OTT Vs Theatres: Harish Shankar’s Ingenious Analogy

As we reported earlier, producer Dil Raju and director Harish Shankar are all set to join hands to bankroll their upcoming web series, ATM. It is a thrilling robbery by a bunch of youngsters that will air on Zee5 Telugu. The team also organized a press conference this evening and the event was graced by Harish, Dil Raju, Hanshita among several others from the crew members.

A journalist asked Harish Shankar why he chose OTT this time. He asked if it was because OTT is now a more popular medium for movies than theatres or because he is looking for a change on a personal basis. Harish gave multiple analogies, comparing OTT and Theaters and just like his work in films, they sounded impressively smart and honest.

Harish said that he totally disagrees with the idea that OTT is better than Theatres. Taking examples of Shyam Singha Roy, Pushpa, and Akhanda, the director said that these films presently vouch for theatres still running more successfully than ever. He further brought the major expansion of Television and compared how people still went to theatres despite we got star cable at home as a huge Television revolution in 1996.

Stating that ”OTT is another platform, not an alternative platform”, Harish further left everyone cracked with his words – “We don’t refrain from visiting Holy Tirumala just because we have Lord Venkateshwara idol at home. In a similar vein, people won’t stop going to theatres because they have OTT at home”.

It is true that OTT is growing at a rapid pace and it is more flexible and convenient to watch content, but what Harish said is also thought-provoking. Not everyone has smart TV or phone. After all, theatres by their very nature is a different type of viewing experience that no cine-goer wants to give a miss!