Indian film and television veteran Siddharth Roy Kapur points to increasingly polarized theatrical scores and a period of strategic recalibration in streaming as key trends shaping Indian entertainment in 2024, describing it as a “gap year” dominated by corporate developments rather than consumer-facing initiatives. .
“People are becoming more particular about the films they will watch in the theater,” says Roy Kapoor, founder of Roy Kapoor Films and former head of Disney India, in his annual analysis of the Indian entertainment business for 2017. diverse. “The habits that have been reinforced through coronavirus have only accelerated in terms of people deciding to go out to very specific movies during a theatrical year.”
Roy Kapoor points out that while successful theatrical releases are performing better than pre-pandemic levels, films that are not generating strong word of mouth are performing poorly compared to previous years. This polarization has been amplified by fewer theatrical releases in 2024, which he attributes in part to production delays due to COVID-19 and increased selectivity about theatrical projects.
The year saw particular success for the franchise’s films, with “Pushpa 2: The Rise” showing the potential for massive growth between sequels. The Hindi version of the first “Pushpa” film grossed $45 million during its initial Omicron-influenced release, while the sequel has already grossed more than $200 million worldwide.
Roy Kapoor attributes the strong performance of South Indian films in Hindi-speaking markets to their lead style. “Maybe Indian cinema, in the last few years, has not given audiences the kind of heroism they want from their theatrical experiences,” he says, comparing characters in films like Pushpa, KGF, RRR and Baahubali to Amitabh Bachchan. From the movie Deewar on steroids.”
In the streaming sector, 2024 was marked by corporate restructuring, including Disney’s merger with Reliance’s Viacom18/Jio and the collapse of the Sony-Zee deal. “This leads to a general cooling in the market,” Roy Kapoor explains, noting that even non-participating players like Netflix and Prime Video adopted 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 one level of subscribers who are in a socioeconomic status that allows them to afford these services, you now need to expand your reach,” says Roy Kapoor. “Increasingly, you will see more commercial and mass cinema and series coming out of these platforms.”
Cricket remains an important driver for both TV and streaming platforms, but Roy Kapoor stresses the importance of keeping audiences engaged between major sporting events. “You’re always going to want those long-running series that have characters that you want to live with for a longer period of time,” he says, noting the need to prevent subscribers from flipping between leads.
The industry veteran sees the relative calm of 2024 as a transitional period. “It was a wait-and-see year because of all the business-to-business stuff, rather than a lot of business-to-consumer,” he explains. “It was much more of a B2B environment, where there was a lot of activity on the consolidation side, and on the merger side, happening, and not happening.”
Looking ahead to 2025, Roy Kapoor expects increased theatrical activity with major stars returning to screens after limited releases in 2024. His production company has ‘Deva’, starring Shahid Kapoor, scheduled to hit theaters on January 31, and ‘Matka King”. It is scheduled to premiere on Prime Video later in the year. He also points out that successful live-action shows are generating second and third seasons, indicating a maturing market.
“Next year, we will see a greater focus on consumers from both players, as their businesses settle into whatever new format they are in, and they become more outward-oriented again,” says Roy Kapoor. Despite the challenges 2024 faces, he maintains his trademark optimism: “I’m an eternal optimist, as you might have guessed over the years you’ve talked to me, so I think there will definitely be some improvement next year.”
Hollywood’s performance in India has been noticeably weak in 2024, with Roy Kapoor noting that successful Western releases often don’t match the preferences of Indian audiences. “People who work in the West, or who have worked in the West, I think this year, have not tended to be the kind of people who work in India,” he points out, adding that there may also be “a certain level of superhero fatigue.” “Among the masses.