OTT superstars driving streaming platform decisions

livemint.com:

NEW DELHI : A handful of top OTT stars, who are now seen across premium web originals, have gained so much popularity over the past few years that streaming projects are being mounted on their names. Actors like Manoj Bajpayee, Shefali Shah, and Pankaj Tripathi not only make ₹3-4 crore per title, they are also seen as so bankable in the plateauing OTT ecosystem that platforms are willing to wait until they can come on board. However, industry experts warn a certain fatigue could set in, given that the same faces are seen across shows.

According to media consulting firm Ormax, the list of most popular OTT actors in India between October and December of 2023 was led by Bajpayee and Tripathi. “Similar to how television cultivated talents that transitioned to prominence on the big screen, OTT platforms are introducing a new generation of talents onto the main stage," said Kavitha Jaubin, vice-president, content and strategy at aha, a service that streams programmes in Telugu and Tamil. “The coordination of schedules becomes particularly challenging when intricate scenes involve collaboration of two or three popular stars.

Selecting specific names as leads for a project can significantly increase the likelihood of scheduling conflicts, necessitating potential reshuffling of show timelines," she added. To be sure, entertainment industry experts point out these top OTT stars can charge ₹5-6 lakh a day for a seven- to eight-episode series, making around ₹3-4 crore per season. Some of them are doing at least four such projects every year.