ICS 2021: Actors Rasika Dugal and Amruta Subhash say the OTT platforms have offered them a liberating experience

The popularity of OTT platforms has made them synonymous with internet service today. These platforms offer not just great content for viewers, but also great opportunities to several actors. Speaking at the Internet Commerce Summit (ICS) 2021, a two-day e-commerce event organised by IMAGES Group in association with GreenHonchos, OTT stars Rasika Dugal and Amruta Subhash shared how the platforms have offered them a liberating experience.  

The stars and other panellists shared their thoughts at one of the discussions on the rise of OTT in today’s age of the Internet. Actor and OTT star Amruta Subhash, known for shows like Bombay Begums, said that she got a different kind of content to work on as an actress with OTT. She is quoted by indiaretailing.com as saying, “OTT opened doors for me; I could do characters closer to me. The kind of content being shown on OTT made me free as an actor and also made my audiences free. That freedom was very welcoming.” 

Another panellist and actor Rasika Dugal, known for shows like Mirzapur, Out of Love and Delhi Crime on OTT, agreed with her. She called the platform to be liberating as it does not rely on declaring numbers. She also appreciated the platform for gaining recognition for writers. “We hope we find a way to constantly nurture that because the loophole right now is that we find ways of giving enough time to the first season of a project, but there doesn’t seem to be a mechanism in place either in terms of time or writing setup or development funds for writing subsequent seasons,” she said.    

The platforms have witnessed a growing audience for their relatable content. Actor Maanvi Gagroo said how a section of the audience who didn't follow TV or films were ignored until the sudden boom of OTT that came forth with relatable stories. She believes that this section of the audience will only continue to grow. 

However, when it comes to food content, it needs to be curated slightly differently for the internet, said the celebrity chef Ranveer Brar. "Food content is a beast that needs to be tackled. It requires more time and effort than regular content because there are more action points. There is, and should be, no shortcut to good food and good content,” quotes the portal. 

The event that concluded today also had other key panel discussions on how the content is being consumed as well.