Why Nawazuddin Siddiqui is not hopeful about the future of OTT in India

Nawazuddin Siddiqui feels OTTs are getting cramped in India and herd mentality is seeping in. The actor says everyone wants to do something on the digital platform, not for the art but just for the sake of business.

“Frankly speaking, OTT used to be a platform for content that was different from the typical Bollywood form, and had a distinctive character. I am not talking about social content, but content for audience who want something apart from the regular Bollywood,” Nawazuddin said, adding, “At the moment, there is an overload. We have a tendency of herd mentality. With that, there will be a decline and there is no doubt about it. There is a possibility of going below the set level,” he added.

The actor, whose projects Serious Men, Raat Akeli Hai and Ghoomketu released on streaming platforms this year, rues that art is being turned into a business. “We turn art into trade. Initially, it is art and then eventually turns into a business. I fear that it will seep into the OTT space as well. I fear the trend of showing anything and everything in the name of business. It will happen, in fact it has already begun,” shared the actor, who has explored the OTT space as an actor extensively.

“For example, I didn’t expect that these types of films will be released on Netflix, which I won’t be able to watch. But they are being released on Netflix, especially in India. Netflix and other OTT services have a very different set of audience,” he added, without naming the films.

There was a time when the Sacred Games star was hopeful about the OTT wave in India, but not anymore.

“I thought there would be a change for the better. I thought that it would go a step ahead from the bar which we had set on OTT. Now, I don’t think so. I am not hopeful. That is just declining,” said the actor, who joined stars like Saif Ali Khan, Samantha Akkineni, Manoj Bajpayee, Tisca Chopra and Divya Dutta to discuss the future of the industry through a virtual discussion.