If an alien were to gain insights into the immigrant ‘situation’ currently playing out in the US, the Netflix show Mo would act as a good gateway. Except, it might lead the alien to believe that there are no Indian immigrants, legal or illegal, in the US.

Mo, the semi-autobiographical comedy created by Palestinian-American comic Mo Amer, along with Egyptian-American Ramy Youssef, traces the life of Mohammad ‘Mo’ Najjar, whose family arrived in Houston two decades ago as Palestinian asylum seekers from Kuwait. Through two seasons, the series has captured the hopes, dreams, despair, deceit, dehumanisation, discriminatory cultural practices, etc., that define the immigrant experience. Mo’s family is the vehicle through which the heated ongoing debate on immigration in the US is carried to different parts of the world in an airy, easy manner. Quite in contrast with military aircrafts full of deported illegal immigrants.

Where Are The Indians?

Mo grew up in Houston, speaking Arabic, Spanish, and English, and has hustled all his life to take care of his family after his father’s death. His struggles are everyone’s struggles, only exacerbated by the undocumented status of his family. His social circle is full of other immigrants to the US—Africans, Hispanics, Arabs, and everyone else in between. 

But, what about Indians? 

It is interesting that despite living in Houston, a city with the largest South Asian population in the US, Mo has managed to steer clear of them in both seasons. Just like Mo has managed to steer clear of October 7, 2023. According to the 2020 census, Houston is home to about 165,000 Indians, the seventh-largest in the US. 

On Culture And Divide

After Hispanic and Vietnamese immigrants, Indians account for the single largest immigrant community in Houston. So why does Mo never interact with one? He grew up in Alief, a working-class suburb in southwest Houston, which was the most culturally and ethnically diverse school district in the US in 1996. A news report on Alief in 2006 sums it up succinctly in one sentence: “The district’s 47,000 students speak nearly 70 tongues.” Yet, we do not see a single Indian in Mo’s immigrant universe. 

Could it be owing to the cultural insularity that Indian immigrants are (in)famous for? A Carnegie survey from 2021 found, “Indian Americans—especially members of the first generation—tend to socialise with other Indian Americans. Internally, the social networks of Indian Americans are more homogenous in terms of religion than either Indian region (state) of origin or caste”. Another relevant finding is that “divisions in India are being reproduced within the Indian American community”. 

Is it, then, possible that Indian immigrants, primarily Hindus, choose to have minimal consociational engagement with Mo’s community? Maybe, therefore, Indians are not even a footnote in Mo’s story. 

Mo is not entirely blameless, either. Devout Muslims, the Najjars are uncomfortable with the idea of embracing non-Muslims in the family’s fold. Religion dictates their worldview as much as their regional identity as “stateless” Palestinians. Yusra, Mo’s mother, disapproves of his relationship with Mexican Maria, who wears her Catholicism on her sleeve as a tattoo. When Maria starts a rebound relationship with an Israeli-Jewish guy called Guy, she does so knowing that Mo won’t be able to forgive that, thus making it easier for her to move on.

An ‘Elite’ Immigrant

Or, maybe there’s another explanation for the absence of Indian immigrants in this beloved story of the immigrant realities in the US. A 2023 Pew survey shows that the median income of the immigrant Indian households is “greater than the median household income among Asian Americans overall”. So, Mo’s tattoo artist friend, who is also doubling as an emergency surgeon suturing his bullet graze, and his codeine dealer, a fellow hustler, is a man of Southeast Asian/Chinese origin. It is the underbelly of the immigrant American society that makes up Mo’s universe. 

Mo, however, is an ‘elite’ immigrant. He realises this when he spends time first in a cartel’s and later in a “coyote’s” dungeon in Mexico, holding prospective illegals with an American dream. Even though Mo’s family is struggling financially, they didn’t have to undertake a life-threatening journey to the US. However, many of those currently being deported to India had to. After paying a hefty sum—almost as much as the Rolling Stone figure of $10,000 quoted by Nick, Mo’s childhood friend. Yet, upon landing in the US territory, is the shared misery of the mule “dunki” route forgotten in the race to realise the American dream? 

