'OTT is personal content as most people watch shows on their phones'

During the OTT Session, on Day 2 of Goafest 2022, artists Vikrant Massey and Ali Fazal, and MX Player Chief Content Officer Gautam Talwar spoke on how OTT's emergence gave an opportunity to the creators. The session was moderated by Atika Farooqui - Anchor and Creative Director. 

While speaking about the OTT growth in India, Massey said that OTT has changed people's lives – of both creators and audiences. It has given an opportunity to the creators to go out and explore their skills. But he also believes that OTT is at a nascent stage and still has a scope for growth. He also said that his OTT releases helped him stay connected with his audience during the pandemic.

OTT is personal content, said Massey. Most people he comes across watch his shows while traveling, mostly on their phones. “This shows massive audience reach but doesn’t compete with community-watching experience. So, Cinema will always remain to entertain people.”

Talwar shared that the discipline of advertising has taught him a lot. “We have just begun, as an ecosystem, we understand 30 seconds, 1000 hours of television content and 120 minutes format feature film very well. None of us knew 300-400 minutes premium content development well. We are at the beginning of that ecosystem and it's a long learning curve for all of us.”  

Talwar also mentioned that they understand short-form content, series and movies. He believes OTT is a writer’s medium and the audience is drawn to it because of its authenticity. They achieve this authenticity by borrowing content from advertisements, television and movies. And talent from all three places forms the 4th platform – OTT.”

Talwar also mentioned that there has been an ecosystem developed for television advertising, everybody has their own rules and regulations. Over a period of time, he believes that OTT will evolve to that stage as well. “OTT has managed to democratize storytelling.” He shared that a writer doesn’t start with his story because the platform gives him a certain sense of freedom. He writes his story because he wants to. OTT has democratized storytelling and consumption and this kind of storytelling has never been available before.” He also mentioned that family viewing is far away on OTT.

Adding to the conversation, Ali Fazal shared that theatrical releases followed a formula-based structure. If one action movie works, the whole year will only have action- movies in the theatre. But OTT changed the game. It gave the audience an opportunity to watch what they want and opt for newer things. It helps tell original stories. “Freedom is in the way of telling a story on that particular platform. Though, it comes with great responsibility.”