MUMBAI: No dragons were harmed in the making of this story mostly because they now live in your ears. Fantasy, once the VFX-glutton of cinema and OTT, has found a sleeker, sound-based avatar and it’s booming on Pocket FM. Gone are the days when building a kingdom required a 300 million dollars budget and a green screen army. Today, all it takes is a mic, imagination, and the immersive magic of audio.

Once restricted by the cost of spectacle, fantasy is now unbound. Voice acting, rich sound design and tight storytelling are transporting listeners to enchanted forests, post-apocalyptic wastelands, and mythological battlegrounds all without leaving their headphones. Pocket FM is leading the charge, transforming India’s epic sensibilities and global fantasy hunger into a streaming revolution.

From interdimensional thrillers like Number Zero to modern mytho-sagas like Shoorveer, the app’s Hindi catalogue reads like a binge-list for fantasy junkies. Titles like Super Yoddha, Shivam, and Mahabali Mayank are giving traditional storytelling a tech-savvy twist. And in a major nostalgic coup, Pocket FM is reviving Shaktimaan India’s first superhero as an audio series for a whole new generation.

But this isn’t just desi drama. Pocket FM’s English-language fantasy series are climbing charts across the US, UK and Latin America. Shows like My Vampire System, Jack’s Retribution, and God’s Eye are proving that the genre travels and how. Several of these series have surpassed 100 million plays, with some galloping past the 500 million mark.

It’s a testament to fantasy’s enduring grip and audio’s new-age power. While video shackles creators with budgets, crews and camera gear, audio lets them run wild. One whisper can summon a war, one footstep can launch a saga. Creators can now build entire universes from dorm rooms or dining tables.

As Rom-coms chase virality and thrillers flood OTT, fantasy is quietly flourishing in your pocket literally. And audio is doing what CGI never could: make it personal. With earbuds in and the real world tuned out, fantasy becomes not just a genre, but a feeling.

The future of fantasy doesn’t just look good. It sounds epic.