How regional, state-run OTTs are the new hot ticket for South Indian cinema

Today, these platforms have unleashed innumerable content choices to their audiences, and people are lapping up a variety of fares. The COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent lockdown turned out to be an opportunity for at least 20 well-recognised OTT platforms based out of Mumbai and Noida. Initially, most of them ignored films from South India. After the government lifted the lockdown, while Amazon Prime and Netflix ventured a little into South Indian movies, other OTT platforms continue to stream mostly Bollywood films/Hindi series. To break the monopoly of OTT giants, a few state governments have taken it upon themselves to launch their own streaming platforms in order to give a level-playing field to South Indian films.

The regional OTT revolution

Knowing well that it is a Herculean task to compete with OTT majors, some enterprising figures in the South Indian entertainment industry have entered the OTT ecosystem with platforms like Saina Play — which claims to be a one-stop destination for Malayalam entertainment — BlueOcean from Kerala, Shreyas ET, an Any Time Theatre, and Aha that offers Telugu and Tamil-language content.

“During the lockdown, the consumption of digital content spiked across the country, and OTT services saw increased traffic from new users, even in tier-two cities. It was a situation rife with opportunities for Kannada language content, which had been struggling to find a space for itself on streaming and distribution platforms,” says senior film journalist Chetan Nadiger.

“Under such circumstances, driven by passion and stunted by a lack of funds, Karnataka was home to four major OTT platforms by 2021. All of them launched with the intention of offering content in the states’ regional languages. Among them, NammaFlix, Cinebazar, and Kannada Katte promised their users exclusive Kannada content, while Talkies App and Localwood prioritized content in Tulu, Konkani, Kannada, and Beary languages/dialects. However, they are hindered by competition with established OTT majors, a lack of funding, a barebones catalogue, and a patchy user interface resulting in a low subscriber base,” he adds. 

Kerala’s KSFDC Initiative

The Kerala government, in partnership with the Kerala State Film Development Corporation (KSFDC), launched India’s first-ever government-owned OTT streaming service in March. This initiative aims to support films with artistic and cultural value. KSFDC named the platform ‘CSpace’. It operates on a Pay-Per-View basis, with viewers paying Rs 75 to watch a film and a lesser amount to view short films.

According to sources at KSFDC, the platform will feature award-winning films, short films, documentaries, and other content that have not received a wide theatrical release but have great artistic and cultural merit. Films screened at major international film festivals will also find a place on CSpace.

Describing KSFDC’s step as a ‘parallel cultural move,’ KSFDC chairman and renowned filmmaker Shaji N. Karun says, “CSpace would stream the kind of ‘varied’ or ‘different’ films made in Malayalam that deserve to reach a global viewership. Our objective is to improve the quality of the audience. We want to help change the behaviour pattern of the audience.”

Hello Meghalaya

Taking a cue from Kerala, Meghalaya launched its government-sponsored OTT platform on July 12 to promote young talent. According to Meghalaya Chief Minister, K. Sangma, the objective of launching the state-run OTT platform is to promote and preserve the local language and dialects. The platform, Hello Meghalaya, seeks to provide content ranging from movies, music videos, and short films, among other content. “For filmmakers, the platform provides up to Rs 5 lakhs per film, with additional funding for nationally or internationally acclaimed films. Content creators will get Rs 18,000 every month for maximum uploads,” says a statement issued by the Meghalaya government.

Prasar Bharati Set to Launch OTT

Kerala’s experiment seems to have inspired the Union Government to launch its own OTT platform to air ‘clean content promoting India’s culture and values.’ Prasar Bharati is reportedly hoping to launch its OTT platform soon and will initially air content for free for the first couple of years. The aim of the move is to compete with private platforms such as Netflix, Amazon, and Disney+ Hotstar. The platform name is yet to be finalised. According to sources, Prasar Bharati has partnered with well-known content makers to ensure the production of high-quality programs that educate about different cultures. On September 23, Prasar Bharati also released a draft contract detailing how the OTT platform should be built, run and maintained.

Namma Chalanachitra: Karnataka Government’s OTT Initiative

In a significant development, renowned actor, director, music composer, and president of the Karnataka Chalanachitra Academy (KCA), Sadhu Kokila, recently announced the launch of a new Kannada OTT platform called Namma Chalanachitra. This is a Karnataka government initiative, and the announcement was made in the presence of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah at the inauguration of the new Karnataka Film Producers’ Association (KFPA) building. Siddaramaiah promised to provide all possible support for the KCA-Namma Chalanachitra endeavour. This government-run initiative is seen as a crucial step towards promoting and preserving Kannada cinema, ensuring that regional cinema receives the appreciation it deserves.

Speaking to The Federal, Sadhu Kokila expressed his concern that existing OTT platforms do not give proper recognition to Kannada cinema. “It is everyone’s concern that an OTT exclusively for the Kannada entertainment industry be launched. After thorough deliberations with stakeholders, we have decided to name the platform ‘Namma Chalanachitra’ and launch it in collaboration under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model. The move is to provide a boost to Kannada cinema in its 90th year of existence.”

Kokila also revealed that plans are underway to launch a website to promote Namma Chalanachitra. This website will feature movie posters, trailers, and other promotional materials ahead of the OTT platform’s launch. “We are committed to launching this OTT platform within six months. Before that, the website will create a buzz to attract Kannada audiences.”