As per the World Bank, India received $125 billion in remittances, a much more significant sum than the $71.92 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2023-24. Undocumented immigrants, living and working under deportation fears, send a bigger chunk of their earnings back home. Maybe this is why Indians do not frequent gaming arcades and clubs that Mo and his friends often haunt. And those who can afford doing so prefer to socialise among their own.

Whatever the reasons are, Indians’ absence from this saga of immigration is conspicuous and demands a think about the home and the world. 

(The author is a Delhi-based author and academic.)

Disclaimer: These are the personal opinions of the author

During the last quarter of 2024, Netflix pulled a larger audience in the UK than BBC One, becoming the country’s most popular TV service. Across its entire portfolio, the BBC remains the UK’s favourite news and entertainment destination, but this is nonetheless a significant milestone for a US-based streamer. After all, Netflix was a service that sent DVDs through the post in California a couple of decades ago.

I have researched TV in the streaming era and the issue for national broadcasters is that streaming is a global industry. That is to say, content produced locally benefits operations globally – subscribers in country A benefit from content produced primarily for viewers in country B. As such, there are mutual gains from subscriber growth in either territory, since that provides an incentive for a platform to increase content in either location.

And as Netflix grows, so too does its value to viewers. This model constitutes a considerable competitive advantage for it and other platforms that stream content across borders.

Without Hollywood films and TV series, Netflix would be a fringe player in the US market, but this content also appeals to subscribers around the world. The same applies to Korean programmes, which serve a demanding local audience and have also proved popular worldwide. In mid-January, Netflix’s most viewed shows in the UK were a mix of US and Korean programmes, including the second season of Squid Game.

Netflix is savvy at making content circulate across continents, using its huge library to its advantage. Its scale gives it an unassailable edge over local rivals.

This strategy is centred on content portability and was explained by Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos, who said: “We’re not trying to make more Hollywood content for the world, we’re trying to make content from anywhere in the world to the rest of the world.”

In fact, Netflix has both Hollywood and non English-language content. But in any event, the platform never competes on a level playing field with local services and whenever it enters a market it does so with the benefit of a library built for other territories.

Netflix and the other streaming giants are reshaping media systems across Europe. An audience survey in four European countries (Denmark, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands) of 1,813 respondents aged between 16 and 34 revealed that Netflix was by far the most popular destination for long-form content such as films. The survey also confirmed that Netflix, alongside Amazon Prime Video and Disney+, were the most watched streaming services in these four countries.

THE STRUGGLE FOR BROADCASTERS

As a result of this renewed competition, Europe’s commercial broadcasters are struggling for advertisers, viewers and investors. My calculations show that at the end of 2024, the collective market capitalisation of Europe’s largest commercial broadcasters in the region’s five biggest markets (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK), plus the Nordic countries, was just 5.6% that of Netflix (US$14.2 billion (£11.5 billion) versus US$252.5 billion).

Navigating this global system is equally challenging for public service media like the BBC. They too are losing audiences, particularly young viewers, to streaming services. Historically, the EU and the UK have been good at protecting their film and TV production sectors.

An EU directive, for example, stipulates that streaming services must “secure at least a 30% share of European works in their catalogues” and ensure that content is prominently available. In the future, the EU and UK may have need to strengthen their support for public service media as well.

Netflix has invested billions in UK-produced content, including Black Doves starring Keira Knightley. Ludovic Robert/Netflix

But Netflix is fond of European content anyway, and is investing billions of dollars in the region. For the first time in 2024, the service was spending more on international content than US programming (US$7.9 billion versus US$7.5 billion). And, in the UK alone, Netflix has invested more than US$6 billion since 2020.

While on the face of it this investment is a coup for domestic creative industries, the issue is that it remains a US-based service that decides which stories are told, and how. Netflix is interested in indigenous content, but during the production process its commissioners shape these stories with a transnational audience in mind.

