Hotstar adds to streaming drama with originals
NEW DELHI: Star India’s video streaming service is counting on original programming to boost viewership. Hotstar has tied up with 15 filmmakers, including Salman Khan and Shekhar Kapur, to offer exclusive content in addition to the serials, movies and sports programmes licensed from its parent.
Titled Hotstar Specials, the exclusive shows will start streaming by the end of March. The other filmmakers Hotstar has partnered with are Neeraj Pandey, Kabir Khan, Nikkhil Advani, Ram Madhvani, Venkat Prabhu, Sudhir Mishra, Tigmanshu Dhulia, Nagesh Kukunoor, Mahesh Manjrekar, Vishal Furia, Rohan Sippy, Debbie Rao and Sharad Devarajan.
Hotstar’s foray into original programming comes at a time when rivals are focusing aggressively on this space. Netflix has announced four web series and seven feature films to be brought out in India over this year, while Amazon Prime plans to double its original content offerings in 2019 from those of last year.
Hotstar’s new shows will come in seven languages, including Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Bengali. The company said this content would mostly fall in the drama category, with the shows spanning anything between 10 and 40 hours each.
“We believe the market is changing very rapidly and mobile smartphones are the root to disruption. That’s the big shift we are seeking through Hotstar,” said Sanjay Gupta, managing director, Star India.