THE OTT BOOM
Aahana Kumra is in favour of the digital revolution, feels a lot of work can now be archived
Due to the pandemic, work has been sporadic in the past one year in the entertainment industry, and things have majorly taken the digital route. Actor Aahana Kumra sees this as a good sign, as she feels it is allowing a lot of work to be preserved. “It’s helping archive our work, otherwise no one will remember what we’ve done,” she says, adding that there are times she wants to watch an old show, but it’s “not available anywhere”.
Kumra, 36, is among the few actors who’ve consistently dabbled with the OTT and big screen, much before the Covid-19 crisis. Lauding the OTT boom and sharing her love for the web, the Khuda Haafiz (2020) actor says, “The kind of actors who’ve gained prominence in the past two years on OTT, is amazing. People are recognising talent, not just popularity.”
Though she admits there’s a long way to go, she’s quick to acknowledge that the pandemic has put things in motion. “Covid has given us massive clarity, and to the audience who used to go to multiplexes to watch popular cinema. But, when those popular cinemas released on OTT platforms, they didn’t perform well. Smaller films with performance-oriented roles have been lauded,” says Kumra, who’s also done digital plays such as Sar Sar Sarla.
Like last year, many films have been picked by OTT players for web release, but when cinemas eventually reopen, Kumra feels some films would prefer a big screen showcase. “I’d also like to see a film like Sooryavanshi in the cinemas. I can’t watch such a film at home, it’ll ruin the experience,” opines the actor, who will next be seen in Madhur Bhandarkar’s India Lockdown.
It (digitisation) is helping us archive our work. How will the future generations know what we did? AAHANA KUMRA,
Actor