India’s ‘Swadeshi’ Chat App Arattai Soars to #1, Leaves WhatsApp Reeling – Can It Keep the Momentum?

• Key Facts: Arattai, a homegrown messenger by Zoho, surged to #1 on India’s app charts, briefly surpassing WhatsApp ^[1]. Backed by government heavyweights, it markets itself as a “Made in India”, spyware‑free alternative ^{[2] [3]}. The feature set is familiar – one‑to‑one and group chats, voice/video calls, media sharing, “stories” and channels – but with a strong privacy pitch (no ad‑tracking or data mining) ^{[4] [5]}. Crucially, Arattai encrypts calls end-to-end but has yet to roll out full chat encryption ^{[6] [7]}, a gap contrasted with WhatsApp’s always‑on E2E security. The app’s sudden popularity has strained Zoho’s servers, causing OTP delays and sync lags; the company says it’s “working hard to expand servers” and should stabilize “in a couple of days” ^{[8] [9]}.

India Today reports that Arattai “raced to the top spot in app stores, surpassing WhatsApp” ^[10]. In late September 2025 the Chennai‑based Zoho quietly saw its years‑old chat app shoot up the Google and Apple rankings, driven by a wave of patriotic downloads and social media buzz. As Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan noted on X (formerly Twitter), Arattai is “free, easy-to-use, secure, [and] safe” and fully developed in India ^[11] – echoing Prime Minister Modi’s call to back “Swadeshi” tech. Pradhan’s post explicitly urged citizens to switch to Indian messaging tools ^{[12] [13]}, giving Arattai a major visibility boost. Even Union IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw highlighted Zoho’s suite (including Arattai) at a Cabinet briefing, underscoring the govt’s push for local apps.

Zoho’s founder Sridhar Vembu has said Arattai was engineered with India’s needs in mind. The app is designed to run smoothly on low-end phones and in low‑bandwidth areas – Vembu notes they even tested it on 8 kbps connections ^{[14] [15]}. Arattai (Tamil for “casual chat”) supports text, voice and video messaging, group chats of up to 1,000 people, multimedia sharing, “stories” and broadcast channels ^{[16] [17]}. It also offers multi-device sync (desktop and even Android TV clients) and business tools for audiences. Importantly, Zoho promises it will not mine personal data or insert ads, a direct counter‑narrative to Big Tech platforms facing privacy scrutiny ^{[18] [19]}. Tech entrepreneur Vivek Wadhwa, who tested Arattai, hailed it as “India’s WhatsApp killer” (at least in feel and polish) and said he was excited for “a spyware‑free product” ^[20].

Yet Arattai still trails its Goliath rival in key ways. WhatsApp is entrenched with over 500 million Indian users ^[21], so converting a quick download into daily habit is a steep climb. Most critically, Arattai’s messaging encryption is incomplete: it only encrypts calls end‑to‑end today, while chat encryption (promised “soon” ^{[22] [23]}) is still under development. As Hindustan Times notes, “Arattai provides end-to-end encrypted calling but not end-to-end encrypted messaging,” unlike WhatsApp which secures both by default ^[24]. This security gap may deter privacy‑conscious users. Industry observers also point out that Arattai faces the classic “network effect” hurdle: for example, Hike – a domestic WhatsApp competitor that once hit 100 million users – ultimately shut down in 2021 because it couldn’t match WhatsApp’s simplicity and user base ^{[25] [26]}.

Another immediate challenge is technical growing pains. The craze around Arattai triggered unexpected server overloads. Zoho warned users about OTP delays, slower contact sync and occasional lag on signup ^{[27] [28]}. The company publicly apologized and assured everyone it’s scaling up infrastructure to handle the surge ^{[29] [30]}. In the short term, some early adopters have reported sign‑in issues and syncing hiccups. How quickly Zoho can shore up its backend will be key to retaining new users as the initial buzz fades.

Market Context: While WhatsApp has dominated Indian messaging for years, alternatives have periodically surfaced. Telegram and Signal gained some traction (especially during privacy scares), and apps like Samsung’s ChatON and Reliance’s JioChat exist, but none approached WhatsApp’s ubiquity. Domestic attempts have struggled: besides Hike, even the Indian Army’s own Raksha app (a soldiers’ messenger) didn’t reach civilians. In contrast, Arattai’s appeal is bolstered by a unique blend of patriotic appeal and polished UI. It is also multilingual and built to work offline or on patchy networks, aligning with India’s digital inclusion goals ^{[31] [32]}. Such design choices may carve out niche adoption in rural or low‑income regions that mainstream apps neglect.

Expert Analysis: Industry analysts caution that hype and headlines don’t guarantee staying power. As one FinExpress report observes, Arattai’s moment in the spotlight is “impressive,” but the real test is converting that interest into reliable user trust and fixing feature gaps ^[33]. Sridhar Vembu himself has emphasized patience – the app is still in alpha/testing phases, and Zoho is using the feedback to improve performance. Meanwhile, nationalistic fervor and government backing give Arattai a rare momentum. “The PM’s call for a sovereign social media app reminds me of Hike,” noted one user on X, pointing out past failures ^[34]. But others see a difference: a homegrown champion with two decades of “patient engineering” behind it ^[35] could change the game.

Looking Ahead: For now, Arattai’s ascent is a boon for Indian tech pride – it literally hit number one in the Apple and Google app stores ^{[36] [37]}. Zoho is clearly basking in the moment, but executives know this is just the opening act. The company must rapidly stabilize its servers, add promised features like full encryption, and keep users engaged. If it succeeds, Arattai could become a solid alternative messaging ecosystem. If not, it may revert to relative obscurity once the patriotic fever cools. Either way, its rise has intensified the conversation about digital sovereignty, user privacy and competition in India’s messaging market.

Sources: News reports and expert commentary from India Today ^{[38] [39]}, Indian Express ^{[40] [41]}, Hindustan Times ^{[42] [43]}, Economic Times ^{[44] [45]}, Financial Express ^{[46] [47]}, NDTV ^[48] and other outlets (cited above).

References

1. www.indiatoday.in, 2. www.indiatoday.in, 3. economictimes.indiatimes.com, 4. www.indiatoday.in, 5. www.indiatoday.in, 6. www.indiatoday.in, 7. www.hindustantimes.com, 8. www.indiatoday.in, 9. www.financialexpress.com, 10. www.indiatoday.in, 11. www.hindustantimes.com, 12. www.hindustantimes.com, 13. economictimes.indiatimes.com, 14. economictimes.indiatimes.com, 15. www.financialexpress.com, 16. www.indiatoday.in, 17. www.indiatoday.in, 18. www.indiatoday.in, 19. www.financialexpress.com, 20. www.indiatoday.in, 21. www.indiatoday.in, 22. www.indiatoday.in, 23. economictimes.indiatimes.com, 24. www.hindustantimes.com, 25. www.indiatoday.in, 26. www.ndtv.com, 27. www.indiatoday.in, 28. economictimes.indiatimes.com, 29. www.indiatoday.in, 30. www.financialexpress.com, 31. economictimes.indiatimes.com, 32. www.financialexpress.com, 33. www.financialexpress.com, 34. www.ndtv.com, 35. economictimes.indiatimes.com, 36. www.indiatoday.in, 37. economictimes.indiatimes.com, 38. www.indiatoday.in, 39. www.indiatoday.in, 40. indianexpress.com, 41. indianexpress.com, 42. www.hindustantimes.com, 43. www.hindustantimes.com, 44. economictimes.indiatimes.com, 45. economictimes.indiatimes.com, 46. www.financialexpress.com, 47. www.financialexpress.com, 48. www.ndtv.com