As such, the local stories that Netflix selects in the UK and elsewhere are not necessarily those that a public service broadcaster would choose to tell. What’s more, the UK has no control over the ownership of these platforms and, depending on whose hands they fall into, this may prove an issue in the future.

Public service media, including the BBC, are instruments of national self-representation, which reflect a country’s idiosyncrasies, its mood and its strengths and weaknesses better than any other platform. It is an ability and a privilege the UK must retain.

(Author: Jean Chalaby, Professor of Sociology, City St George’s, University of London)

(Disclosure Statement: Jean Chalaby does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment)

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

San Francisco, United States:

Netflix on Tuesday said it added nearly 19 million subscribers during the holiday season to finish out last year with more than 300 million subscribers.

Company executives credited steady investments in shows and films with helping power growth at the streaming behemoth, while announcing it is increasing prices in Argentina, Canada, Portugal and the United States.

“As we continue to invest in programming and deliver more value for our members, we will occasionally ask our members to pay a little more so that we can re-invest to further improve Netflix,” the company said in a letter to investors.

Premium and standard memberships in the United States will cost $2 more per month, $25 and $18 respectively, while a standard ad-supported tier will be $8 in an increase of one dollar monthly, according to the company.

In the final quarter of 2024, the streaming juggernaut said it logged profit of $1.87 billion on revenue of $10.25 billion that grew double digits from the same period the prior year.

Netflix shares jumped more than 14 percent to top $993 in after-market trades.

“We enter 2025 with strong momentum, coming off a year with record net additions — 41 million — and having re-accelerated growth,” Netflix executives told investors.

They added that Netflix is in a “leadership position” when it comes to engagement, with about two hours daily per paid member.

“Our business remains intensely competitive with many formidable competitors across traditional entertainment and big tech,” Netflix executives said.

“We have to continue to improve all aspects of Netflix — more series and films our members love, a great product experience, increased sophistication in our plans and pricing strategy including more advertising capabilities — and grow into new areas like live programming and games.”

‘Squid Game’

Netflix ended last year with a strong lineup that included a second season of the global hit “Squid Game.”

The dystopian Korean horror tale about a fictional, deadly game remains by far the most-watched Netflix TV series ever.

“Squid Game”, an ultra-violent tale exploring themes of division and inequality, is considered to be one of the most significant works in solidifying South Korea’s status as a global cultural powerhouse, alongside the Oscar-winning film “Parasite” and K-pop megastars BTS.

The streamer said that its ad-supported plans accounted for more than 55 percent of signups in countries where they are offered, growing nearly 30 percent overall from the prior quarter.

Growing its ad business is a top priority for this year, according to Netflix.

In a bid to boost sputtering growth, the company launched an ad-subsidized offering in late 2023 around the same time as a crackdown on sharing passwords.

Looking ahead, Netflix forecasts 2025 revenue between $43.5-44.5 billion and is targeting a healthy 29 percent operating margin.

The streaming service highlighted upcoming content, including new seasons of hit shows “Wednesday,” and “Stranger Things”.

The United States will see 52 weeks of WWE professional wrestling programming and the return of NFL games on Christmas Day.

In the US, the company has begun to offer some users combined packages with its one-time rivals, making itself available through joint subscriptions with Peacock and Apple TV.

Netflix is seen as reigning supreme over the video content market, with Disney+ still struggling after a launch in November of 2019 that featured a slew of new content from its blockbuster Marvel and Star Wars universes.

Netflix shares have gained 80 percent over the past year, significantly outperforming both the S&P 500 and NASDAQ indices.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

San Francisco:

Netflix added 18.9 million subscribers in its holiday quarter, blowing past Wall Street’s forecasts, with live sporting events and the return of its popular South Korean series “Squid Game” attracting a record number of new customers, the company reported on Tuesday.

