With' Squid Games', 'Money Heist' success, Netflix's global reach kindles dubbing revolution

Dubbing, the process of synchronising the dialogue of a film or TV series in a foreign language, is more often scoffed or disregarded than celebrated, especially in India. But Netflix is determined to change that and is stepping up its efforts to woo audiences across the globe with content from across the world. 

This change, although something which started to come about with the influx of OTT (Over-the-top) platforms, has led to a bigger point -- that people are culturally curious, intrigued by stories, food, and places from around the world. 

Dubbing plays a major role in enabling this, by making stories accessible to a much wider audience, in the language they are truly able to enjoy it.

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Fans are increasingly experimenting with and watching stories from around the world

The latest cases in point, Squid Game, made in South Korea, or Money Heist, made in Spain, have been watched and loved the world over as great stories can come from anywhere and be loved everywhere. These shows have pierced the cultural zeitgeist everywhere proving that the language is no barrier when it comes to good content. 

The commonality of authentic stories showing the emotions of laughter, joy, grief and pain, is felt across cultures and nations, irrespective of where we live, which is why authentically told stories resonate with viewers across the globe, however, for that to happen more, the language barrier has to become a thing of past.

Creativity and technology come together to offer great entertainment without borders

The dubbing process begins with the original script being adapted into the dubbing language, a big part of which is casting the right voice talent so that the viewers believe it's coming from the character on screen. Then the dubbing director works with the cast in a studio, recording, advising on delivery, and fitting dialogue to the scene.

Growing dubbing industry in India and around the world:

Netflix currently dubs shows and films in 34 languages. Since 2012, the availability and consumption of dubbed content on Netflix has progressively increased. On average, the availability of dubs has increased 27 per cent year-on-year (YoY). Dubs consumption has also grown on average by over 120 per cent YoY.

The boom in content has had a ripple effect across the ecosystem. The huge rise in demand for content has led to a flourishing post-production industry, which includes dubbing.

The global localisation industry has grown up to 40 per cent in the last 3 years and is expected to surpass $2.5 billion by 2021 and OTT content localisation will be the defining factor for such growth, according to a research report from the London-based media consulting firm Digital TV Research.

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Another report, this time from the Mumbai-headquartered media research firm Ormax Media, argues that Hollywood's share of revenues within India's box office figures has also been steadily increasing; it went from 12.5 per cent in 2018 to 15 per cent in 2019. And a primary reason pegged for this growth is dubbing and releasing films in Indian vernacular languages, such as Hindi, Tamil and Telugu, among others.

"Netflix has always believed that great stories can come from anywhere and be loved everywhere. And dubbing plays a big role in making that possible. Dubbing is a work of art. It blends innovation with human effort. And our goal with dubbing is to tell stories in a way that stays true to the creative intent, and to take it to audiences around the world without losing that intent," says Catherine Retat, Director of International Dubbing, Netflix.

"As with all things at Netflix, we are constantly trying to get better with the hope that more and more of our series and films reach new audiences in India and around the globe." She adds.

Rajesh Khatter, an Indian television and film actor, who dubbed for Dwayne Johnson in Hindi for the latest Hollywood flick Red Notice argues, "As a dubbing artist, it becomes crucial to understand the premise of what the actor is doing on screen to decide how the voice will be."

"Every actor has their own way of performing a scene. For example, The Rock has a very strong personality and the voice enhances his persona on screen. To convey a scene in the most authentic way while translating from the original language, it is important to deep dive into the very thought and essence of what the scene is trying to convey -- whether it is a comedy scene, an emotional scene or an action scene," he adds.

In a first for a major Hollywood film, in 2018, Netflix hosted the world premiere of Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle in Mumbai. The event saw Hollywood heavyweights like Christian Bale and Frieda Pinto come together with Abhishek Bachchan, Madhuri Dixit, Kareena Kapoor, Anil Kapoor and Jackie Shroff who dubbed for the Hindi version of the film. The film was also dubbed in Tamil and Telugu.

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But dubbing isn't restricted to big-ticket Hollywood films. Even Hindi language offerings are dubbed into other Indian languages, like for example Haseen Dillruba (film), Ajeeb Daastaans (film), She (web series) and Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives (web series) are also dubbed in Tamil, Telugu. Similarly, Tamil language offerings like Jagame Thandhiram was subtitled and dubbed in multiple Indian and other languages, including English, Spanish, French and Portuguese, enabling wider access for Netflix members around the world. Navarasa and Jagame Thandhiram have been in the Top 10 in 12 countries outside India and have also been number one in seven countries, including India, Malaysia, and the UAE.

Tamil anthology film Navarasa, helmed by Mani Ratnam and Jayendra Panchapakesan, was in the Top 10 in 10 countries including India, Malaysia, Sri Lanka. In its first week on Netflix, more than 40 per cent of the viewers for the film were from outside India.

Similarly, the romantic thriller Haseen Dillruba has fans swirling from around the globe. The film has been in the Top 10 across films in 22 countries, including India, Brazil, Argentina, Canada, UAE, Malaysia, Australia, and the United Kingdom.

Chris Hemsworth-starrer Extraction, parts of which were filmed in India and includes Indian talent - was dubbed in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu.

The Kissing Booth Part-1 and 2 and 3 was dubbed in Tamil and Telugu. The Netflix mega-hit franchise Stranger Things, along with The Witcher, Army of Thieves, Squid Game, 6 Underground, You, Emily in Paris, Lupin are all watched in English as well as with Hindi dubs, allowing these series to reach a wider audience.