Indian film and television veteran Siddharth Roy Kapur highlights that increasingly polarized cinema outcomes and a period of strategic recalibration in streaming are key trends that have shaped Indian entertainment in 2024, calling it a “pause year” dominated by business-to-business developments rather than consumer initiatives.
“People are becoming more discerning about the films they will watch in a cinema hall,” says Roy Kapur, founder of Roy Kapur Films and former head of Disney India, in his annual analysis of the Indian entertainment sector for Variety. “The habits reinforced by COVID have only accelerated in that people are deciding to go to theaters for very specific films in a year. »
Roy Kapur notes that while blockbuster theatrical releases are performing better than before the pandemic, films that aren’t generating strong word-of-mouth are underperforming compared to previous years. This polarization has been amplified by a decrease in theatrical releases in 2024, which he attributes in part to production delays due to COVID-19 and increased selectivity regarding theatrical projects.
The year was particularly successful for franchise films, with “Pushpa 2: The Rise” demonstrating the potential for exponential growth between tranches. The Hindi version of the first film “Pushpa” grossed $45 million during its initial Omicron-impacted release, while the sequel has already grossed over $200 million worldwide.
Roy Kapur attributes the good performance of South Indian films in Hindi-speaking markets to their approach to heroism. “Hindi cinema has probably not, in recent years, given the general public the kind of heroism they expect from their theatrical experiences,” he says, comparing the characters in films like “Pushpa”, “KGF”, “€€€” And “Baahubali” to “Amitabh Bachchan of “Deewar” on steroids. »
In the streaming sector, the year 2024 was marked by corporate restructuring, including Merger of Disney with Reliance’s Viacom18/Jio and the The Sony-Zee deal collapsed. “This tends to lead to a general cooling of the market,” says Roy Kapur, pointing out that even less involved players like Netflix and Prime Video have taken a more measured approach during this period.
Streaming platforms’ focus on subscriber growth is expected to influence content strategies in the future. “Once you have already reached your level of subscribers, who are in a socio-economic position where they can afford these services, you now need to expand your reach,” says Roy Kapur. “More and more, you will see a lot more mass and commercial cinema and series coming out of these platforms. »
Cricket remains an important driver for television and streaming platforms, but Roy Kapur highlights the importance of keeping audiences engaged between major sporting events. “You will always need longer series where you have characters that you want to live with for a longer period of time,” he says, emphasizing the need to avoid subscriber churn between tournaments.
This industry veteran sees the relative calm of 2024 as a period of transition. “It’s been a year where everyone has been waiting and watching because of all the business-to-business activities that were happening, rather than B2C,” he explains. “It was much more of a B2B environment where there was so much activity on the consolidation side, on the merger side, that was happening, but not happening.”
Looking to 2025, Roy Kapur foresees increased theatrical activity with big stars returning to screens after limited releases in 2024. His own production company has ‘Deva’, starring Shahid Kapoor, which is slated for a theatrical release on January 31, and “Matka King.” is expected to premiere on Prime Video later this year. He also notes that hit streaming shows generate second and third seasons, indicating a maturing market.
“Next year, each of the players will become much more consumer-focused as their businesses stabilize, whatever new form they are in, and they become much more outward-facing again,” explains Roy Kapur. Despite the challenges of 2024, he retains his characteristic optimism: “I’m an eternal optimist, as you might have guessed over the years of talking to me, so I think that next year there will definitely be a certain improvement. »
Hollywood’s performance in India has been particularly subdued in 2024, with Roy Kapur observing that blockbuster Western releases often did not match the preferences of Indian audiences. “Those who work in the West, or who have worked in the West, I think this year, tend not to be those who work in India,” he notes, adding that there could also be “some level of superhero fatigue.” » among the audience.