I don't think Django is being held back at all. It's healthier than it has ever been.
Consider that the reason you don't hear about it isn't due to it not being used but instead to a cultural difference in the people who choose it. I don't think Django developers are particularly good at blogging and self-promotion compared to other projects. They communicate through mailing lists, IRC, twitter, email and documentation. I'm ok with that.
When I started my project, I evaluated a lot of different options and chose Django. One of the big factors was a cultural commitment to documentation and slow measured changes with lots of thought put into backward compatibility. Blog posts about hot startups that are using it is low on my list. (and if you do your research you will see that a surprising number of hot new startups are in fact using it)
Consider that the reason you don't hear about it isn't due to it not being used but instead to a cultural difference in the people who choose it. I don't think Django developers are particularly good at blogging and self-promotion compared to other projects. They communicate through mailing lists, IRC, twitter, email and documentation. I'm ok with that.
When I started my project, I evaluated a lot of different options and chose Django. One of the big factors was a cultural commitment to documentation and slow measured changes with lots of thought put into backward compatibility. Blog posts about hot startups that are using it is low on my list. (and if you do your research you will see that a surprising number of hot new startups are in fact using it)