Showing posts with label Jaidev Hemmady. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jaidev Hemmady. Show all posts
Indian filmmakers fear to tread many paths these days
7:58 AM
Sensitive themes being increasingly dropped at the ideation stage amid increased censoring, legal scrutiny and social media backlash
Rajesh N Naidu (THE ECONOMIC TIMES; July 18, 2026)
Mumbai: The removal of Punjabi film Satluj from a streaming platform has brought attention to a trend that writers and film-makers say has been quietly reshaping India's entertainment industry: self-censorship.
Over the past three to four years, creators say an increasing number of subjects have become difficult to touch, prompting many ideas to be dropped long before they make it to the scripting stage.
Scriptwriters, directors and producers told ET that topics such as Kashmir, communal riots, caste, religious identity, farmer protests, China, national security, the Northeast and Punjab militancy are increasingly being avoided at the ideation stage itself, narrowing the range of stories entering development.
While concerns over regulatory scrutiny continue to loom large, many creators say the fear of organised social media backlash has emerged as an equally potent constraint. Others, however, view the environment as an intellectual challenge, attempting to navigate sensitive themes through more nuanced storytelling without compromising their creative intent.
"There is fear among creative minds. Today, one has to think even about the names of the characters one writes. This speaks for the extent of self-censorship in the industry. One cannot write or create anything against the system today," said Honey Trehan, director of the film Satluj.
"Even before censorship, producers often ask us to change or remove things because they fear trouble. How much of real life or vision is left in a work after these changes," said scriptwriter Sudeep Nigam, known for the web series Illegal - Justice, Out of Order. "I wonder if we could make a film like Rang De Basanti today."
Production houses have legal teams which examine scripts line by line, said industry insiders.
Consequently, the universe of stories which writers can tell has been shrinking. "There is an unwritten but widely accepted self-censorship of certain topics among writers. It has materially shrunk the available universe of storytelling," said Jaidev Hemmady, who wrote the script for the web series Hunter - Tootega Nahi, Todega.
According to scriptwriter Sudeep Nigam, many people feel it is safer to write a romantic comedy than deal with difficult truths.
A scriptwriter who requested anonymity said: "I am tired. Today, most of my decisions are not creative but strategic in nature. I don't know what aspect in my story will trigger an unfavourable response from producers, streaming platforms, people or even the government."
Personal backlash is a key worry, said writers. "Earlier, writers would avoid certain things out of sensitivity. Today, we think twice before selecting a subject. We worry about legal action, social media attacks and even the impact on our families," said Abhishek Chatterjee, scriptwriter for the web series Sutliyan.
"What worries me most is not just whether a film will be stopped but the personal backlash that can follow. This fear is real."
But Chatterjee said he has not lost optimism. "There are challenges today. Despite these challenges, we must find ways intellectually and not compromise on our vision, like Iranian film-makers," he said.
Southern films' pan-India dreams come to naught
8:43 AM
Hindi-dubbed titles’ share of overall box office collection plunged to 7.1% in 2025 from 31.2% in 2024 on formulaic content
Rajesh N Naidu (THE ECONOMIC TIMES; January 20, 2026)
Is the notion of a southern India film that can draw moviegoers across the country now losing its sheen? Yes, if one goes by the growing frequency of failures of such productions aimed at pan-India audiences.
According to a study by media and entertainment research firm Ormax Media, the share of box office collections of southern films dubbed in Hindi-as a percentage of total box office collections of Hindi films-plummeted close to 7.1% in 2025 from 31.2% in 2024.
"There is a glaring lack of universal ideas in stories of southern films aimed at pan-India audiences," said Hindi scriptwriter Jaidev Hemmady. "These films follow a formulaic approach. It is only when a film is rooted in its culture, there emerges universal elements which cut across geographies. Recent southern films such as The RajaSaab, Coolie, and Thug Life among others reflect these concerns."
He said "recent pan-India southern films lacked conviction and honesty in their storytelling."
In 2025, films such as Game Changer, Coolie, Thug Life, Vrusshabha, Vidaamuyarchi, Retro, L2: Empuraan, and HIT: The Third Case, which targeted theatregoers across India, performed poorly at the box office. Even the recent pan-India offering, The Raja Saab, failed at the box office. This follows films such as Pushpa 2: The Rule, Hanu-Man, and Kalki 2898 AD boosting the share of dubbed southern films in 2024.
"In recent years, the idea of a pan-India southern film has been reduced to mere pan-India casting," explained producer Ameya Naik. "By merely casting leading artists across geographies does not make a film pan-India. Such films may get funding. But focusing more on casting artists across regions than on rooted stories is a recipe for failure."
Film trade analysts believe that audiences have been prompt in investing their time and money in well-crafted movies thanks to their reliance more on word-of-mouth recommendations of close friends and family.
