How OTT has cracked the code to harness fresh talent

The rapid growth of OTT has been a boon to content creators, offering them a platform that has helped them create newer narratives, introduce fresh storytelling, as well as break stereotypes.

To understand the implications of OTT’s growth in offering tremendous opportunities to talent, SCREENXX Summit and Awards 2022 saw a special Fireside Chat on the topic ‘How OTT has cracked the code to harness fresh talent?’, which saw Session chair Rani Jha, RJ, Big FM in conversation with actor Pratik Gandhi and Mrinalini Khanna, VP – Originals, Lionsgate.

RJ Rani started the session by speaking about the revolutionary changes OTT has brought to our lives. She said, “I think OTT platforms have broken all the stereotypes and made sure that viewers consume content according to their likes and dislikes. Content is king on OTT platforms, and it has brought novelty to consumption and content creation.”

She went on to ask Pratik Gandhi about his views on how OTT has cracked the code to harness fresh talent, as well as share his journey in the OTT space.

Gandhi said, “‘Scam 1992’ has changed my life. I often bring up the fact that I have 2 phases in my life – I call it pre-Scam and post-Scam. ‘Post Scam’ is a phase of my life that every actor must have dreamt of. ‘Scam 1992’ was the best decision I took, and I am grateful that OTT platforms are bringing up such great content for the users.”

Speaking on how Lionsgate has been trying to do something different and original, Mrinalini Khanna said, “Advantage to being a maverick brand is that you get the confidence to make a difference. It is also a great responsibility to create something different always. It is also a great time to create something out of the box. When the great story comes, as a producer, our work is to say, yes! this is the content we should work on.”

These are edited excerpts. For the entire conversation, please watch below: