Why more Bollywood stars will work in theatrical as well as direct-to-digital releases

The progress report of Hindi films released last week has disappointing facts of figures. Satram Ramani’s Double XL, a dramedy about two women dealing with body image issues, hasn’t found many takers. Mathukutty Xavier’s Mili, a survival thriller about the struggle of a girl trapped inside a freezer, hasn’t worked either. Gurmmeet Singh’s horror-comedy Phone Booth, which shows what happens after two young men who want to become ghostbusters meet the ‘real’ thing, has found more viewers than the other two releases. But it has failed, too, adding a few new lines to Bollywood’s tale of recent box-office woes. Faced with a greater possibility of experiencing a setback than earlier, the modern-day producer must answer a question honestly while deciding how to release a film. If a film is not a big-budget spectacle best suited for the theatres, should it hit the big screen first, face a high risk of commercial failure and get released on an OTT platform after its charm has diminished manifold? Or, should it have a direct-to-digital premiere on an OTT platform if the producer can strike a reasonable deal? Why a direct-to-digital release? A viewer with an OTT subscription is generous compared to one who visits a theatre. What this means has been seen in Raghava Lawrence’s Laxmii, a direct-to-digital release on Disney+ Hotstar. Despite its many negatives, the film became an OTT hit simply because it was a new Akshay Kumar horror-comedy. The viewer expected, and got, nothing more. Akshay has experienced a series of failures lately. Fortunately for him, two of his films, apart from Laxmii, have been direct-to-digital releases. Atrangi Re, Aanand L. Rai’s romantic fantasy, was released on Disney+ Hotstar and reportedly fared well. So did Cuttputlli, a Ranjit M Tewari-helmed crime thriller headlined by the star that premiered on the same platform. These releases show that Akshay wants to works in both direct-to-digital and big-screen films. A big-budget spectacle for the big screen The modern-day filmmaker must address a transformed viewer who is far more demanding and selective than earlier. That viewer needs to be satisfied, which can be done in two different ways. The cash-rich producer must create lavishly mounted theatrical experiences that aren’t half as enjoyable on the tiny screen. However, such films won’t rock the box office if they promise to engage the viewer but do the exact opposite. If a film has poor VFX, it won’t work. The release of Om Raut’s epic mythological film Adipurush has been postponed, one of the reasons being the evidence of bad VFX in its teaser trailer, which shows that the maker must respond to the expectations of the viewer. The search for good original stories, which can be made into audience-friendly films, must be conducted with a greater degree of seriousness. Recent times have made it clear that big-budget films with bad stories usually lose their way at the box office, a lesson for every producer in the business. Small films and the OTT factor Films not made on a grand scale don’t lose much viewership if made for or ultimately released on OTT platforms. Apart from the widely watched crime drama web series Breathe: Into the Shadows, now in its second season on Amazon Prime, four Abhishek Bachchan films have premiered on OTT platforms since 12 November 2020, the day Anurag Basu’s ensemble-cast black comedy drama Ludo started streaming on Netflix. Bachchan has also headlined Kookie Gulati’s financial thriller The Big Bull, which premiered on ZEE5; Diya Annapurna Ghosh’s crime thriller Bob Biswas, which was released on the same platform and Tushar Jalota’s social comedy Dasvi which premiered on Netflix and JioCinema. Bachchan has been praised for his performances in Ludo and Dasvi in particular, which shows he has made appropriate choices to become one of the most visible Indian performers on the web. Rajkummar Rao, who has featured in direct-to-digital releases including Ludo, is featuring in a Vasan Bala’s crime comedy Monica O My Darling that premiered on Netflix on 11 November. Rao’s co-stars are Huma Qureshi and Radhika Apte, both gifted actors who have been appreciated for their performances in web-based offerings. Quite a few Bollywood actors have already appeared in direct-to-digital films. What happened during the pandemic gave momentum to this trend, with producers making films solely for OTT platforms or ultimately opting for online release even after the worst had ended. Modestly budgeted films will continue to hit the big screen in future. But whether or not the end product can attract viewers to the theatres will be evaluated more critically than earlier. Moreover, that day when more major stars will apply the Akshay Kumar formula by working in both theatrical and direct-to-digital releases is not far away. For the viewer, that would mean more brand-new releases with their favourite stars in action. The author is a freelance writer. Views expressed are personal. Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram .