'Ab India Bolega': Patanjali launches 'Kimbho' to compete with WhatsApp
What's the story
After tying up with BSNL to launch Swadeshi Samriddhi SIM cards (meant for employees only), Yoga Guru Ramdev's Patanjali on Wednesday announced an app called 'Kimbho' to compete with WhatsApp. The app will apparently allow users to chat individually or in groups, just like WhatsApp. Users will also be able to follow celebrities. The tagline of the 'Swadeshi' messaging app is 'Ab Bharat Bolega'.
The features
Will Kimbho compete with WhatsApp? Here's looking at its features
The real-time messaging app, with a size of only 40 MB, can be downloaded from Google Play. Little is known about iOS version of it. It is encrypted by AES, and allows auto-delete messages and wipe-out features. It lets users block others or leave conversations. Amid the raging privacy debate, it has one edge: Kimbho claims it won't save user data on servers.
Twitter Post
The big announcement of Kimbho
#किम्भो संस्कृत में हाल-चाल पूछने और खैर-खबर लेने के लिए आम संवाद में प्रयोग होता है जैसे हम बोलते हैं "किम्भो भैया" यानी..क्या हाल है भैया और क्या चल रहा है, क्या खबर है?
— tijarawala sk (@tijarawala) May 30, 2018
अब भारत बोलेगा..किम्भो
अब भारत पूछेगा ..किम्भो@narendramodi @yogrishiramdev @bst_official @Ach_Balkrishna https://t.co/6viDpigQHM
Only for employees
After making household products, Patanjali shifts to telecom sector
Patanjali, which is famous for producing household and kitchen products, tested waters in the telecom sector with the announcement of 'Swadeshi Samriddhi' SIM cards. For this, it tied up with the "swadeshi" BSNL. However, it will only be available for Patanjali employees. At Rs. 144, they will be able to make unlimited calls across the country, and get 2G data and 100 SMSes daily.
Information
The question is: Will Kimbho trump WhatsApp?
In India, WhatsApp has over 1 billion downloads and has over the years become the go-to messaging app of the country. While the features of Kimbho are surely competitive, trumping the market would definitely not be easy.