Tamil film ‘Doctor’ to premiere on Sun TV followed by Netflix on Diwali
The action thriller has been directed by Nelson Dilipkumar and stars Sivakarthikeyan in the lead role
NEW DELHI : Tamil film Doctor that set the cash registers ringing after its theatrical release earlier this month will have its satellite premiere on Sun TV followed by an OTT launch on Netflix on 4 November for the Diwali weekend. The action thriller has been directed by Nelson Dilipkumar and stars Sivakarthikeyan in the lead role.
To be sure, bypassing theatrical release in the wake of the covid-19 pandemic may be common by now but some film-makers, especially in the south, are preferring a television premiere instead of streaming movies on OTT (over-the-top) platforms as an alternative.
Vijay Sethupathi’s Tughlaq Darbar, Reliance Entertainment’s Mandela and Aelay and Tamil film Sarbath are among titles that saw a release on satellite television over the past few months, cashing in on holiday weekends when broadcasters are known to grab family audience eyeballs and good festive advertising. The strategy works better for small-budget films that make profits by way of satellite right sales followed by a digital premiere, not being able to command the high rates that OTT platforms are willing to pay as they vie for big star, mainstream movies for direct-to-digital release.
The TV premiere is viable for small-budget films, say industry experts, which can then be followed by an OTT release, since the sales together help them easily recoup their ₹3 crore- ₹4 crore budgets. For the bigger budget films, especially in Hindi, streaming platforms are willing to pay nearly double the rates offered by TV channels, up to ₹60-65 crore in some cases, explaining why the more mainstream vehicles would prefer to go first to OTT if theatrical release is not possible.
While streaming services are eager to acquire ready films, including those in regional languages, a lot of enthusiasm is limited to the big titles with familiar faces. The small films ready for release but stuck because of the covid-19 pandemic, have no choice but to turn to emerging, niche platforms that do not offer the same kind of rates. In such a scenario, TV premieres are a good option, especially to be able to reach out to family audiences.
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