Arattai: The United States Messaging Competition
What Is Arattai?
Name & Origin: Arattai is a Tamil word that translates to “chat” or “conversation.”
Developer: The software was developed by the Indian tech firm Zoho Corporation, based in Chennai, India.
Launch: Arattai was soft-launched in early 2021, which coincided with a concern for its usage as a result of WhatsApp's updated privacy policy.
Feature & Description
Chats, media & calls: Exchange text messages, send audio notes, share media (photos/videos/documents), make audio & video calls.
Group chats & Channels: Support for groups, stories/status updates, and broadcast channels (for notifications or content to multiple users).
Multi-device and cross-platform support: Users can run Arattai on all of their devices: smartphone, tablet, computer, even Android TV. You can have up to five devices running at once.
Pocket: There is a private/self chat space for your own notes, media, reminders—a private storage or “cloud chat” feature within the app.
Meetings tab: Integrated video conferencing, schedule meetings, etc. Effectively we are bringing features to the messenger similar to Google Meet/Zoom.
Strengths & USPs
Arattai has several advantages that differentiate it in the Indian messaging space:
Made in India / Data Localisation: Appeals to the users who are searching for local options, while being privacy-centric. The app stores data claim to be in India, which helps build compliance and trust.
Optimised for low-end devices and low bandwidth: The app has been intended to function well on lower-spec output phones, older networks (2G/3G) and limited size memory.
Free and ad-free: Zoho claims that Arattai will be free to use and ad-free, and does not share user data for ad targeting.
Privacy & Security – Current Status & Gaps
Although Arattai pledges privacy and security, several important caveats warrant discussion.
Calls are end-to-end encrypted, so voice and video calls are protected so that only participants can access the content.
Plain text messages (text chats) currently are not end-to-end encrypted by default, which is a major difference with WhatsApp, Signal, etc.
Zoho has publicly committed to a more broad message encryption undertaking in the future.
Growth in Popularity & Adoption
Arattai is experiencing rapid growth in usage:
User growth: New sign-ups spiked from ~3,000 per day to ~350,000 daily in a matter of days.
Chart performance: It rapidly rose to the #1 position in the Social Networking category on the App Store in India.
Download count: In a short period, it reached millions of downloads.
Government & public endorsements: Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and others urged people to use indigenous digital platforms, such as Arattai, as part of “Aatmanirbhar Bharat” (self-reliant India).
Obstacles & What to Monitor
While it has a lot going for it, Arattai must address challenges before it can compete with the incumbents:
Privacy: Until all messaging is encrypted end-to-end by default, some will hesitate to move over.
Network effects: Many people use WhatsApp or Telegram, in part, because everyone else uses it. Moving a large set of users (whether friends, family, or business users) will be challenging.
Performance & scale: It has already shown to outgrow its infrastructure fairly quickly. Zoho has already acknowledged repeated issues (delayed responses from server, OTP issues, etc.)
Feature parity: While Arattai includes many of the same basic features, to some degree, there are additional features to catch up on (more standard username vs. phone number based identity, privacy in group-chats, disappearing messages, etc.). Some users indicate they are missing some of these features.
Future Directions and Next Steps
According Zoho:
- Full end-to-end encryption for messages is being worked on.
- Structural improvements to the infrastructure to deal with peak loads of usage account for, less lag, and improve reliability.
- Further additions of features, such as more robust privacy settings, better ease of cross-platform use, and more UI/UX polish.
Conclusion
Arattai is a timely entry into India's messaging market - a "made-in-India", privacy-friendly, lightweight option, designed for those worried about using global platforms. The speed of its adoption suggests there is excitement and demand for alternatives. However, whether Arattai can maintain its momentum will depend significantly on its ability to bolster security (encryption for messages especially), improve its performance, and achieve some mass adoption for it to actually be useful in all users' social contexts.
With a growing user base and ongoing development, Arattai is worth watching, especially if you believe in digital sovereignty, privacy, or are just looking for a new messaging option for India.
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