2023: The First Quarter Is Dismal (IANS Column: B-Town)
The first quarter of 2023 has come to an end and the Hindi film industry has little to show for itself. The scene has been dismal, not because of the first quarter, but also because of the second quarter, which holds no promise of box-office boosters.
A lot of producers seem to think it is easier to create content for OTT platforms, which is why many makers have opted to produce for that medium. When you make OTT content, it’s an all-in-one deal. You complete the project, hand it over to the platform and cash out. No hassles such marketing or complying to the terms of cinema chains to endure.
It is you who make a film and it is some marketing wizkid who’ll decide how your film should be released. The problem, though, is that they know little or nothing about which film needs what kind of handling.
What is more, on OTT, you can bring to life the stories that are long embedded in the minds of the masses, but still, the details are not known. An example is the Harshad Mehta case, which was the subject of ‘Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story’.
Or take the instance of ‘Rocket Boys’. You may have heard about Homi Bhabha and Vikram Sarabhai, but knew little about them and did not dare to ask for fear of looking ignorant. If you made something similar for theatrical release, the cinema management wouldn’t have touched your product with a bargepole.
Besides the OTT platforms, one must also consider television channels. There are now hundreds of them for national viewers as well as the ones who are more comfortable with regional languages. All have been dishing out interesting content with great production values.
