The OTT medium has witnessed a tremendous growth in a very short span of time. So much so, that the biggest of names from films have made their foray on the medium as well. We have had actors like Shahid Kapoor, Ajay Devgn, Rajkummar Rao, Kajol, Raveena Tandon and Sushmita Sen, amongst others who have made their entry on the OTT medium. And actors like Varun Dhawan and Ananya Panday are all set to debut on OTT with their web series Citadel Honey Bunny and Call Me Bae, respectively.
Actor Abhishek Banerjee has been a renowned name on the digital medium, having been associated to shows like Paatal Lok and Mirzapur. Ask him about this trend and he says, “When OTT started, the A-listers were not ready to come as they felt it was smaller medium. Then they saw so many actors getting recognised through the medium, and suddenly they saw a value to that. It proved that if a story and character is good, it will work irrespective.”
However, he does insist that the association of a big star does hamper the quality of an OTT project. “What happens is that it all becomes a marketing game. When you probably think that you have a star, you want to negate a lot of other creative aspects and lazy writing takes place. People make creative sacrifices to serve to a star’s stature. People also want to cast stars because of the thumbnail game,” he says, adding that eventually, on OTT, “well-written and well-made shows work”.
He adds, “We have plenty of examples of shows with non-stars that have been viral hits and also shows with big stars, which people don’t talk about. So practically, the audience is telling their preferences. The language of OTT is different from theatre. You need something larger-than-life on the big screen, but on OTT, the visuals don’t have to be so big. It’s the story, the sub-plots that make it exciting. It has a very different grammar. So, as a businessman, I suggest we stick to the grammar and not change it.”
Banerjee also says that big stars also bring the insecurity of not wanting to do character roles, which usually don’t exist on OTT. “If you look at it internationally, it really doesn’t matter. Robert Downey Jr won an Oscar in a Supporting Role this year. This concept is only in our country and the actors themselves are at fault for this. When we reach a certain position, we start saying no to good characters as we think it won’t suit the brand image or the position we have. Why can’t we be a supporting character when it is as good as a leading character? Firstly, you need to write good characters that everyone feels interested in doing that and then the actors also need to step down at times. I think we should reach a time in India where actors should be openly and freely doing all kinds of characters, free of any prejudice or bias,” he ends.