The streaming giant said that as it continues to invest in programming that its members value, it will increase prices for the service for most plans in the U.S., Canada, Portugal and Argentina. In the U.S., the basic service with ads would increase by $1 a month to $7.99, a 14% price increase, while the premium package will cost $24.99, an increase of 9%.

Netflix said its fourth-quarter programming slate surpassed its internal expectations, with the Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson boxing match becoming the most-streamed sporting event and the two National Football League games on Christmas Day delivering two of the most-streamed competitions in league history.

The service also benefited from the second season of its dystopian thriller “Squid Game,” which the company said is on track to become one of its most-watched original series. The company has the lowest rate of cancellations among the subscription streaming services, with a churn rate of 1.8% in December, according to researcher Antenna.

This quarter will also mark the last time Netflix reports subscriber additions, as the company emphasizes other performance metrics including revenue and profit – a change analysts attribute to slowing subscriber growth.

The company reported per-share earnings of $4.27, beating Wall Street’s forecast of $4.20 per share, according to an average of projections from 34 analysts. Annual operating income exceeded $10 billion for the first time in the company’s history.

Revenue rose 16% over the same time a year ago, to $10.2 billion, compared with Wall Street’s estimates of $10.1 billion for the quarter, according to LSEG.

“We enter 2025 with strong momentum,” Netflix said in its note to investors, saying it added a record 41 million subscribers in 2024 and re-accelerated growth.

The company revised its guidance, projecting revenue of $43.5 billion to $44.5 billion in 2025, an increase of a half-billion dollars over the prior forecast. The updated guidance reflects improved business fundamentals, the company said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Los Angeles:

Meghan Markle, the actress wife of Britain’s Prince Harry, will launch her new lifestyle and cooking show on Netflix on January 15, she announced Thursday on social media.

“I have been so excited to share this with you! I hope you love the show as much as I loved making it,” the Duchess of Sussex wrote on Instagram.

Netflix released a trailer for “With Love, Meghan,” an eight-episode series in which the “Suits” star will share tips on cooking, gardening, crafting, flower arranging and hosting.

Guests will include celebrated chef Alice Waters, actress Mindy Kaling and close friend Abigail Spencer, one of Meghan’s “Suits” co-stars. Harry appears briefly in the trailer.

“Beyond grateful for the support – and fun!” Meghan wrote on Instagram.

In March 2024, Meghan launched the lifestyle brand American Riviera Orchard.

Since stepping away from their official royal duties in early 2020, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been cut off from the royal purse, forcing them to develop their own sources of income.

Their partnership with Netflix yielded the much-talked-about “Harry & Meghan,” a six-episode docuseries launched in December 2022.

In April, the couple — who live in California — announced Meghan’s lifestyle show, as well as a second series on the world of professional polo. Harry is a long-time polo enthusiast.

They are now estranged from the royal family, after making repeated complaints that Meghan, who is mixed race, was mistreated during their time as working royals.

Harry briefly went to the United Kingdom for the coronation of his father King Charles III, and again after the monarch was diagnosed with cancer.

Harry has reportedly not spoken to his brother William in months. Upon news in March that William’s wife Kate was also battling cancer, Harry and Meghan said: “We wish health and healing for Kate and the family.”

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Cybersecurity experts have alerted Netflix users against an SMS phishing campaign being used to steal account and credit card information. Hackers are sending this phishing text, claiming the concerned person has not paid for their subscription and that their account will be suspended soon, the New York Post reported.

“These SMS scare campaigns targeting Netflix customers have become ubiquitous and never stop, but they vary in size and scope,” said security firm Bitdefender. 

“NETFLIX: There was an issue processing your payment. To keep your services active, please sign in and confirm your details at…” reads one such alert. There is a link that directs viewers to a website that looks identical to the Netflix platform and asks for their credit card number and login credentials.

These stolen credentials are sold to underground rings on the dark web.

Netflix’s lack of two-factor authentication protections has made the scam easier to spread in as many as 23 countries, including the US. The streaming platform is vulnerable to spear phishing as it only relies on usernames and passwords for security. 

