Many Indian OTT platforms have been accused of being Hindi-centric. Of course, the bulk of the population being Hindi-speaking ones, the bias is understandable and actually makes business sense, too.
Having said that content from other Indian languages have been no less impressive, so much so mainline OTT platforms are now scouting for interesting fare from languages like Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Marathi.
Amongst them, Tamil and Malayalam are now leading the pack with attractive offerings. Taking into account the growing popularity, both Netflix and Disney+ Hotstar this week have come up with announcements on top-of-the-line Tamil content.
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Navarasa, Mani Ratnam helmed anthology on Netflix
An anthology that will hit every emotional chord. Brought to you by Mani Ratnam and Jayendra. #Navarasa, coming soon.#ManiRatnam @JayendrasPOV @MadrasTalkies_ pic.twitter.com/Eug84GypkTOctober 28, 2020
We will start with Netflix. It has roped in ace director Mani Ratnam and filmmaker Jayendra Panchapakesan for a Tamil anthology titled Navarasa.
This project is in aid of those workers and technicians in the Tamil film industry affected by the lockdown clamped due to the Covid-19.
Navarasa will be a collection of nine short films, each representing an emotion or rasa: anger, compassion, courage, disgust, fear, laughter, love, peace and wonder.
Mani Ratnam and Jayendra will be producers alone, while the short films will be anchored by directors Karthik Subbaraj, Bejoy Nambiar, Arvind Swami, Gautham Vasudev Menon, Ponram, Rathindran Prasad, Karthick Naren, Halitha Shameem and KV Anand.
Enna boss sollureenga? Honestly, we are starstruck. 9 emotions, 9 stories, 1 epic anthology. #Navarasa, coming soon.#ManiRatnam @JayendrasPOV @MadrasTalkies_ @thearvindswami @nambiarbejoy @menongautham @halithashameem @karthicknaren_M @karthiksubbaraj @anavenkat @ponramVVS pic.twitter.com/5PuB7DVgHPOctober 28, 2020
They are said to be handling the project on a pro bono basis. Music composers A R Rahman and Karthik are also associated with Navarasa.
The actors who will feature in Navarasa include Revathy, Parvathy, Nithya Menen, Aishwarya Rajesh, Siddharth, Suriya, Arvind Swami, Prakash Raj, Gautam Karthik and Ashok Selven.
Navarasa is Netflix's second Tamil anthology after Paava Kadhaigal was announced earlier this month.
A movie and 4 web series in Tamil on Disney+ Hotstar
A BIG reveal for all you Kollywood fans! #TamilNaattinPuthiyaThirai Catch the live on our Twitter handle now! pic.twitter.com/sxNE1mbQXBOctober 23, 2020
Meanwhile, Disney+ Hotstar, for its part, has announced the release of a new Tamil film and a clutch of web series.
Starting this Deepavali, the movie Mookuthi Aman starring Nayanthara and RJ Balaji will be released at first.
Following this, there is a clutch of web series set to be streamed on the platform. And they include, 'LIVE Telecast' directed by Venkat Prabhu and starring Kajal Aggarwal; 'My Perfect Husband' starring veteran actors Sathyaraj and Seetha; A rom-com named 'Triples' produced by Karthik Subbaraj and starring Jai Sampath and Vani Bhojan and a thriller 'November Story' featuring Tamannaah Bhatia.
Sunil Rayan, President & Head, Disney+ Hotstar said, “As we lay the foundation of presenting authentic stories that appeal to Tamil audiences, we are very excited to partner with some of the most prolific minds of the industry. We are adding to our existing promise of providing great Tamil entertainment across LIVE Sports, before TV access to STAR VIjay shows and much more - giving our audiences a wide array of content to choose from”.
