Titas Chowdhury (HINDUSTAN TIMES; March 6, 2020)

Satish Kaushik forayed into the web space last year with The Chargesheet. He recently wrapped up the shoot of his second web series titled Scam 1992, directed by Hansal Mehta. The show will see him play a dreaded operator in Dalal Street who orchestrated the downfall of stockbroker Harshad Mehta. The veteran actor says that the digital space allows actors experiment with characters. “Look at Mirzapur, Delhi Crime, The Family Man, Sacred Games, Inside Edge and The Chargesheet, they all have different subjects and belong to different genres. Shows like these serve as great opportunities for actors,” he says.

He explains that watching a show on a smaller screen allows greater intimacy between a viewer and an actor. “Acting in web shows is as good as acting in films. Actors in a web show can be subdued and not resort to a loud performance while expressing themselves because a viewer is watching your performance in a very close proximity, on their phones and tablets. So, it’s exciting for actors,” he says.

Kaushik says that he has plans to produce content for the web. He shares, “My production company, headed by my nephew Nishant Kaushik, is developing web content and soon we’ll have a few shows in the pipeline.”

The Bharat (2019) actor says that the biggest plus that OTT platforms have is that they allow self-censorship. “Without hurting anyone’s sentiments, makers have the choice to show what and how he wants to. On the other hand, viewers can also decide what they want to see and what they don’t,” he says.

Ask him if the web is competing with films today and he says, “When television gained momentum, everyone said that it will give a competition to films. Now, that digital content is booming, people think that it will give a competition to cinema. The digital will have its own space and will never take away the charm of cinema viewing experience.”