As normalcy starts to crawl back in many industries after the second wave of Covid-19 subsided, the one sector that is still faltering is the cinema. Apart from people, who are scared to venture out of their homes, the dominance of streaming platforms led to this. However, a lot of films, which didn’t get a good response at the time of their theatrical run, managed to get a renewed lease of life upon their release on OTT platforms.

The most recent example is Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar. The Dibakar Banerjee directorial released in select theatres earlier this year but didn’t garner much appreciation commercially. It was only after it came out on a web platform, it fetched rave reviews from audience and critics alike.

Actor Arjun Kapoor, who stars in Sandeep Aur... says, “I’m happy with the response the film has got upon its re-release on the web. You can’t control or predict this. The way it reached the audience might have been scattered and staggered through theatre and OTT, but a film that gets love like this will be remembered for a longer time.”

Films that didn’t have the conventional star or masala value too found a lot of takers in the digital space. Ramprasad Ki Tehrvi, helmed by actor Seema Pahwa, who made her directorial debut with the film, was much-talked-about when it reached wider audiences through OTT. Pahwa says the biggest benefit of such platforms is that they don’t have to face the box-office question. “You’re free to do your own creative thing. Aapka woh darr khatam ho jaata hai. These are the best platforms for anyone, even if you’re making low-budget films. Theatres have their own charm but OTT platforms have given a lot of opportunities to actors and directors,” shares the 59-year-old.

Trade expert Atul Mohan feels there’s a shift in the kind of stories being told and the way they’re being told. “Makers are now thinking of stories that can appeal to people across the globe and different diasporas. These platforms offer them that chance to reach out. People have the option, right in their homes to take chances and good content comes to the fore,” explains Mohan.

Talking about her film, Is Love Enough - Sir, actor Tillotama Shome says to see their independently made film travel through the precarious festival circuit to the homes of people was “an explosion of sorts”. “It dropped silently and then like this small wave, grew and gathered momentum. The platform gave it a massive wingspan, but the audience’s choice became the tailwind and we were suddenly flying. I’ll always be grateful and humbled by the power of these platforms,” she tells us.