The gap between the theatrical premiere of a film and its release on streaming platforms is increasingly becoming flexible, depending primarily on its box-office performance. If a film doesn’t do well, it could debut on OTT platforms as soon as in four weeks or less from the norm of six to eight weeks.
Tamil film Kanguva, which released on 14 November and had a longer OTT window, was made available on streaming platforms within four weeks after fizzling out in cinemas.
“It makes more sense (to keep the window flexible). If the audience’s response to a film is mixed and it is not exactly doing great business in theatres, it is prudent for the producers to bring it out on a streaming platform while it is still in the news and there is noise around it,” film producer, trade and exhibition expert Girish Johar said.
The box office is completely unpredictable, and a dynamic release window is one way for producers to secure good deals with OTT platforms. It helps manage faster and higher returns for the producer. The strategy works for streamers, too.
“OTT players, on the other hand, don’t want to be stuck in a situation where they pay a bomb initially and then have to wait,” Johar said, explaining the box office-based window policy.
While recent Tamil star-studded films such as Leo, GOAT andVettaiyaan skipped wide multiplex releases in north India and opted for early streaming releases, Kanguva had an extended theatrical window, ensuring a presence in national chains in the Hindi-speaking belt.
The film’s team had embraced a full-scale promotional blitz across north India, mirroring the blockbuster success strategies of Telugu hits RRR and Pushpa: The Rise. However, after the lacklustre box office response, the southern language versions of the film started streaming on OTT in less than a month, with Hindi following later.
On the other hand, the OTT release of Tamil film Amaran (released 31 October) was pushed from the stipulated 28-day period after its strong performance in theatres.
Release calendar
OTT platforms typically schedule films in advance, following the standard norms, and now have to adapt to a flexible release window, taking into account box-office performances.
“The other issue with striking a deal before theatrical release is platforms have already worked out a release calendar so they can’t change premiere dates based on box office,” a senior studio executive said.
The executive added that most Hindi and Punjabi language films prefer to start streaming within eight weeks, while the four southern language ones adhere to a four-week window, as decided by industry bodies and producer associations. Given the dominance of single-screen cinemas in the southern market, multiplex chains are in no position to ask for a longer theatrical window for these films.
Independent trade analyst Sreedhar Pillai pointed out that it’s now reaching a point where many films starring popular stars and backed by top production houses are not picked up by streaming platforms before theatrical release.
“So, the question of negotiating or arguing over theatrical and OTT window doesn’t arise,” Pillai said.
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