India at Cannes 2021 is organised by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Govt of India, jointly with FICCI. This session discusses how Indian content is travelling beyond national boundaries through OTT platforms and is being widely watched by a global audience.
Ms Dhanpreet Kaur, MD, NFDC India, expressed hope in the fact that the reach of Indian content has been enriched by OTT platforms, and at the same time, there is a change in orientation in Indian creators’ attempt to bring about good content.
“Film and entertainment industry is a vehicle for showcasing our soft power,” Ms Manisha Verma, MD, Maharashtra Film, Stage & Cultural Development observed.
Mr Shibasish Sarkar, Group CEO, Reliance Entertainment said that due to digitisation of content, language is no longer a barrier. As a result, Indian stories have gone global in the last couple of years. However, he rightly pointed out, that the one thing that hasn’t changed is that a lot of effort is put in by storytellers and marketeers to convince the audience, and therefore audience continues to be the key.
The Indian film industry has typically been a star-driven system, but the last decade has witnessed rich content working and attracting crowds Ms Kranti Gada, COO, Shemaroo Entertainment said.
“In the OTT world, the actor and director are in equal demand,”, she added.
Filmmaker Mikhil Musale and Mr. Vishnu Mohta, co-founder Hoichoi TV, and Executive Director, SVF, agreed that uniquely Indian stories will appeal to a universal audience.
Mr. Mohta also added that it is an encouraging sign that in the last 5 years, arthouse or parallel cinema content is being made available on streaming platforms, therefore widening the range of content available to audiences of varying sensibilities.
For more insights on the matter, view the video above.