Netflix has taken Indian viewers by storm.
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Netflix and chill! — this was all social media could talk about the last couple of days, after the global phenomenon that is the online streaming service, launched in India giving fans of American films and TV shows a high. No more waiting forever for your favourite series to appear on Indian television a month after the original airing. No more desperately staying off Twitter to avoid chancing upon spoilers from annoying friends who live abroad. And hopefully, no more tracking down torrents and downloading them illegally.
But Chennaiites weren’t just rejoicing over these advantages — many youngsters who’d been egging their parents on for ages to watch TV with them (and vice-versa) were also thrilled that it could finally become a family activity! And more importantly, take the focus off the Chithis and Vani Ranis for a change. (yes, we can almost hear the sound of a million homemakers going *tsk tsk*) But the fact remains that Netflix will be revolutionary in the way media will now be consumed, says digital media expert S. Ram, “Data prices are only becoming more and more affordable. While this doesn’t pose an immediate threat to local TV, the availability of movies and shows on day one, including original content (like Daredevil and Narcos) on demand will really challenge the market. Now how will other content providers respond?”
He adds, “Not to mention the deteriorating quality of Indian shows today — some actual intelligent content can replace the whole ‘reality-based’ drama that our television has become all about these days!” And he has a point — as popular TV anchor Bhavna Balakrishnan attests to, “As a viewer, I’m absolutely thrilled! I don’t have to put up with censored or late content, and this also means my 2016 resolutions are out of the window — the temptation to binge-watch all day is too much! But as a TV and media professional, I’m genuinely scared. Many channels will have to rethink strategies. Our livelihood depends on TRP ratings; and it’s just recently that youngsters got taken to television again… what’s going to happen now? Having said that, something similar occured when YouTube came into our lives years ago — but since then regulations have ensured we can co-exist in peace.”
And yet, others are not perturbed in the least, such as actor Prithiveeraj, more commonly known as ‘Babloo’ — “People are labouring under the delusion that Tamil soaps don’t click with the younger generation. But I have had many youngsters walk up to me and rave about Vani Rani, after having been hooked to it because their entire family watches it! While these Netflix dramas might be great (I myself am a fan of several), they aren’t suitable for the kind of audience that watches family soaps revolving around relationships with a heavy dose of melodrama.”
In fact, a hilarious meme by Facebook user Dinesh Natarajan just shows exactly how Tamil audiences feel about this! But it is a given that piracy will reduce with such an alternate, legit means of watching shows, which could change mindsets too. “The biggest relief is doing away with downloading torrents,” quips dancer Preethi Ravikumar, adding, “There is a scene in The Big Bang Theory, where Raj is seen describing a favourite show of his, only to see Leonard exclaim, ‘Dude that was like 10 years ago!’ I have found myself in that position quite a number of times — now, my friends in the US won’t taunt me about being slow anymore. As a dancer, I follow reality shows like So You Think You Can Dance, and mostly, the situation is such that even before the show comes to India, you know the winner! With Netflix, there will be no more spoiler alerts,” she laughs.
Vyas, an ad filmmaker views the entire Netflix business as a game-changer, “I heard that they have acquired a lot of great Indian independent films, which never saw the light of its day, due to censor issues. Now independent artists have a sustainable model to showcase their work and monetise it,” and adds that with the quality of Indian television shows in shambles, people like him can contribute to NetFlix, if a channel arises.
( Source : deccan chronicle )
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