Insights into the scope of OTT platforms

With a focus on content creation, production, distribution and branding, OTT Pulse was a first-of-a-kind event that offered a gamut of perspectives in tapping the fullest potential of the digital medium

With over 30 OTT platforms in the country vying for the attention of the online viewer, the digital space has become the buzzword of the nation. The industry, within 5-6 years of its inception, has resonated with the young crowds like no other medium. The event OTT Pulse, held in Hyderabad, truly justified its purpose, offering a ringside view of the vast potential of the streaming medium.

The first edition of OTT Pulse (Over the Top Media Services) was off to a terrific start at Indiajoy 2019, the country's largest media and digital entertainment event, hosted in partnership with Green Gold Animation at Novotel, HICC, Hyderabad. Comprising media professionals, filmmakers, creative heads of various streaming platforms under a single roof, the one-day event had the who's who in the entertainment space discussing the advent of the web medium and the promise it holds for the years ahead.

“It’s exciting to be part of the country’s biggest media and technology extravaganza like Indiajoy. I sincerely believe OTT platforms are a celebration of talent of various kinds. Good cinema is like Olympics, it doesn’t happen very often. Digital media helps actors nurture their skills in the meanwhile and make their craft a piece of well-oiled machinery. Nearly 20 students from AISFM are already working in this space. After a successful show like High Priestess on ZEE5, I am awaiting the release of my other show The Forgotten Army (in 27 languages) on Amazon Prime later this December,” actress, academician and social activist Amala Akkineni had shared.

Actor, producer Vishnu Manchu, who’s bankrolling the Srikanth-starrer Chadarangam, a web show for the OTT platform ZEE5 had high words of praise for the creative freedom that the digital medium has ushered in for storytellers and producers alike. “OTT has been a boom for producers and film people. The focus on strong content, unaffected by the commercial pressures, will completely redefine the way look at stories, even with films and television. The next few years are going to be a golden era for everyone involved with the film industry. However, I don’t see the OTT platforms being a threat to films. Co-existence of both mediums is a genuine possibility,” he had opined.

Viu, the leading pan-regional over-the-top (OTT) video streaming service, utilised the forum to unveil a host of originals it would release in the coming months. Besides offering the participants a glimpse of the second season of their hit show Ee Office Lo (that features Shraddha Das, Chaitanya Krishna), the streaming platform had announced a digital extension of their most-watched college drama series The Grill (starring Santosh Sobhan, Viva Harsha). However, the biggest surprise came in the form of their launch of the 10-episode sequel to the hit Tharun Bhascker friendship saga Ee Nagaraniki Emaindi. 

“When I had made Ee Nagaraniki Emaindi, I had purposely kept the story open-ended because I felt the characters had a possibility to live beyond one film. I wanted to make the sequel on the lines of Entourage, where we could narrate interesting stories about our industry through a bunch of quirky characters. I had great fun making the film with a bunch of friends and I didn’t want to miss the opportunity of reliving those memories with my team with this opportunity,” shared director Tharun Bhascker who would be penning dialogues for the sequel series, while a few of his associate directors are in talks to helm the project.

Amazon Prime Video, VOOT, ZEE5, Arka Media, Silly Monks, Tamada Media, Whacked Media, Northstar Entertainment were among the many prominent brands and names in the OTT industry that made its presence felt at the event. From the creation of engaging content, its production to finding the right distribution channel and grabbing the pulse of streaming-enthusiasts across the country, the experts had left no stone unturned to discuss the opportunities and the bottlenecks of the digital medium in its entirety.

(Press Release)
By: Venugopal