"Today, audiences plan the number of visits to theatres given the high cost," said Girish Johar, film producer and industry expert. "In 2025, a good number of Hindi and Hollywood films attracted high audience interest thanks to superior storytelling in these films. One must note that southern films which did not work beyond their home states also underperformed in their home states, indicating that they failed because of bad scripts."
Film companies, streamers go by the book to avoid legal hassles
10:45 PM
Push writers to turn their non-fiction story ideas into books ahead of developing them into films or web series
Rajesh N Naidu (THE ECONOMIC TIMES; January 1, 2026)
A new trend is emerging in India’s entertainment industry: reverse engineering content.
Increasingly, streaming platforms and film producers are asking writers who approach them with non-fiction script ideas to first write and publish a book, before deciding whether to turn it into a web series or film. Since writing a book on a non-fiction subject would often need extensive research, this approach helps makers avoid future legal disputes and controversies over content and intellectual property ownership, said writers, producers and IP agencies.
“Instead of waiting for a bestseller, producers and IP agencies are encouraging writers to develop books as screen-ready IP from day one,” said writer Anirudhya Mitra. “The book becomes a development tool and not the finished product.”
When Mitra pitched a script idea on the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi to Applause Entertainment in 2021, the production house asked him to write a book first. Publisher Harper Collins India came on board and published the book, ‘Ninety Days: The True Story of the Hunt for Rajiv Gandhi's Assassins’ the following year. A web series titled ‘The Hunt: The Rajiv Gandhi Assassination Case’ was subsequently made and aired on Sony LIV in 2025.
Alisha Kay’s Devgarh Royals trilogy and Srishti Chaudhary’s Lallan Sweets are among other examples where ideas pitched as scripts have been published first as books. These are currently being adapted into visual content.
“The rationale behind asking writers to convert script pitches into books is legal cushioning. A writer's due diligence and research about a subject save makers from unforeseen legal hassles or controversies,” said Sidharth Jain, founder of IP agency The Story Ink.
Publishers are keen on participating in this exercise, as a web series or film provides their books publicity.
There is also a great deal of audience interest in non-fiction ideas, which shows that platforms and producers are catering to an already existing demand.
Platforms asking writers to write books based on their pitches is nothing but catering to this demand, said scriptwriter Jaidev Hemmady.
Publishing a book first helps limit legal liabilities in case of any litigation and helps in creating awareness about these ideas, he said.
“Also, streamers are not that comfortable with toying with or considering original fiction ideas given the uncertainty of their reception among audiences," added Hemmady.
Even cinematically, this approach is beneficial as it gives makers an idea of what is filmable. “So, it can be a good testing ground for web series or films,” said veteran filmmaker Vipul Amrutlal Shah.
Producers say this approach could gradually become a trend.
“As we seek more rooted Indian content, it is likely that we will see more book to screen adaptations from Indian literary material going forward,” said Sunir Kheterpal, producer, Athena E&M.
Streaming platforms focus on 'second screen' to script growth
9:35 AM
Writers told to keep story style simplistic to help convert daily-soap viewers in smaller cities into paid users
Rajesh N Naidu (THE ECONOMIC TIMES; July 10, 2025)
Streaming platforms have been increasingly instructing web series writers to adopt "second screen content" writing style in their presentation of stories in the past six months in a bid to capture and convert price-sensitive and daily-soap exposed audiences especially in tier-2 and tier-3 cities into paid subscribers, said industry observers and scriptwriters.
The ‘second screen content’ writing style follows simplistic storytelling, assuming that viewers are distracted.
Industry observers and scriptwriters say this strategy is aimed at converting these traditional TV audiences into paid digital subscribers.
Today, 55% of streaming content consumption happens in non-metros and rural areas.
In this style, viewers don’t miss any detail of a story while performing multiple tasks since a lot is conveyed through dialogues.
"In a meeting with a producer of a leading streamer, I was told to write in such a manner that everything is spelt out by each character. This includes what happened in the previous episode. There is no room for nuance and subtlety in second screen content," said scriptwriter Jaidev Hemmady.
Falling attention spans have been a key factor contributing to the increasing trend of 'second screen content.' Studies show that the average human attention span in India has fallen to 8.25 seconds from 12 over the past two decades.
This is one reason second screen content is also called ambient viewing.
"In a recent meeting, a leading streamer explicitly told me to adopt second screen content writing style. This is a value addition in briefs given to writers. The main brief is to look for unique and clutter-free stories," said writer-director Sameer Joshi.
One of the key changes resulting from the rise of second screen content is the blurring of distinctions between television and streaming content.
"In the early phase, streaming content was largely about intimate viewing and immersive storytelling. Second screen content will definitely blur the distinction in content style between television and streamers. Just like individuals on social media, even streamers want devoted followers. Perhaps, second screen content will help them achieve this," pointed out veteran Hindi screenwriter Reshu Nath.
Writers shared that second screen content is written by focusing more on "general" things rather than the "personal," which has a deeper context.
"Second screen content on streamers is a trickle-down effect. It started with television. Several decision-makers in the Indian arms of streamers are from the television industry. We are told to water down or dumb down content by providing an experience in which people can point to a larger thing rather than something very small and nuanced," said independent writer-director Satavesha Bose.
Another factor that has led to the adoption of second screen writing style is the data or algorithmic insights into viewers' viewing patterns on streamers.
"Decision-makers in the streaming industry rely more on data points in creating content. I think second screen content is a trial to gauge whether streamers can get paid subscribers from non-metros," explained screenwriter Sameer Joshi.
In metros, studies show high churn rates in the originals’ subscriber base due to viewers' interest in specific content and piracy.
"Second screen content is largely ad-supported. So, streamers may want to handhold television audiences, especially in tier-2 and tier-3 cities, and gradually convert them into paid subscribers," observed screenwriter Aparna Nadig.
Industry observers shared that ‘second screen content’ is part of a broad strategy by streamers to cater to almost every viewer segment: TV, movies, gaming, sports, and niche content.
In the coming years, as streamers get associated with certain thematic offerings, writers believe they will balance originals and ad-supported second screen content in line with those themes.
Ek Tha Tiger? Sikandar is the latest in the series of underwhelming Salman Khan movies
2:53 PM
Rajesh N Naidu (THE TIMES OF INDIA; April 3, 2025)
Mumbai: In director Billy Wilder's classic noir film Sunset Boulevard (1950), the character Norma Desmond, played so sensitively by Gloria Swanson, says: "I am big. It's the pictures that got small." Going by the performance of Hindi films, which rely more on stardom than scripts, it is clear that the audience is sending across an unambiguous message to the moviemakers: The pictures are bigger than the stars. The box-office performance of actor Salman Khan’s recent film Sikandar seems to underline this view.
Made on an estimated budget of more than Rs. 250 crores, the film’s opening day collection was Rs 26 crores, according to box office data research firm Sacnilk. This is considerably lower than the trade circuit's estimate of Rs. 45-50 crores. Also, in the past eight years, Sikandar has been Salman Khan's sixth film which has failed to draw crowds to theatres.
"Salman Khan's stardom is under a cloud. This is because he has been unable to select scripts wisely," said veteran trade analyst Komal Nahta. "The story of Sikandar is ridiculous. It does not make sense that a hero is protecting three people who have received his dead wife's organs in donation," he added.
Writers and trade analysts said the actor is taking his stardom for granted and heavily relying more on his star power than scripts.
"After Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015) and Sultan (2016), it is evident that none of the films that Salman starred in were written with conviction. Some of the fault lies with the producers too who seem to have taken it for granted that if they have Salman on board and an Eid release plan, then the audience will accept anything that comes their way," said scriptwriter Jaidev Hemmady. This approach is counter-productive, especially at a time when audiences are giving higher importance to stories than stars, he said.
Besides this, industry veterans are of the view that the genre of mass entertainer is not taken seriously in Hindi film industry. This is especially true in the case of Salman Khan's films post the release of Sultan (2016).
"Hindi filmmakers have reduced mass entertainers to mindless, boring or cringe-inducing stories. A great deal of creativity is required to make mass entertainers,” said veteran producer, who wished to be unnamed. “Consider writer duo Salim-Javed's films. Even though they were template stories, they looked fresh and they hardly compromised on entertaining value. In the past eight years, Salman Khan's mass entertainers conspicuously lack these elements and rely more on his stardom."
Overexposure of the actor through the Big Boss serial and events has affected the brand Salman Khan, said Girish Wankhede, a movie trade analyst. “Besides overexposure, Khan does not seem to prepare for his roles in mass entertainers. One does not see much difference in the way Salman Khan looks in the film Sikandar and outside the film," he said.
"Also, where is the story in Sikandar? Have the makers of Sikandar considered showing their film to people outside their circle and get their feedback? I seriously doubt it. If you don't take your business seriously, why would the audience take your film seriously?"
Since its trailer release, the word-of-mouth communications for Sikandar have been unfavourable, which impacted its first day collection. Trade analysts said on the Eid day, some theatres in Mumbai cancelled shows of the film and increased shows of the mid-budget ‘The Diplomat’.
A trade analyst, who requested anonymity said: "There is not a single full house show in theatres in Mumbai. In some theatres, there are 20-30 people in theatres. This shows that word-of-mouth communications of Sikandar have been unfavourable and rapid."
According to the data from Sacnilk, in the past three days, Sikandar has collected Rs. 74.5 crore across languages in India. Given the weak response, the trade circuit estimates that Sikandar’s collection will barely cross Rs. 150 crore in the coming days.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)