STREAMING: UPHILL ROAD TO DIGITAL STARDOM
We’re standing at the cusp of a far-reaching digital revolution, steered by virtual pixelated wheels. Directors and producers all over the world are breaking away from the more traditional realms of television and cinema, eyeing the lucrative potential of the web-series instead — an original production released solely on the web via different digital platforms. ‘The web is the future,’ they’re getting fond of saying.
At the forefront in this digital age are the youth. They make for an enthusiastic audience — harness their interest and they will eagerly get addicted to the latest series and create icons out of actors. But the web doesn’t just entrance the young. It extends its feelers far and wide. The advent of smartphones has spurred on digital platforms as the latest mode of entertainment across a wide diaspora transcending age, gender, educational background and nationality.
YouTube is now an indomitable fact of life, churning out free video and audio content on every topic under the sun. At the same time, digital platforms charging monthly subscription fees are also extremely popular, particularly Netflix with its spectacular worldwide following. Many other apps have followed in Netflix’s wake; among them, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, HBO Now, CBS All Access, Iflix, Eros Now and Zee 5.
The digital revolution is knocking on Pakistan’s doors but there are still a number of roadblocks for web-only series. Producers and directors are looking forward, however, to storylines less dictated by television ratings, less censorship and to reaching a wider global audience
None of these platforms are from Pakistan. Then again, while many Pakistani directors and producers are aware of cyberspace’s all-encompassing powers, hardly any of them have created content solely for the web yet. The few pioneers in the field have sold — or are contemplating selling — their web content to digital platforms based in other countries, usually in India.
WHY A WEB-SERIES?
Earlier this year, director Wajahat Rauf decided to spearhead Pakistan’s web-series revolution and created Enaaya for the Indian digital platform Eros Now. The series featured actors Azfar Rehman, Mehwish Hayat, Asad Siddiqui and Faryal Mehmood. “Web-series have so much potential but it’s unfortunate that Pakistani investors have yet to realise this,” says Wajahat. “In the meantime, all we can do is enter agreements with up-and-coming Indian platforms who are approaching us for content.”
What made Wajahat divert from producing and directing dramas and films and dabble with a series for the web? “It’s where the future lies,” he points out the obvious. “I love cinema but it is yet to become a financially viable option for Pakistan. Television may pay better but it restricts creative freedom completely, dictating plots to us that we need to follow. We are told that we need to show women being suppressed because, as soon as we construct a storyline centered round independent empowered women, the ratings drop. On the other hand, the field is completely open on the web. We can dabble with different genres and, if it is addictive, people will watch it.”
Director Mehreen Jabbar, who is currently shooting her first web-series, Aik Jhoothi Love Story, starring Bilal Abbas Khan, Madiha Imam and with a guest appearance by Kinza Razzak, echoes Wajahat’s views. “On TV channels, storylines are dictated by ratings, anything even slightly out of the box gets rejected altogether,” she says. “A series created for the web allows us to experiment with new ideas and storytelling, and reach a wider audience. Anyone anywhere in the world who subscribes to the channel can see the series.”
Could directors and producers also find the web attractive because it has less restrictive censorship? A TV channel is dependent on advertisers for its revenues but the web earns through subscribers. With less focus on ratings and more emphasis on attracting subscribers, content can be more violent and risqué. Could it also be that quality control may not be as stringent?
While no director or producer would admit a lack of vigilance towards quality, quite a few admit that they turned to the web when TV channels were hesitant to experiment with their suggested pitches. Sadia Jabbar, the producer of 2017’s cinematic release Balu Mahi, has just released a series called Shameless Proposal on YouTube. “I wanted to attack the toxic rishta culture that prevails in Pakistan, and the TV channels that I approached were on edge about the content and how it should be censored,” says Sadia. “I decided to opt for the web instead because I wanted to have the creative freedom to tell my story.”
Similarly, director Rafay Rashdi is currently working on a series called Badshah Begum, which was originally pitched as a drama for TV. “My story is not formulaic, which is why TV channels were hesitant about it,” he says. “But I truly believe in it.”
Actor Shamoon Abbasi has also announced that he is going to be starring in a web-series called Mind Games, along with Emmad Irfani, Kinza Razzak and Sana Fakhar. The name is uncannily similar to India’s hit Netflix Sacred Games series, and Shamoon has hinted that the show will feature adult content and may get featured on Netflix.
However, rumours should not be believed readily, until confirmed. Netflix, it turns out, is a tough nut to crack. Mehreen Jabbar explains that even though the requirements of a digital platform may be different from that of TV, quality control is still important. “Even a digital platform, operating on the basis of subscriptions, will vet a production to make sure that the content is up to par,” she says. “The storytelling has to be gripping but, at the same time, the biggest players in the market require a certain level of technical expertise. The sound, the camera-work and a myriad other technical details need to be looked into before a production gets accepted.