Streaming is driving a 'golden age' for Indian drama

Image source, Lootcase/Disney + Hotsar

The award-winning actor has never had more work or been recognised more often.

The Indian actor will soon be seen in the second season of the drama, Delhi Crime, and in the film, Lord Ki Haveli. She is currently working on a TV series.

It has been this way before. Her early years in the industry were difficult. Some of the films that Ms. Dugal worked on did not attract much of an audience.

While working on those films was a very fulfilling experience as a performer, the films didn't reach the audience I felt they deserved.

The small films she worked on didn't have the marketing budgets to compete with the big blockbuster movies, so they couldn't find an audience.

The bigger film would take all the popular screens and show times at cinemas.

She starred in a series on Amazon Prime Video called Mirzapur. She won awards for her role as Beena Tripathi.

The coming of steaming platforms has changed my career. She explains that not only in terms of quantity of work but also in terms of quality and variety.

It has been the case for actors around the world. Money from the likes of Apple, Amazon and others has been pouring into original drama.

Image source, Getty Images

According to figures from Ampere Analysis, the global streaming industry spent a whopping $220 billion on content last year, up 14 percent from the previous year.

In India,Netflix spent over $400 million to develop original and licensed Indian content during the two year period.

India has around 30 streaming services, also known as OTT platforms, because of the sudden influx of money.

In a nation where hundreds of languages and dialects are spoken, all that investment means many more viewers can be reached in their first language.

Last year, there were 28 Indian original titles on the platform, which were in seven languages, eight formats and 11 genres.

More and more people are discovering and engaging with the films that we bring from different regions of the country.

India has a rich culture of telling stories and loves entertainment, she says.

Around 40 million of India's 300 million households have access to streaming services, according to an analyst.

There is room for growth. The figure is likely to grow to 60 million households over the next few years, with a total audience of 200 million viewers, according to Mr. Pherwani.

He says that we will see both mega platforms and niche genre offerings come into being.

Image source, Roy Kapur films

One of the biggest film production companies in India is founded by Siddharth Roy Kapur.

He agrees that streaming has created a golden age for entertainment in India, but he has some reservations.

The production house usually retains the rights to the film, so the financial returns for making films in the traditional way can still be greater.

It's not usually the case for the streaming platforms to pay a fee to hold the rights to the material.

If the movie does well and you own the content, the returns on investment to the producer are much higher.

The streaming business may have expanded too fast, and some platforms could end up merging.

The OTT streaming services with deep pockets will survive, and the rest will consolidate in a few years.

Indian actors are enjoying the ride.

Image source, Radhika Chandak

Saqib Saleem has recently starred in numerous TV shows and films. The quality of the work he is being offered has never been better.

This is the most exciting phase of my career because of the variety of roles that I am being offered. This was not the case six years ago. All you had to do was find a film with a hero.

It is making the entertainment industry more accessible to viewers regardless of their culture and geography. Content creators put their minds to stories that are different from the norm.