Netflix, in a statement about the text messages scam, said, “We will never ask you to enter your personal information in a text or email. We will never request payment through a 3rd party vendor or website. If the text or email links to a URL that you don’t recognize, don’t tap or click it.” 

If you have already clicked any of these links, the streaming giant suggests changing your Netflix password to a new one that is strong and unique. It also suggests updating your password on any other websites or apps where you used the same email and password combination.

Bitdefender, a cybersecurity firm, advises users to avoid opening suspicious links and manually enter websites rather than clicking links without verifying in order to prevent falling for scams.

Netflix on Thursday started streaming its new nature documentary series “Our Oceans”. Narrated by former US President Barack Obama, the five-episode docuseries is dedicated to the world’s five oceans – Pacific, Indian, Atlantic, Arctic, and Southern.

In a video shared on Instagram, Netflix showed Mr Obama doing a voice-over inside a recording booth.

“Here we go… Our oceans are vast realms of wonder, danger and mystery. Explore new worlds just below the surface,” he can be heard saying.

“That’s it. It’s a wrap,” Mr Obama says as he finishes his recording.

“Our Oceans” is directed by Emmy-winning wildlife filmmaker James Honeyborne and produced by Higher Ground Productions, which was founded by Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle Obama.

Launched in 2018, Higher Ground has already released about 18 projects, including the animated show “Waffles + Mochi” and the docuseries “Working: What We Do All Day”, which follows Mr Obama visiting people in their homes and their workplaces to learn more about their lives. 

In 2022, the Higher Ground produced a natural history docuseries called “Our Great National Parks”, which was also narrated by Mr Obama. The 63-year-old leader had even won a Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Award for Outstanding Narrator.

Los Angeles, California:

Nearly two decades after hanging his gloves, 58-year-old Mike Tyson is set to climb back into the ring on Friday for a Netflix-backed bout. Tyson, who terrorised the heavyweight division during an imperious reign in the late 1980s, will face 27-year-old YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul in an officially sanctioned fight at AT&T Stadium, the home of the Dallas Cowboys, in Texas, US. 

Tyson, who became the youngest heavyweight champion in history at the age of 20 years and four months in 1986, retired in 2005 after losing to Kevin McBride. At the time, he said he didn’t have anything left to give the sport. The boxing legend last fought against Roy Jones Jr. in an exhibition match, with no fans during the pandemic in 2020.

Now, by taking on a man not even half his age, the former world heavyweight champion will become one of the oldest boxers to compete in a sanctioned professional fight. The bout, which according to experts is not an exhibition match, is been described by experts as an “indictment on boxing”  and a “competitive fight”.

Tyson Back In The Ring

So, why is Mike Tyson lacing up the gloves once more after 19 years? Simple answer – the money. As per reports, Mike Tyson is being paid USD 20 million just for this one match. Jake Paul is reportedly getting double of that – USD 40 million.

A showdown is also seen as Netflix’s latest one-two punch, as the media giant hopes to cash in on sports’ sprint to streaming. The streaming powerhouse will broadcast the event live to a global subscriber list of 280 million. Moreover, a crowd of about 70,000 is expected at the stadium to witness Tyson once again in the ring, according to a BBC report. 

For the streaming giant, Tyson vs. Paul is their biggest live sports event to date and an opportunity to ensure that it can handle audience demand with the NFL and WWE on the horizon.

Concerns Over Health

The Netflix-backed bout has also drawn widespread condemnation across the boxing world. Though the rules of the game have been altered, experts have weighed in on how Mike Tyson’s age might play a factor in the highly anticipated fight. The bout was initially due to take place in July but was postponed in May after Tyson required medical treatment on a flight from Miami to Los Angeles after vomiting blood due to a bleeding ulcer.

Raising the issue, Stephen Hughes, a senior lecturer of medicine at Anglia Riskin University in England, cited Tyson’s age and past alcohol abuse as risk factors. In an article published by “The Conversation”, Hughes that a head trauma during a fight could put the boxer at greater risk of suffering a subdural hematoma, which is potentially fatal.

