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India loves messaging. From the early days of SMS packs to the WhatsApp era, conversations have shaped how we connect, transact, and even do business.
This month, a new name suddenly spiked into the charts: Zoho’s Arattai. Downloads surged, servers crashed, and “Made in India” cheer was loud. But as the initial buzz settles, the bigger question emerges: can Arattai truly rival global incumbents — and sustain usage?
The Surge
Arattai shot up the app charts, fueled by users testing a homegrown alternative.
Zoho’s credibility matters — the company runs profitable, global SaaS products and has a track record of building patiently.
Sridhar Vembu, Zoho’s CEO, admitted the sudden traffic pushed infrastructure to its limits — but emphasized the team’s ability to scale quickly.
Clearly, interest exists. But in messaging, interest is only the first battle.
The Challenge of Network Effects
Messaging apps live or die by network effects. If your friends and family are on WhatsApp, switching takes effort. Past challengers like Hike or Koo enjoyed bursts of attention, only to fade when sustained adoption failed.
Arattai must overcome:
- Switching inertia — people don’t like moving unless everyone they care about moves too.
- Feature parity — encryption, reliability, media sharing at scale.
- Trust — in security, privacy, and longevity.
Lessons for Founders
Arattai is more than a product story. It’s a case study for Indian founders:
- Timing creates openings. Policy shifts, global mistrust, or outages often give local challengers a window. But windows close fast.
- Infrastructure matters. Scaling to millions overnight is not a “marketing problem” — it’s a technical and operational one.
- Hype ≠ retention. Downloads don’t mean active users. Sustained adoption needs habit formation.
- Identity can be a moat. Arattai must stand for something beyond “Made in India.” Trust, community, or integrations can be differentiators.
Mirage or Movement?
Can Arattai sustain? The jury is out. Zoho has the discipline to play long-term unlike flashy startups chasing hype. But even with resources, network effects are brutal.
The more important shift may not be whether Arattai beats WhatsApp. It’s this: Indian users are open to trying, Indian builders are daring to compete, and the ecosystem is ready to test local products at scale.
Final Thought
Every surge tells a story. Arattai’s story isn’t about whether one app wins or loses. It’s about a larger signal — that Indian product builders have both the ambition and the audience to try.
Whether Arattai becomes a mainstay or a memory, it’s already sparked something bigger: the belief that India can build for itself, at scale.
