BookStruck: Helping a million Indians read books in their own languages

It is hard to ascertain what goes on in the mind of 14 year old Jatin from Ratnagiri as he looks longingly at the waves of the Arabian ocean. One might wonder if he is lost in thought about Captain Ahab and Moby Dick (the giant whale). If only Jatin had the opportunity to read Moby Dick sometime between his school and work hours, this might actually be a reality. For Jatin and thousands of others like him, books like these are not easily accessible. A book like this may cost an entire day’s wage for many Indians. This stops many Indians from cultivating reading as a hobby or liking.

Times have changed today. These books can be easily accessed and read on any smartphone now. India is home to 300 million internet users and will see a growth of 300 million new users over the next decade.

It might come as a surprise to many, but the largest circulated newspapers in the country are not English newspapers. Neither are the most watched news channels in English. There is evidence to support the claims that the next generation of web and mobile media companies are likely to succeed by using regional languages as compared to English alone.

Akshar Desai, an IIT Bombay alumnus observed this and decided to do something about it. He has successfully developed an app called BookStruck that gives an opportunity to aspirational Indians to access content in English as well as any Indian language of their choice. Contributions by volunteers and independent authors which has amounted to over eight hundred books, apart from the hundreds of copyright free popular texts have helped add variety and intelligent content to BookStruck.

The BookStruck app has become a rage with avid readers across rural and urban India. The success of the app can be gauged from the fact that the BookStruck app on Google Play Store has seen more than a million downloads worldwide. Says Akshar Desai about BookStruck, “It is amazing to see how a few hours spent on weekends resulted in an initiative like this, which has positively impacted so many lives.”

Reasonably proud of the growing popularity of his app, Akshar wants BookStruck to become the definitive source of quality content in Indian language that encompasses diverse genres like sci-fi, fantasy, horror and other kinds of fiction. Judging from the kind of feedback that he regularly receives from users of this app, it does seem that he is onto something significant.

People have taken to this app quite comfortably. “I travel to work everyday in Mumbai local trains and like to read Tukaram Gatha(book of devotional poems in Marathi) to pass the time. The BookStruck app has made it much easier for me to read during my commute, as I no longer have to carry the book around.”, Ramakant Shinde, a youngster who commutes to work every day.

“I used the app to search for a nice ukhana during my marriage ceremony”, Smita Raje, a newly-wed app user.

It is interesting to note that bloggers writing in Marathi on subjects such as ‘Trekking in Sahyadri’ and ‘Maratha history’ have put up their work on BookStruck. From independent authors like Abhishek Thamke publishing many of his books on BookStruck, to housewives sharing recipe books that straddle cuisines from Goa to Punjab, these apps have succeeded in making people bond over quality content, like nothing else has.

The most interesting aspect of BookStruck is that the app development and content creation is mostly done on a voluntary basis, making it a community app. The app is already available on Google Play Store, App Bazar, Amazon, Underground and Windows App Store, soon to be launched on Apple Store as well.

It is perhaps Akshar’s Silicon Valley experience in building high quality apps that has helped BookStruck get the desired traction with users. It is refreshing to see an app that is successful with the contributions made by people directly as compared to the backing of investors alone, as is the norm these days. It is not surprising to note that BookStruck has higher than average retention and engagement metrics in the book apps category.

The growing proliferation of Internet enabled mobile phones that can run apps like BookStruck have the potential of being game changers in the true sense. Their ability to impart knowledge and expertise to a huge population across India irrespective of geography, opens up truly amazing possibilities for the previously neglected and underserved Indians.