Made in Korea and devoured and adored in India, the Korean wave

Everything from K-dramas and K-pop to Korean beauty and food is gaining popularity in India. Read on to find out more about the Korean wave.

After the pandemic-induced lockdown, popularity and consumption of Korean dramas, K-pop, and K-movies skyrocketed. Made in Korea and devoured and adored in India, the Korean wave. Everything from K-dramas and K-pop to Korean beauty and food is gaining popularity in India. Read on to find out more about the Korean wave.

Torsha Sen began watching The Heirs, a cult Korean Drama (K-drama) featuring one of South Korea’s most prominent actors, Lee Min-Ho, in December 2019 after a friend recommended it to her. “After I finished viewing the episode, I naturally went to Crash Landing on You” (CLOY). In terms of both the substance as well as how these concerts were handled, I was blown away. I was really captivated by it! I became a Hyun Bin fan almost instantly. After the pandemic lockdown, I watched more than 50 Korean episodes,” stated Sen.

When Mumbai-based art manager Sen was inspired by K-Dramas to launch Art Poure, her passion for Korean culture led her to prepare and distribute Korean food across Mumbai. During the lockdown, there were no Korean food alternatives. That’s how Art Poure came to be. Every dish is available, whether it’s ramen or gimbaps or bulgogi or corn dogs or Kimchi Bokkeumbap or home-bottled Kimchi.

The pandemic-induced lockdown, like Sen’s, resulted in a significant number of new Hallyu (Korean wave) converts as people binge-watched K-dramas, fueled by their outstanding presence on OTT platforms. The popularity of series like CLOY, Goblin, and Heirs, as well as K-pop artists like BTS, iKon, BlackPink, and others, has attracted a legion of followers who are absorbing and devouring every element of Korean culture and generating a market for their wares.