Bhutanese streaming platform `Samuh’ gaining int’l recognition

CULTURAL DESK: The entertainment sector is a multibillion-dollar industry. Case in point, Netflix achieved a revenue of $29 billion in 2021. Noting the opportunity, a Bhutanese woman set out to establish one such entertainment platform — a Bhutanese Netflix if you will — known to Bhutan and the world as Samuh.

Samuh is an OTT (Over The Top — referring to any streaming service that delivers content over the internet) platform that offers a wide range of original, licensed, and curated Bhutanese content. The channel can be accessed at any time and from 117 countries around the world. Samuh was founded in 2020 and officially launched in July 2022.

While Samuh appears to be about entertainment, it really provides more than mere entertainment. At its heart, Samuh aims to preserve Bhutan’s rich culture and traditions, materialising this intention in the form of high-quality creative productions meant for viewers of all age groups, may it be among the Bhutanese or a niche international audience with an interest in Bhutan.

The content includes original films, original web series, documentaries, music videos, and kids’ cartoons. Samuh also cooperates with talents in the Bhutanese creative industry to produce the material.

The woman behind Samuh is Nyema Zam, founder and Chief Executive Officer of the up-and-coming streaming platform.

Nyema’s accomplishment as a woman leader running Samuh, seen by the remarkable growth of the product, was recently recognised when Nyema received the Rise Awards 2022, honoured as the winner of the Females Leading Business Operations in the Media, Broadcast, and Technology Sector category.

The Rise Award is a celebration of the outstanding talent, skill, expertise, and achievements of exceptional women across the broadcast technology and services sector. The awards received more than 300 applicants from around the world in 2022, among which only the top nominees in 16 different categories were shortlisted. The event was held in London, the United Kingdom. (The Bhutan Live)