From Start-ups to Live-in Relationships: The Rise of Webseries in India
As we move into the age of technology, web-series are beginning to find their niche with our growing online presence. Is this the end for television and cable operators in India?
IN“Tu Beer Hai”, Navin spends most of his nights in a bar lamenting the ‘chutiya’ nature of his corporate job. In a conversation with Bhati,who just received a second round of funding for his e-commerce site, Navin’s frustration with his job are further heightened. Bhati convinces Navin that he is beer but he needs to escape the constraints of the bottle to enter the glass, a clever metaphor urging Navin to leave his job and start something of his own. With one drunken phone call followed by a barrage of cuss words, Navin quits his job and wakes up to a hangover and the prospect of initiating his own start-up.
Navin and Bhati are characters in TVF’s Pitchers, a webseries that encapsulates the tumultuous journey in establishing a start-up. The Viral Fever (TVF) was developed by young entrepreneur, Arunabh Kumar, who believes that existing Indian television shows do not cater to the young. The primary motivation behind TVF was to provide young audiences with shows that would serve their interests ultimately filling the void that television was unable to fulfill.
Such web-series mark a significant deviation from traditional Indian television dramas, imbibing a more Western approach in style and content. Perhaps, what makes these shows so captivating for audiences is their no-frills attitude. There are no traces of a saas-bahu saga or a character who is continuously resurrected to prolong the longevity of the series. These shows are fast-paced, crisp, and very effective in capturing an urban day India.
This culture of online viewing has proliferated as more of us continue to become socially active. With the advent of Netflix and other online streaming sites, original web series have found remarkable popularity. House of Cards, a Netflix original and one of it’s most watched shows, has a huge fan following both in the U.S. and abroad. In-fact, I am probably among a small minority in my friends circle who hasn’t watched a single episode from the series. Pitchers itself was the highest rated mini-series on IMDB in 2015 beating out even Breaking Bad, a true testament to increased online viewing.
Although web-series are unlikely to completely replace television sets, they do provide an attractive alternative for those looking for fresh, relevant material. With the absence of the Indian Censor Board, directors and scriptwriters have more creative freedom to delve into topics that might have been out-of-bounds or taboo. Girliyapa’s “Why should Hot Girls Have all the Fun?”features two women who confront a man at a restaurant for staring at their ‘hot’ friend. Midway through the episode, the twist reveals that the two women are actually angered by the fact that the man chose to stare at their friend, not them. Essentially, the episode serves as as a satirical mockery of India’s ‘goorna’ culture where women are most often at the receiving end. In a similar fashion, Kanan’s and Biswa’s Pretentious Movie Reviews take on outrageously bizarre Bollywood movies pointing out both directorial mistakes and criticizing the absurd societal norms that some of these movies propagate. Comedy as a medium of raising social awareness and highlighting societal flaws has taken a stronghold.
The transition to web series raises an important question in the realm of television viewing. How badly will this hurt cable t.v. operators? In 2014, data collected in the U.S. revealed that the number of subscriptions to the top 9 cable t.v. operators fell by around 1.2 million. Cable operators in the U.S. are now beginning to feel the pressure and have attempted to slash prices for subscriptions; however, Netflix still remains a cheaper, more popular alternative.
With respect to the Indian market, I would argue that the effect on television viewing would not be as damaging. Despite my grandmother’s new found passion for Netflix, she remains a unique exception. It is unlikely that her generation would switch to online viewing due to comfort issues as well as the smallness of a computer screen. Watching cricket, football, or even movies tend to be family affairs for many therefore a large television screen would still be the preferred medium. Furthermore, accessibility to high-speed internet can also pose an obstacle to many Indians due to to affordability. The Business Line and MoneyControl both touched upon the issue of Netflix charging premium rates that are higher than those charged by existing DTH/TV providers in India. Moreover, most of the content that is currently available on Netflix are U.S. television shows and Hollywood movies, thereby indicating a lack in local Indian content.
As a consequence, Netflix will only attract a niche market of mostly young, wealthy, urban individuals in India. A large majority of our 1.3 billion population will continue to be loyal to television.
As will I.
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