Video streaming platforms make big bets on producing original movies
Premium- Both homegrown and foreign streaming services said films are quicker to produce, film-writing talent is readily available, and viewers are more inclined to watch them
NEW DELHI : Video streaming platforms are placing big bets on producing original films, with Amazon Prime releasing Majaa Ma, starring Madhuri Dixit, next week, Disney’s Star Studios promising to make them for its digital platform, Disney+ Hotstar, and Netflix lining up films with Vishal Bhardwaj, Sujoy Ghosh and Zoya Akhtar.
Both homegrown and foreign streaming services said films are quicker to produce, film-writing talent is readily available, and viewers are more inclined to watch them. As a result, global viewing of Indian cinema is up 50% in the first half of 2022 on Netflix compared to the same period in 2021. Besides, the cost of acquiring films released in theatres is steep, making original films more financially feasible.
“India has never really had the kind of premium television it is seeing now with web shows. Audiences have only been used to cinema and linear TV so far. So even though there are writers out there, series writing is harder and takes longer to put together. On the other hand, writing for a two-hour film comes more naturally to our writers and the industry, in general," Ajit Thakur, chief executive of Aha, said, a Telugu and Tamil streaming service owned by Arha Media & Broadcasting.
Having premiered films, including Bhamakalapam and Senapathi, Aha is commissioning projects in Tamil and Telugu, including some that will release in theatres first and then stream exclusively on Aha. It is also easier to cast bigger actors in original digital films as it requires less of their time than, say, a series, Thakur said.
Platforms are no longer keen to acquire films for digital releases, which was the need of the hour during the pandemic, said Gautam Jain, partner at media consultant Ormax. “Most platforms want to invest in building series or original films instead, where they control the IP. The overall cost structure is also favourable for platforms when they commission an original series or film instead of acquiring them," he said.
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Karan Taurani, a media sector analyst at Elara Capital Ltd, agreed. “OTT platforms are looking to own IPs through films rather than paying a hefty premium for acquiring films from outside that they can only own for five to seven years. Films also have great recall and can be watched in one go," Taurani said. In an interview earlier this month, Rebecca Campbell, chairman of international content and operations at Walt Disney Co., said the company has five films in various stages of production in India and is looking at a balance between theatrical and direct-to-digital releases where they will have big movies that would stream directly on their Hotstar service.
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