Higher IMDB ratings for

web series than Bollywood

movies on OTT platforms

Presented by-
Keshav Pareek
(1906252)
Introduction : Over The Top (OTT) media
services
• Over the top (OTT) refers to film and television content provided via a high-speed
Internet connection rather than a cable or satellite provider.
• OTT bypasses cable, broadcast, and satellite television platforms, the types of
companies which traditionally act as controllers or distributors of such content.
• OTT does not mean free, as the term encompasses services such as Netflix,
Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, and HBO Now.
• In India, the online media space has been revolutionised with the Over The Top
(OTT) media services. The Indian biggies such as Hotstar, ALT Balaji, Zee5, Voot,
Eros Now and the likes find themselves in league with the global giants such as
Netflix and Amazon Prime Video.
Bollwood’s struggle as OTT gains
popularity
• Censorship :
The Bollywood movies have to adhere to the strict laws
of the censor board which frequently limits the
potential of the the movie by cutting down on profanity
and the sexual content. However, the web series
available on the OTT platforms such as Netflix or
Amazon Prime doesn’t have to cater to the Censor
board and in turn can publish their content more freely.
• Big production houses dominating the industry :
The big production houses dominating the Bollywood
industry often tend to manipulate and alter the script
in order to serve the majority of the audience using
their influence which tends to reduce the quality of the
the movie as the writers and directors are not allowed
independency. This affects the rating of the movie by
independent organisations such as IMDb and Rotten
Tomatoes.
• Recycling of ideas :
In Bollywood it is fairly natural to witness the recyling
of the same plot again and again in order to gather the
eyeballs which equal the large amount of money spent
in production as a low risk- high reward tactic.
Large number of movies having little depth in the
storyline and large number of similarities with other
projects often fail to bring in good reviews from
experts.
• Limited actors and Nepotism :
Most of bollywood consists of a few actors with big names who
continue to dominate the digital content scene paving little way for
the emerging talents in the society. This lack of diversity often results
in movies having to opt for actors who are not very suitable but the
lack of option leaves them no choice which in turns compromises
with the quality of the content.However in the web series available in
the OTT media services, there are various diverse and often new
actors which tends to increase the potential of a story.
Nepotism is also a major issue in the film industry as young actors
who are not competent enough are forcibly added to movies which
ends up closing the doors for the new people who might have had a
better chance at an opportunity.
• Time boundation in Bollywood :
Bollwood movies have to stick to a strict runtime of 2
or 3 hours which doesn’t allow the directors to
effectively dictate the development of plot and causes
them to rush the movie. However in OTT media
services, a web series can have a large number of
episodes spread over many seasons making it easier for
the production team to display the development of
plot without having to rush and in turn compromise the
quality.
• Unnecessary dance and music scenes which
further conjust the little time a movie gets to
present its story :
Dance and music doesn’t only kill the story narration by
making the viewer lose track of what the story was
leading up to but also reduces the quality of a movie
significantly by diminishing the meaning the characters
had till then. This elongates the runtime of the movie
and further dilutes the content in them.
Conclusion:
This case applied particularly in India and not in western countries like
USA, UK etc. The biggest reason for this is the censorship norms and
the second reason is lack of creativity fostering which India lacks.
As of now most of the OTT platforms like Netflix, Amazon prime video,
Alt Balaji, Viu, Mx player etc does not fall in censorship gambit that is
why more and more people are drifting towards these platform in
comparison to traditional content.
Because of liberal censor policy norms of OTT platform more and more
creative people are associating themselves with these platform as they
get more liberation for their content not only this emerging talents got
opportunities which are otherwise difficult for them to get in our film
and creative industry.
Technician can experiment with their skills and they are fully backed by
big OTT platforms which allows them to try something new and
different which they normally would not be allowed to do in movies,
Television industry, creative industry or for that matter on Youtube.
With so much independence and a strong support and backing from
Major players people tend to work with good and open mindset and
work for excellence and hence we able to see a good quality content so
often on these platforms then TV serials and movies.
Thank you for your attention !!!