Slayer, has been disappointing. Many fans are upset because Crunchyroll seems to ignore what fans want, and instead focuses on random collaborations that no one needed or asked for in the first place. The previous collaborations they have undertaken were with creators who are unfamiliar and insignificant to the Indian anime fanbase.”

Fans have taken to the comments section of the Instagram post announcing the partnership between Tiger Shroff and Crunchyroll to express their complaints. They are also critical of Crunchyroll prioritising celebrity partnerships for promoting anime.

India already has a large anime fanbase, and many feel that such partnerships are not needed. The focus should instead be on improving the dub quality. Fans also think that the company should look at acquiring more popular anime shows for the platform rather than spending money on these promotions. “Better increase your dubbing quality first,” wrote one user. “Use this money to improve the quality of the Hindi dub instead,” chimed in another. “Please don’t waste money on partnering with big stars, we care about content, try to acquire more popular TV shows such as Attack on Titan,” added another.

Other celebs Crunchyroll could partner with to promote anime

Some fans also suggested alternative Indian actors that Crunchyroll could have partnered with for the promotion. This list of actors includes Disha Patani and Rashmika Mandal. Both Patani and Mandal are known to be avid anime fans, with Patani even showcasing her love for anime frequently on her Instagram stories. She also has a dedicated story highlight on her Instagram profile for anime.

At the same time, it is worth mentioning that Shroff is also an anime fan, particularly of Dragon Ball Z. He is such a dedicated fan of the series that his manager commissioned a Dragon Ball Z-themed fan art for his birthday.

Others are of the opinion that there is no need for Crunchyroll to partner with Bollywood stars at all. They believe that the reason they watch anime is because Bollywood has nothing to offer them.

IGN India has reached out to Crunchyroll for comment. This article will be updated with any response received.