Prominent British fight promoter Eddie Hearn also flagged risk to Tyson’s health during the fight and said, “Twenty years ago, Mike Tyson retired from boxing, and was shot to pieces, right? I mean, completely shot.”

“If anyone thinks that Mike Tyson should be in a ring at this age, you either have absolutely no emotional feelings toward the man, or you’re an idiot. It shouldn’t be happening,” he added.

Hearn’s rival promoter Frank Warren echoed those sentiments and said, “Mike Tyson is 58 years of age and he shouldn’t be fighting.”

“Anyone with an ounce of brains knows that it is ridiculous. You can be on a motorway stuck in a traffic jam and you get to the end of it and all it is is people who have stopped to look at a crash — and that’s what this is,” he added.

Mike Tyson’s Reply

Mike Tyson, who US reports say is being paid around $20 million for Friday’s contest, has brushed off the concerns for his well-being, insisting that critics from the boxing world are motivated by jealousy.

“I’m beautiful, that’s all I can say,” he said earlier this year. “The people who said that wish they were up here. No-one else can do this.”

At an open workout in Texas this week, Tyson declared that a gruelling training camp had left him with the conviction “that I’m tougher than I believed I was.”

“When I agreed to this fight and started training, I thought ‘What was I thinking of?’ But I’ve finished the process. The fight is the party. All the hard work is done.”
 

B-Town actor Ananya Panday began her career in 2019 with a bang in Karan Johar’s Student of the Year 2, but her silver screen success has been somewhat uneven for the most part. However, with two successful OTT releases in 2024, the 25-year-old seems to have redeemed herself and found the perfect niche on the small screen. In September, director Colin D’Cunha’s Call Me Bae was released on Amazon Prime, and in October, director Vikramaditya Motwane’s CTRL was released on Netflix India. While the former is a series, the latter is a film, and both saw Ananya Panday excel in the roles of Bella and Nella (yes, what are the chances?) respectively. Both Call Me Bae and CTRL clearly targeted Gen Z and millennial audiences, and Ananya was the ideal actor to step into the stilettos of a charming young woman caught in various situations. She resonated with viewers, and many on social media applauded her for her improved acting skills.

Shefali Shah’s Second Innings

Ananya Panday is not the first actor to receive more appreciation, success, and recognition for their work on OTT platforms rather than the big screen. Pankaj Tripathi, Jaideep Ahlawat, Sobhita Dhulipala, Radhika Apte, Jitendra Kumar, Vijay Varma, Rasika Duggal, and Shefali Shah are examples of other B-Town actors who are now in demand for web series due to their varied performances across numerous digital platforms. Take, for instance, Shefali Shah, who made her film debut with Rangeela in 1995. Although she was considered a good actor and has worked in some noteworthy films, such as Monsoon Wedding, Satya, and Dil Dhadakne Do, her popularity as a mainstream actor skyrocketed after Delhi Crime. She went on to feature in Ajeeb Dastans, Jalsa, Darlings, and Human, all of which are for streaming services. At 51, the gifted actor has embarked on a second innings that is arguably more successful in many ways than her first when it comes to showcasing her talent.

On the other hand, there are actors like Jitendra Kumar and Rasika Duggal who have largely made streaming platforms their home. Jitendra Kumar, an IIT graduate, became a household name thanks to his role as Bhaiya in Kota Factory, which was initially released on YouTube in 2019. The talented actor made his online debut in 2014 with TVF’s Permanent Roommates, considered India’s first web series. Since then, he has appeared in numerous OTT shows and is riding the wave of success from his latest web series, Panchayat, streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

Meanwhile, Rasika Duggal tasted critical acclaim, but mainstream audience recognition only came with her role in the 2018 web series Mirzapur Season 1. Since then, she has appeared in Made in Heaven, Out of Love, Delhi Crime, A Suitable Boy, OK Computer, Adhura, Spike, and Shekar Home, in addition to two films released directly on OTT platforms. This raises the pertinent question of why some actors find success on streaming services rather than the silver screen.

