Indian OTT Cinema is the ‘Third Big Bang’ in History of Indian Cinema: A Comparative Analysis of OTT Hindi Cinema versus Hindi Cinema Tradition
Kanika K. Arya | June 30
Watching films like The Archies (Akhter, 2023), Kho Gaye Hum Kahan (Singh, 2023) and Jane Jaan (Ghosh, 2023) makes one realize that these are not mainstream Bollywood films or what have been called masala films. Hindi cinema officially started by Phalke’s desi cinema has a long and commendable tradition of films starting with mythological genre, to studio cinema, star cinema, the golden age of melancholy and socialism and the socials and the angry young man era to the romance and action films of 1980s and the domestic dramas of 1990s to hatke films of the 2000s and the digital invasion of 2010s and it goes on. It also has divergent traditions of parallel and new wave and the hatke films but exclusive OTT films are different. Not only are the films unconventional in storyline, character portrayal and basic narratives but the platforms that they are released on and the kind of reception they receive is also contrasting compared to the mainstream cinema. This research paper would look at the inception of exclusive OTT cinema in India, the reasons behind it – survival of the film industry during Covid times, technological changes, medium characteristics, niche audiences and freedom to experiment with storytelling. It would also look at the text of this cinema and compare it with the text of a typical masala film to understand how the cinema has evolved into new spaces in India.
Keywords: Hindi Cinema, OTT Cinema, Audiences, Masala Film, Film Business
Sitaare Zameen Par: an important contribution to Indian cinema in the larger context of the film industry as well as society
Oorvazi Irani | June 29
Sitaare Zameen Par is original, progressive and empowering. How is Sitaare Zameen Par an original film? Since this is an adapted film, the obvious burning question needs to be addressed first. The answer depends on how one defines originality for a film. The prism of originality need not be limited to the plot or the characters and what is at the surface, but rather what we find when we start looking within the layers — the filmmaker’s intent and core values, the process, the cultural rootedness and the effective use of film language. Also, the film’s significance goes beyond originality in the form of the creation itself but reflects in the outcome it creates. To examine the subject deeper, from a ‘von above view’ looking at the idea of originality, nothing really is created from a void, but everything builds on the foundation of someone else’s work as there is an interconnectedness to our living, and originality is relative.