Vernacular-First Localization at Scale

Context

English-first is a ceiling in India. The next hundred million users discover and trust products in their own language — and no incumbent app store treated Indic languages as first-class.

What I did

Led vernacular-first localization across 12 languages — not string translation but a discovery experience designed for vernacular users.

Impact

• Vernacular users became 40% of active users and 50% of total downloads — half the store's growth came from users English-first competitors underserved

Skills: i18n/localization strategy · Bharat-user product sense · scale execution