‘Unclear guidelines from govt create business uncertainty’
Premium- If we want to make India a global soft power via media and entertainment, it needs to happen via a cultural export revolution, Sameer Nair, CEO, Applause Entertainment
NEW DELHI : As Applause Entertainment, an Aditya Birla Group Venture that makes content for streaming services, completes four years with Sameer Nair at its helm, the programming veteran speaks of the impact of the pandemic, government’s move to regulate content and changing audience tastes in India. Edited excerpts from an interview:
You complete four years at Applause in August. How would you describe its journey?
We revived Applause Entertainment in August 2017 as an Aditya Birla Group Venture, with the intent of creating content for the nascent video streaming market, popularly known as OTT (over-the-top) streaming. It was set up in the mould of a traditional movie studio, investing in the creation of premium drama series, right from early writing and development all the way to final production and finished tape. The idea was to present self-funded, finished product to platforms and license it to them. We have produced and released 25 series so far, including some second seasons such as Scam 1992, Criminal Justice, City of Dreams, Undekhi, Mind the Malhotras and Hostages, among others, that have streamed on Disney+Hotstar, Amazon Prime, SonyLIV, Netflix and MX Player. We have invested approximately ₹400 crore in content creation, and this number is expected to grow by 8-10 times over the next 5-7 years.
What’s been the impact of the pandemic on content?
It’s been two-fold. One, the complete stoppage of all productions in both the first and second wave. Two, the delays in physical production due to the stringent protocols followed on shoots once the lockdowns are lifted. Of course, safety of cast and crews are paramount, but stops and delays do create logistics issues and have an adverse effect on delivery timelines, completion dates and budgets. On the bright side, the pandemic and lockdown introduced a giant new audience to the streaming world, and OTT content saw a surge in adoption and consumption. This has created a huge demand for premium series, movies, documentaries and a lot more open-minded acceptance of different genres and languages of domestic and international content. We have also greenlit our first slate of movies and documentaries, many of which are in production already.
Do web shows cost more than TV shows? How much investment is going into OTT content in India?
It’s an unfair comparison -- like apples and oranges. A typical season of a web series is around 10 episodes of 30-45 minutes each. A daily soap opera runs over a year, 250 episodes of 30 minutes each. The creative nuances, production logistics and economics of both are starkly different. Web series, or cinematic television as we like to call it, is closer to an extended movie, both in terms of ambition and storytelling style. The cost of such series varies depending on production scale and the ensemble cast they feature. Not all shows require big budgets. Excluding local movies and international series/movies acquisitions, I’d hazard a guess of direct spend on local originals to be about ₹3,000 crore per annum, and growing.
As a programming veteran, how do you view the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021?
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There has always been some sort of regulation that guides content creation. The increasing spread of social media and OTT platforms have also resulted in new regulations designed to manage a fast-changing industry and environment. For the most part, all regulation is often a reflection of evolving societal norms and behaviours. It requires us to elevate the quality of our writing and storytelling, striving to entertain, enrich and empower changing audiences. I believe it is the job of the creative industry to respect the values and belief systems of society, and also to hold up a mirror to that very same society.
But isn’t the intent to censor content?
More than just censorship, a key concern that arises out of unclear guidelines is the business uncertainty that results. Creating audio-visual content (movies, series, etc) is extremely expensive and moving goalposts with regard to what is and what is not acceptable could result in a cautious approach to both ideas and funding, neither of which is good for the creative industry.
Do you see any changes at Applause as far as the kind of shows you will now make?
Not really. I don’t think personal prejudice and beliefs should come in the way of good storytelling. At Applause, we try to tell stories as authentically and impartially as we can. It’s up to the audience to understand the text and subtext, and take away emotions, memories and lessons from them.
What is the way forward to keep creative freedom alive?
If we want to grow the content and media business and want to make India a global soft power via media and entertainment, it will have to happen via a cultural export revolution. But this can’t be done with just a unidimensional lens…it has to be rich and varied much like our history, heritage and culture. I think this variety in storytelling is the key to keeping creative freedom alive.
As the OTT industry in India matures, do you see any changes in audience tastes?
The Indian audience is tasting multi-season premium drama series of cinematic quality for the first time. The market potential is huge—both in terms of size and appetite. Like anywhere in the world, the popular genres here are crime, thriller, comedy, romance, drama, young adult and big event type tentpoles. Newer genres like documentaries and animation are also gaining acceptance. The audience is hungry for all types of content, provided it measures up to rising quality standards and gives value for money.
Is India still an "AND" market supporting both linear TV and streaming platforms?
I think it will remain an ‘AND’ market for some time. Cord-cutting happened in the West because of the exorbitantly high cost of cable TV, the relatively lower cost of the streamers, and the change in audience behaviour, especially younger adults. In India, it’s quite the opposite. India has one of the cheapest cable TV services in the world, one that for as little as $3 a month offers a very diverse offering of entertainment, sports, music, movies and news. So, the impetus to cut the cord is less. But the streaming platforms are attracting newer audiences, offering new exciting content, and importantly introducing audiences to non-linear schedules, to features like ‘resume watching’ and ‘you may also like’, and allow an ‘anytime anywhere’ experience. For a value-conscious, mobile first market like India, with access to cheap data, streaming is the future.
What will be the long-term impact of the pandemic on theatres and direct-to-digital film releases?
The pandemic badly damaged the theatrical business, though not fatally. Hopefully, once theatres reopen, audiences will return in droves. Human beings are social creatures and the movie-going habit is deeply ingrained in us. Recent post pandemic theatrical successes in the US are cause for cheer. That being said, what the pandemic did do is put commercial Bollywood cinema in direct contrast with cinematic premium drama series made for OTT. But apart from artistic comparisons, the closure of theatres also killed a significant revenue stream for the movie industry, one which cannot be made good by the satellite TV and streaming rights. The long-term implication of shut theatres could be a shrinking of the overall film industry even as Direct-To-Platform movies develop and grow as a new genre of storytelling.
What will also change is the economics that drive footfalls now that consumers are used to the home viewing experience. They will be more demanding when it comes to paying for a theatrical experience, and that will require us as film makers to significantly raise the bar on big screen entertainment.
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