Why are filmmakers not trying the Pay-Per-View model?

Major OTT players such as Amazon Prime, Disney+Hotstar, Netflix, and Zee5 are accused of ‘neglecting’ South Indian films. Like other South Indian film industries, the Kannada film industry has also been affected, with debutant filmmakers struggling to sell their films to OTT platforms. Admitting that Kannada viewers watch films on all OTT platforms, but few watch Kannada movies, film producer and distributor Supreet M notes, “Research reports point to dipping viewership for Kannada films, which is why OTT platforms are hesitant to take Kannada cinema. They opt for star-studded films with the confidence of getting viewership. Sometimes, their calculation goes wrong.”

Filmmaker Sandeep Sunkad concurs. “Of course, the Kannada entertainment industry is also producing web series, which includes Loose Connection, Honeymoon, Hate You Romeo, By Mistake, and Namma Oorina Rasikaru. But getting them on an OTT platform is not an easy task. One has to wait to get a response from them. After 60 days of release in theatres, the rate of Pay-Per-View will also dip on OTT platforms,” he says. “To be successful on the OTT platform, content should be watched for over 10 crore minutes. But, despite being watched for about 4 crore minutes, Kannada films are getting a maximum of Rs 20 lakh. OTT platforms need fresh content to make it economically viable,” says Niranjan, an expert on selling entertainment content for OTT platforms.

Sources in Amazon Prime disclosed that the problem is not peculiar to the Kannada entertainment industry alone. Similar is the situation in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Marathi, and other languages. “If makers are confident about the marketability of their content, why don’t they experiment under the Pay-Per-View category? Instead of complaining against OTT platforms, let them focus on the kind of content that attracts viewers,” says a senior official at Amazon, who spoke on condition of anonymity. 

Exploring alternatives

The neglect by OTT majors has pushed South Indian filmmakers to explore other alternatives as well. Films such as Hondisi Bareyiri and Dhoomam were made available on YouTube for free. The mini web series, Colours, presented by Rishabh Shetty, is also streaming on YouTube. Rakshit Shetty’s Ekam, starring Prakash Raj, Raj B Shetty, and Shine Shetty, is streaming on a customized platform. According to sources, the seven-episode series Ekam was not picked up by any OTT platform for release. Consequently, the makers of the series launched their own platform for digital streaming (Rakshit Shetty’s dedicated Transactional Video-on-Demand, TVOD, www.ekamtheseries.com).

Government Cess on OTT Platforms

Meanwhile, the Congress-led Karnataka government recently (July 16) passed the Karnataka Cinema and Cultural Activists Bill. The Bill aims to bolster support for the entertainment sector by introducing a new cess on TV channels, OTT platforms, and multiplexes operating within the state. This legislation allows the government to impose a cess of up to 2% on the revenues of TV channels and OTT services derived from Karnataka. The bill stipulates that this cess will be applied to cinema tickets and subscription fees of OTT platforms.

Another White Elephant

Most filmmakers The Federal spoke to are of the opinion that launching OTT platforms is easy, but sustaining them is really hard. Many film industry representatives in Karnataka are apprehensive of Karnataka Chalanachitra Academy (KCA) launching the project and they cite various projects taken up by the KCA in the past 15 years, which failed to see the light of day.

“KCA could not even protect and preserve the rich repository of films in its custody. The plan of creating Karnataka Film Archives has still not been realised even after an expert committee submitted its report,” says T.S. Nagabharana, the first president of KCA. “Even today, KCA has not created a mechanism on the lines of the Directorate of Film Festival to conduct the Bengaluru International Film Festival and protect and preserve Indian films screened at the festival. Can you expect the launching of an OTT platform from this Academy?” he asks. National Award-winning filmmakers B Suresh and Mansore agree: “Launching an OTT platform is easy today, but sustaining it is the real challenge,” says Mansore. “The failure by the government to create a self-sustaining and economically viable model will result in creating another White Elephant,” observes B. Suresh.

Pan-Indian audience for quality films

But filmmaker Girish Kasaravalli is of the opinion that in an era of big-budget pan-Indian films, state-run OTT space could create a pan-Indian audience for quality films. Citing examples of Malayalam and Marathi film industries, Kasaravalli underlines the urgent need of KCA and the Department of Information of Public Relations to come up with “innovative ways to promote Kannada films.”

Many national award-winning filmmakers are apprehensive about Prasar Bharati’s plans to launch its own OTT platform, fearing it may not adequately protect federal values. They believe that promoting regional, state-run OTT platforms is the only way to counter the BJP government’s perceived imposition of Hindi and potential harm to the value of unity in diversity.

B Suresh underlines, “I don’t think state governments in the country are naive enough to overlook the larger cultural impact of a centrally sponsored OTT. State governments can certainly protect, preserve, and promote local culture and ethos by launching their own OTT platforms. However, they must have a panel of experts in film studies, filmmaking, and representatives from all film industry bodies to guide and formulate policies that ensure the state-run OTT operates on federal lines.” He also notes, “However, there is a possibility of a change in government, and with the BJP returning to power in the state again could alter the dynamics of this platform.”