OTT PLATFORMS: THE WAY TO GO?

Long queues for tickets, matinee shows, popcorns and sodas are staples when it comes to watching movies. When we look even back, there would be a common night for even watching TV. Many were not able to afford for a TV, and if a house had one, the whole neighborhood spent the Friday nights listening to cine songs.

Then came TVs in almost every house, still not a common thing, but everyone knew what it was and some of the famous shows. Fashion started and ended by watching movies and televisions. Bell bottom pants, butterfly clips, favorite dialogues were all the rage for the teenagers of the 80s and 90s. It was a ritual to go to movie theaters and even a bigger deal to get the “First Day, First Show” tickets.

Now, stuck at home, every house with a smart TV and a OTT (Over The Top) subscription. The famous ones being Disney Hotstar+, Amazon Prime, Netflix, Zee5 etc. Netflix and chill has become a common phrase. And also this pandemic has seen a rise in the home food delivery which makes it even more “lethargic” in a sense.

Almost all of the movies are released in one or the other OTT platforms and we need to have every subscription, because who knows which movie will release where. The very sense of going to the theatre to get entertainment out of the house has been thrown out of the window.

Box office, Housefull, First class tickets, 10 rupees tickets which was the most popular and the fact of sitting so close near the screen, the screaming for the title card were all the signs that the movie is a successful one. Now, we don’t know whether it’s a hit or flop, unless it is the movie of a superstar.

Another thing is that, those days there would be only 5 to 10 movies a year, and a repetition of the same actor’s movie was rare. All the dialogues were memorized and played among friends as a sort of pastime. One of the benefits of OTT is obviously, the lack of crowd and there is safety and comfort of being in one’s own home. Other benefit is it opens a chance for every amateur actors and directors to have a chance to release their movies and short films, and not only in OTT, also in networks such as YouTube.

We are yet not sure about the situation in the environment. There are people who are crazy about the “FDFS” (First Day, First Show) and they miss the good old days. Even die hard fans of movie stars want to see their favorite actor/actress’ in the big screen to celebrate.

The TV networks are working hard to capture the attention of the public through various reality shows but since there are restrictions for the shooting activities, they are not able to give it their all. For some time, IPL fans were entertained, but it had to be stopped due to obvious reasons. It will be a relaxation that BCCI is planning to conduct the rest of the matches in UAE and soon too. Home makers and children alike were entertained with the Bigg Boss in their native languages but that also had to have a stop for the safety of the artists.

At the end of the day, the uncertainty of what might happen to the entertainment industry is a big question mark for those who have their livelihood depended on it. The OG fans are still waiting for the day when the world would be back to normal and for them to go to the theatres. Until then, OTT it is.