The OTT revolution is as prevalent as it ever was in the Tamil film industry. Several Tamil films including the A-lister ones featuring top stars are gearing up for direct to digital release. Going by the trend, Suriya and Dhanush seem to be leading the way with consecutive direct to OTT releases.
Suriya started it all off with Soorarai Pottru which landed directly on OTT later last year. It was the first Tamil biggie to premiere directly on OTT. Needless to say, Suriya faced stern criticism from the distribution and exhibition chains in Tamil Nadu for skipping theatrical release and siding with OTT. Suriya wasn’t too bothered with the same and his immediate next film, Jai Bhim is also skipping theatrical release and premiering directly on OTT. The film will be arriving on Amazon Prime Video on 4th November.
As for Dhanush, his previous film Jagame Thandhiram premiered on Netflix earlier this year. This move also drew backlash. Film distributors and exhibitors were understandably disappointed with the decision and they made their voices heard. Now, Dhanush is riding the OTT wave again with his upcoming film, Maaran. This film will be premiering on Disney+ Hotstar early next year.
Not just the distribution and exhibition chains, even fans and followers are disappointed with Suriya and Dhanush now. They are not content with the fact that their beloved actors are orchestrating back to back OTT releases. At a time when Tamil cinema followers are eagerly waiting for the theatre experience, top stars like Dhanush and Suriya are green signalling OTT releases. But now that cinema halls are set to resume operations in a full-fledged manner, we can expect top stars like Suriya and Dhanush to set their focus back on theatrical releases.
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