Remember the time when our calendars showed 2018? Apart from the lack of COVID, there was another big reason to be excited about it, it was the OTT. Indian OTT was taking baby steps as they kept offering content that our usual big screen cinema could never do. And that was the USP of OTTs.
OTTs didn’t have to worry about the box office formula and graphs which led them to make better and more engaging content. But COVID came and the direct to OTT releases boomed OTT space like never before.
Slowly the glamor and glitz moved the attention of the OTT from rising unknown faces to the big Bollywood celebrities.
It was slowly becoming prominent and now, OTT is almost the same as the major faces of the Hindi film industry.
Let’s remember the big successful ventures on OTT recently. Farzi, Jubilee, Rana Naidu, Trial By Fire, Saas Bahu Aur Flamingo.
Even if we look at the upcoming big releases then Indian Police Force, Citadel, Guns & Gulaabs, Khufiya, The Devotion Of Suspect X and so many more are all about Bollywood stars leading the game.
Commercialization kills creativity most of the time. And there can’t be any check on commercialization if such big names are involved in any project.
So yes, there has been a Bollywoodization or let’s say commercialization of OTT in the last 2-3 years. And the lack of creativity and excitement is clear evidence of the same. We hope the situation gets better.