Year Ender 2022: OTTs showed there's a market for inclusive, less conventional films, shows

The Indian cinema has been evolving rapidly along with the popularisation of streaming on over-the-top platforms (OTT). People love the comfort of watching movies and shows in their most favourable places which has therefore increased demand for more content than ever.

According to Ormax OTT audience report, audience of OTT platforms have grown in double digits in 2022 versus last year. The report was released on December 7.

With the growing demand of characters and storylines, Bollywood directors and copyrighters are making ends meet to produce work that the public relates with, the report underscored.

This idea was also noted recently by actor Hasleen Kaur, who is also the former Miss India Earth. Talking to BT, she had said: "The audience wants to see real people today, not someone you would aspire to be. This is exactly how the entertainment and fashion industry should be. People should be able to relate with characters. Nobody is now interested in a fantasy world with perfect bodies and skin tones."

"The quintessence part where an actress had to look a certain way no longer exists," Kaur added. Many age-inclusive female characters were seen this year including actresses Neena Gupta, Sarika and Shefali Shah.

Neena Gupta appeared in a number of movies, including Goodbye and Uunchai. On the other hand, Sarika played prominent role in Modern Love Mumbai. She was also a part of the Uunchai cast.

From playing the role of an ideal, unconventional mother in Netflix's Darlings to playing the devilish character of doctor Gauri Nath in Disney plus Hotstar's Human, to playing a top cop in Delhi Crime, Shefali Shah was among the most prominent female actors on the OTT, with an unparalleled range. 

The year 2022 was also about character and content that felt real to the audience. Shows like Masaba, Masaba, Jalsa, Aasharam, Guilty Minds and Panchayat kept the audience hooked.

Movies like Maja Maa (Amazon Prime), Darlings (Netflix), Gehraiyaan (Netflix) and Good Luck Jerry (Disney + Hotstar) functioned, in many ways, as ice-breakers and talked about societal stigmas still prevalent in the society.

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