OTT And Experimentation

One of the main reasons is that OTT platforms produce a wide range of content catering to niche audiences. Actors who may not fit into mainstream cinema’s formulaic roles often find success by portraying complex, unconventional characters. These platforms encourage experimentation, allowing actors to showcase their versatility. In traditional film and television industries, actors are often typecast into certain roles. Web series frequently tackle socially relevant and complex themes that might not be explored in mainstream cinema. Thus, digital platforms tend to take more risks, giving actors the chance to break free from previous stereotypes and try new, bold roles that redefine their careers. Furthermore, in a web series, actors can explore longer and more detailed character arcs, allowing them to delve deeper into their roles. This helps actors create memorable performances, as seen in the cases of Pankaj Tripathi and Ananya Panday.

The Audience Economics

Another important aspect is that streaming services are available globally, giving actors the opportunity to reach a wider, more diverse audience. An actor’s popularity is no longer limited to a regional or national audience—people from different countries and cultures can watch them in content that is accessible from anywhere in the world. OTT platforms are known for pushing the envelope in terms of content quality, including better storytelling, cinematography, and production value. Therefore, actors involved in critically acclaimed or talked-about series or films benefit from the platform’s reputation and the attention that such content garners.

Today, many established artists, including stars like Hrithik Roshan and Ajay Devgn, are avidly exploring the OTT space to take on unconventional, challenging, and layered roles. Many web series, especially on international platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Disney+ Hotstar, also offer cross-border collaborations, providing added opportunities for them. But for emerging talent and those who haven’t yet made a significant name on the silver screen, OTT platforms present the perfect opportunity to showcase their talent, make a mark, and become household names.

(The author is a senior entertainment journalist and film critic)

Disclaimer: These are the personal opinions of the author

New Delhi:

The Delhi High Court has allowed a sexual assault survivor and her father to file their response to a plea seeking action against filmmaker Nisha Pahuja and streaming service Netflix for allegedly revealing the minor’s identity in a documentary film in violation of legal provisions.

Set in a Jharkhand village, “To Kill A Tiger” follows the journey of a man battling for justice for his 13-year-old daughter who was sexually assaulted by three men. The film was nominated in the “Best Documentary Feature” category at the 96th Academy Awards, 2024.

The survivor and her father sought to be impleaded as parties to the petition. Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela allowed their plea and said, “The newly-impleaded respondents are permitted to file their counter-affidavits within three weeks. Rejoinder affidavits, if any, be filed before the next date of hearing.”

The court also allowed the petitioner to file additional documents, including a sealed cover containing “sensitive images” of the minor survivor and her family members from the documentary that was telecast on Netflix.

The next hearing in the matter is on January 7.

The court had earlier issued a notice to the Centre as well as Ms Pahuja, a filmmaker based in Canada’s Toronto, and the streaming platform on a petition filed by Tulir Charitable Trust, and directed them to file their replies.

Senior advocate Karuna Nandy represented Ms Pahuja in the court.

The bench had previously refused to stay the streaming of the film, observing that it was available to the public since March.

According to the petitioner, the film has revealed the identity of the rape survivor, who was a minor at the time of the incident, as it has not concealed her face.

“The film was shot for three-and-a-half years. She (Pahuja) made no attempt to mask the minor’s identity. There are around 1,000 hours of filmmaking. The poor girl was asked to repeat (her ordeal). All parts are in knowledge of respondent five, Netflix,” the petitioner’s counsel argued.

The lawyer said the documentary “panders to international taste” and has violated the provisions of the Protection Of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and laws governing the protection of the identity of minor rape survivors.

One of the respondents, however, countered the petitioner’s arguments and said the film was shot with the permission of the minor’s parents and released after she had turned major with her consent.

“Once the child is a major, she has the ability to talk about what happened to her if she so chooses,” the lawyer argued. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)