That OTT Nikkhil finds it reassuring stars platforms aren’t chasing

Alike Mumbai and Delhi, may be other metros slightly… but the theatre consumption of cinema is very different,” he explains. But going forward, he says OTT platforms may guide the kind of films they buy just like the ones they commission. “They will take active interest in the storyline, casting production. So, when that happens then we can say that OTT has become some kind of an alternative to cinema,” he adds. Advani, too, has a mixed bag in terms of theatrical and web releases this year, which include Mumbai Diaries 26/11 and Moghuls. “Bell Bottom and Satyameva Jayate will be theatrical. We are demarcating very clearly; pure feature film on theatres, where budgets, scale and point of consumption is suited to cinema,” he concludes. releasing their films on OTT because of the pandemic. While Advani believes that it was the need of the hour, he says there can never be a contest between the two mediums. “The audience that consumes OTT is very different from the audience that goes to cinemas. The overlap happens in cities s the web has taken the entertainment world by storm, many Bollywood stars have warmed up to the idea of being a part of the online boom. So, does it mean that the OTT platforms will now go star chasing? Filmmaker Nikkhil Advani doesn’t see that happening. “While cinema is a director’s medium, commercial cinema is an actor’s medium, with all the Friday numbers. A very big aspect of OTT belongs to the platform. They know what is being liked and consumed. Till today, in none of the platform meetings that I sat in have I heard that we need to take a star,” he says. The OTT versus theatres debate raged on last year, and many were called out for

A very big aspect of OTT belongs to the platform. They know what is being liked, consumed.

PHOTO: PRABHAS ROY/ HT