Hoichoi

Weekend Focus – Web Of Opportunity

Times Of India: The internet has given a bunch of filmmakers and actors the creative freedom to venture into areas and broach topics that conventional films have dared not explore, reports Priyanka Dasgupta.

Hello bondhus! Hi! My name is Ru poshee. But you can call me Roop…“

All eight videos posted by Hy derabad-based techie-turned-stand-up comedian Manjusha Banerjee that be gin with these three lines have created quite a stir, since the first one was posted during the Bengali New Year.

`Ruposhee Watches Game of Thrones’, `Ruposhee Reviews Bahubaali’, `Ru poshee Explains How To Be Cool’ each of these is a hilarious take on the stereotypical Bengali, regaling the au dience with wit and biting sarcasm.

Banerjee, a former student of Nava Nalanda High School, Carmel High School and Bengal Institute of Technol ogy & Management, shoots the videos on her phone. The production cost is minimal, but ensures good dividends.

Banerjee is just one of the many who are making a foray into the world of digital content. While this format of presentation is empowering many newcomers, it is also giving a platform to many to experiment with content that often get stifled within the limita tions of a feature-film format. Those who have jumped into the fray admit that the digital space is extremely democratic, and allows complete free dom from the headache of dealing with the complications of mainstream distribution channels, the tension of not getting desired shows at theatres and the fear of movies being pulled off within one week of screening.

In 2015, scriptwriter Dipangshu Acharya started a YouTube channel called `Late 66A’. “This name takes a dig at Section 66A of the Information Technology Act, which was later abolished. The first video was a parody of the `Bhagyo Bidhata’ song from `Rajkahini’. It set the ball rolling. Thereafter, we came up with a web series called `Hyanarchy Tyanarchy’,“ Acharya says. Having worked on television shows, Acharya understands its limitations. “We were often asked not to write certain dialogues. But there is freedom on this platform. Though I can’t devote much time to the channel, I already have a subscriber base of 3,000,“ he adds.

Seventeen-year-old Arya Dasgupta insists he has become a “mini star“ in the Bengali digital world after his web series titled `Khyapa’ released on the addatimes.com app. The actor, who has recently acted in `Chaamp’, said: “We have launched two episodes every month. Directed by Corok Murmu, our series is about a young boy named Khyapa. It has got huge response, even from viewers in Bangladesh.“

If rank newbies, with minimal spending power and basic production levels, are grabbing eyeballs, can the big boys be far behind? Enter SVF Entertainment (formerly Shree Venkatesh Films). The production house has jumped onto the web-series bandwagon.Come August, and SVF Entertainment and Hoichoi will launch more than five exclusive original shows on their own app. In the pipeline is a series based on the Byomkesh Bakshi stories.

Production work on three such shows -`Hello’, `Cartoon’ and `Holy Phaank!’ -are on in full swing. There will be ten 20-minute episode in each series, and the tentative budget of each series is close to Rs 1 crore. “We wanted to cater to the demand of the global Bengali audience to get entertainment anytime, anywhere at their fingertips in their own language,“ says Vishnu Mohta, the business head of HoiChoi. “Web series have a totally new storytelling format, which is different from that of films or TV content. It gives us liberty to tell stories that we wouldn’t be able to otherwise say. Through it, we can cater specifically to the youth, who are constantly on the internet and hungry for varied and engaging content.“ Established Tollywood actors, including Paran Bandopadhyay , Raima Sen, Sayantika Banerjee and Payel Sarkar have begun shooting for web series. Priyanka Sarkar, who is working in Anirban Mallick’s `Hello’, which also stars Raima and Joy, believes digital media is opening up new vistas for actors like her. “In case of feature films, where budgets are high, it is often important to play safe. Here, with lower budgets, one can do unconventional, experimental work. A lot of new faces are getting a chance to do interesting work. What’s even more important is that we will be able to create a new audience base. I am very hopeful,“ she feels.

For those who have dabbled in short films, the overwhelming response is making or attempting to direct a web series. Upal of Chandrabindoo was the brain behind the short film titled `Talent’. Prodded by the “phenomenal“ response to it, he is now thinking of coming up with another short titled `Talent 2′. “I had an idea and wanted Chandril Bhattacharya to direct it. But we didn’t get any producer for funding. With amateur actors, we decided to go ahead and make the film by investing our own money .Within 20 days, our short film got made on a budget of Rs 52,000. A day after releasing it online, we got a huge response from across the globe. Other ideas are there and we might think of making a web series too,“ says Upal, referring to other interesting Bengali short films, including `Bhalobashar Sohor’ and `Dheu’.

A newcomer like Jeet Ghosh is coming up with eight different `webshots’ that are being beamed every Thursday on a YouTube channel. “With four friends, we have formed a company , Real Reel Mediaworks, that will generate eight webshots under the name `Love Shuv Aar Goppo’. The duration of the episodes vary from 10 to 24 minutes. The minimum budget for each episode is Rs 10,000,“ says Ghosh, who is hoping to produce a collage from these webshots as his showreel for pitching feature film ideas to producers.

Even established makers like Srijit Mukherji are interested in exploring this space. “It’s been a year since I have been getting offers to direct a web series. I have already spoken to an author to adapt his thriller for a web series,“ Mukherji says. The thriller is set in Kolkata and shooting is expected to start next year. “The author had ideally wanted me to make a film on this. But if I had to do that, I would have needed to compress a lot of the backstory. While making this thriller, I didn’t want to make a watered-down version of the book. Also, there is a lot of graphic violence that the censor board might not allow.“

The freedom to avoid censor issues is another big advantage. In the episode `Ruposhee -Will fasting help with getting married?’, Banerjee has referred to various gods and goddesses.Some of the comments, she understands, would have incurred the wrath of CBFC and might have to be axed, had it been a feature film. “I had got a lot of rape and death threats after that video. YouTube and Facebook still hold the right to take it down if they feel it is causing trouble,“ Banerjee says. But even in the age of intolerance, nothing of that sort has happened as yet.

Censor board chief Pahlaj Nihalani, though, had recently said -in reference to the documentary `The Argumentative Indian’ – that releasing an uncertified version of the trailer online was a mistake. This has created a grey area in matters of online content.

According to actor Joy Sengupta, the web is the future for all kinds of content. “It’s the latest medium that gives huge exposure and therefore has tremendous penetration, especially for the younger lot. In the West, the best content has moved to the web.In India, it’s at a nascent stage and people are experimenting with its content and target audiences. But without doubt, it has more freedom of expression,“ Sengupta believes.

What is also drawing many to this media is the potential of quick revenue generation too. “Revenue models for these kinds of content typically work in two ways. If the creator monetizes the YouTube videos, revenue comes from advertisements. But we need to make sure all copyright policies are followed to the tee. For comedians who do live shows, viewership from these videos help get audience to their shows, too,” Banerjee says.

Acharya even has a tip for anyone interested in synergising passion for cinema with a sound revenue model: “Our channel has 4 lakh views and we have already earned $100. Just come up with good content and post regularly. That is sure to create a brand.“