With no box office numbers to lean on, the focus may shift from a film’s stars to its story 
Juhi Chakraborty (HINDUSTAN TIMES; August 30, 2020)

The Coronavirus pandemic, which brought the entertainment industry to a standstill, also made producers realise that releasing new films digitally is the best option for now. And films have been making a beeline to get a release on OTT platforms. But in the absence of box office numbers or any indicators to determine a film’s success or failure, there is no clarity on which actor’s film is faring better than the other’s, thus leaving the ‘star’ system redundant .

Ad filmmaker-turned-Hindi film director Vinil Mathew says since we don’t have any way to measure the popularity of a film or an actor, “it does kind of dilute and affect the brand value of an actor. I think till one devises parameters, there is no way to assess an actor’s value any more on the basis of his films. A star is a product of theatrical releases and, without it, obviously it would affect their stardom”.

The lack of box office figures makes OTT releases an entire game of perception management since there is little authentic data to back it up. “Anybody can say ‘these many people have watched my film on the first three days’, there is no way to authenticate it. Stardom is out of the question now. One important component of stardom was pulling people to the theatres, there is nothing like that on OTT platforms. The push, pull and aura of stardom have completely vanished on OTT,” says film marketeer Varun Gupta, founder-director of MAX Marketing.

Not all are complaining, though. Actor Amyra Dastur, who has starred in a web-only released film Rajma Chawal (2018), says things are better now than ever before because everything is based on word-of-mouth, not just box office collections. “Now you have to do everything based on talent. Yes a big star’s name is going to garner more interest but, at the end of the day, it is all about how good the content is. All you care about is whether it was good or not, just like in old times,” shares the actor.

The democratic nature of OTT platforms is what might make the star system and the concept of star value obsolete, feels actor Nimrat Kaur.

Agrees ad filmmaker Prahlad Kakar, who says that the OTT platforms have made the star system “very open”. “People will respect you if they relate to you, if not then they will diss you. Now with the OTT (releases) there is a breath of fresh air. It is all about content and a star does not matter,” he explains.

“Value is dependent on how you measure it. For both, the actors and us, ” expresses Aparna Acharekar, programming head, ZEE5 India, while adding, “We have had plenty of stars whose debut films premiered on the platform and the response has been phenomenal! For instance, Shalini Pandey and Aditya Rawal received immense appreciation for their roles in Bamfaad and we left no stone unturned when it came to talking about their hard work. The reach that we, as a video streaming platform are able to provide not just in India, but globally, is immense and talent – newcomers or established – are seeing this as a huge opportunity.”

With four films up for release on July 31, for first time in Bollywood, mid-day examines if there's such a thing as a box office clash in OTT world
Mohar Basu, Uma Ramasubramanian (MID-DAY; July 20, 2020)

After Bollywood began exploring digital premiere of films since June, it was only a matter of time before we would witness a clash of movies. Come July 31, four films will compete for viewers' attention — while Vidya Balan's Shakuntala Devi drops on Amazon Prime Video, Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Radhika Apte-starrer Raat Akeli Hai and Kunal Kemmu's Lootcase will stream on Netflix and Disney+ Hotstar respectively. They will have a rival in Vidyut Jammwal's Yaara that will have dropped 24 hours earlier on ZEE5. With factors such as screen count and opening weekend collections no longer coming into play, how will a four-way clash pan out in the digital world?

Honey Trehan, who has helmed the Netflix outing, believes the beauty of the OTT world lies in the freedom it offers from box-office numbers. "There is no concept of a clash on OTT platforms. A viewer no longer needs to buy four tickets for four films; he has the subscription to the platforms."

Aparna Acharekar, programming head, ZEE5 India, notes movies no longer have the pressure of making money within a week before the next release hits the screens. "Also, each service has its loyal audience, which is the digital [equivalent of the] first day, first show viewer. Now, people can watch two to three movies [over one weekend]."

Considering streaming giants do not reveal the viewership figures of their projects, it is difficult to determine if a film bested its rivals. However, Varun Gupta, founder-director, Max Marketing, which handles digital promotion, says there is a method to the madness. "It's a clash of the platforms, with each aiming to widen its subscription base. So, it will boil down to which film got you new subscriptions."

He predicts that the OTT world will have its own version of a clash once the honeymoon period is over. "Eventually, direct-to-web releases will move to a pay-per-view model."

With Gulabo Sitabo and Shakuntala Devi going the OTT way, many films are likely to follow suit. We talk to industry experts and actors about the same
HINDUSTAN TIMES (May 15, 2020)

It goes without saying that the ongoing Coronavirus lockdown has dealt a severe blow to Bollywood’s business. And with no clarity in sight about theatres re-opening in the near future, it seems filmmakers have started to consider releasing their relatively smaller movies directly on OTT platforms. In fact, the first ones off the hook — officially speaking — are Shoojit Sircar-directed Gulabo Sitabo, Nawazuddin Siddiqui-starrer Ghoomketu and Vidya Balan-starrer Shakuntala Devi.

Not just that, there have been talks that a number of other films such as Laxmmi Bomb, Jhund, Ludo, and Roohi-Afzana among others may also go the OTT way. Raj Nidimoru of director duo Raj & DK likens the situation to a stock market, as he says, “Filmmakers are waiting, and we don’t know when theatres are going to open up and when the graph is going to go high. So do you take the plunge or do you have the money to hold on?”

Trade expert, Taran Adarsh says the “industry is divided on this as exhibitors may not like it.” He adds, “I understand that the producers may be feeling the pinch vis-à-vis their investments but theatres will open soon.” Producer Bhushan Kumar admits OTTs may be a “viable option for smaller films but big-budget, tent-pole movies can’t do their entire recovery [of budgets] just from them.”

For the uninitiated, theatres have been shut since March. Exhibitor-distributor Akshaye Rathi feels that a producer is “totally free to take a call, which is in his best interest”. “That way, exhibitors-distributors are also free to do that. The question isn’t about the next two quarters but of the coming 20 years’ relationship. You need to be a visionary and not trader at this point,” he says.

However, Alok Tandon, CEO, INOX Leisure Ltd, says, “In these times, we want the entire ecosystem to show solidarity and value each other’s significance, and not behave like fair-weather friends.” But Aparna Acharekar - programming head - ZEE5, which is set to release Ghoomketu, says, “You have to be where the consumer is. The industry doesn’t define where they want to be, consumers make the industry.”

Trade analyst Girish Johar feels this transition was set to happen in two years but has happened in three months.

Actors’ talk!
Actors, on their part, feel “makers know and will do what’s best for their films.” As Kiara Advani, who stars in Laxmmi Bomb and Shershaah, puts it: “There are certain films, which are meant for only a cinematic experience, while others can go on OTTs.” On the other hand, Kriti Sanon admits she will be “sad” if her new film, Mimi were to release on OTT. “We are all watching stuff on OTT platforms [during lockdown], but I feel it still doesn’t reach the masses. I want Mimi to reach the masses. And it’s also a beautiful film,” she said in an interview.