Premier content studio The Viral Fever (TVF) has officially confirmed its strategic entry onto India’s newly consolidated streaming giant, JioHotstar. In a move that marks the studio’s first original series for the platform, TVF will release Space Gen: Chandrayaan, a high-stakes drama chronicling the human side of India’s lunar missions, on January 23, 2026.
The 5-episode series, which stars popular television actor Nakuul Mehta and acclaimed actress Shriya Saran, signals a major genre shift for TVF, moving from slice-of-life comedies to large-scale historical dramas.
Created by TVF founder Arunabh Kumar and directed by Anant Singh, the show is not just a technical retelling of the Chandrayaan missions but a character-driven narrative focused on the scientists behind them.
The storyline specifically revisits the heartbreaking setback of the Chandrayaan-2 mission, which lost contact just 2.1 km from the lunar surface, and the resilience required to bounce back for future success.
“Chaand tak ka safar aasaan toh nahi tha, par Bharat ke liye namumkin bhi nahi tha! (The journey to the moon wasn’t easy, but for India, it wasn’t impossible),” the show’s official description reads, emphasizing the theme of national resilience.
In a move that has set social media ablaze, the teaser reveals a surprise cameo by Saurabh Dwivedi, the founding editor of The Lallantop.
The glimpse of Dwivedi in a newsroom setting, wearing his trademark kurta and jacket, is particularly explosive given the timing; he announced his resignation from the India Today Group just days ago, ending a 12-year tenure that redefined Hindi digital journalism.
While it remains unclear if he is playing a fictional anchor or a version of himself covering the lunar mission, the appearance has fueled speculation that the celebrated journalist might be pivoting to acting after his controversial exit.
The writing team includes Shubham Sharma, Prashant Kumar, and Nitin Tewari, with TVF President Vijay Koshy serving as Executive Producer. Lead actor Nakuul Mehta emphasised the script’s emotional depth, stating, “It doesn’t just celebrate the final triumph; it honors the grit required to return after failure.“
This partnership is a significant milestone for TVF, a studio that practically invented the Indian web series format. Traditionally, TVF has maintained strong ties with platforms like Amazon Prime Video (Panchayat), Netflix (Kota Factory), and SonyLIV (Gullak).
By partnering with JioHotstar, the entity formed from the merger of Reliance’s JioCinema and Disney+ Hotstar, TVF is diversifying its distribution strategy and tackling a more “premium” production scale.
