Bringing back theatre to the centrestage, actor Shreyas Talpade launched an exclusive OTT platform, titled Nine Rasa, last week for streaming plays, stand-up acts, short skits, poetry, music, chats, dance, storytelling sessions, etc. It draws its name from the nava rasas (nine emotions) anger, laughter, courage, fear, disgust, wonder and tranquillity, and is available on Google (for android phone users) and Apple (for iPhone users) play stores.
As of now, Nine Rasa has 100 hours of content in vernacular languages besides Hindi and English, and includes stage hits such as Aye Ladki (Hindi), Atithi Devo Bhawa (Marathi), Sahebji Darling (Marathi), Pause (Gujarati) and Pashmina (Hindi).
“Anything we do on the stage in theatre, even street play and Ramleela, is theatre. We will add more content in Malayalam, Haryanvi, Rajasthani, and Bengali soon,” says Talpade. Excerpts:
When and why did you come up with this OTT platform?
The idea germinated during the first nation-wide lockdown. Artistes and technicians were the worst-hit, and everyone was worried about their future. Since I began my acting career around 1987-88 with theatre and did only theatre for the next 12 years, I have a lot of friends in the field. They often called me to discuss what could be done to tide over the situation. That was when I thought about having a dedicated platform for performing arts. We had many OTT platforms for films, but none dedicated to theatre. Plus, I have often felt that theatre artistes are doing a tremendous job, but get little recognition, in India or globally. A theatre artiste gets recognition only when he moves to TV or films.I have experienced that myself. I hope this platform will change that equation.
Do you think we have that kind of demand for theatre?
Yes. As we delved a bit into audiences’ likes and dislikes, we found that there are millions who actually love going for stage shows, plays, stand up acts, etc. They enjoy being active participants. There are people who prefer theatre over TV and films. Unfortunately, many are unable to go for these shows owing to huge distances between auditoriums and homes. These days travel is restricted due to pandemic, but even otherwise between home and office people have busy schedules. And despite their love for theatre, people cannot take time out for shows. It is not that the quality has gone down, just that people have got busier. We have to adjust to the changed realities.
How did you go about launching Nine Rasa?
We first connected with theatre companies, collected the content, and then connected with an IT company to figure out the logistics. We began shooting as the first Unlock happened. Rehearsals were all done through video calls. We are not producing the content, we only commission projects to various producers across the country. We enter only at the time of shooting.
What about the financials?
It is a paid platform, but the charges are pretty low. There are two subscription models, Rs 59/month and Rs 599/year. We have a lot of free content too. Only the plays (natak) come at a premium.