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Representing Women through OTT Platforms

ABSTRACT

Strong female characters on-screen have been on for a while behind the camera, and many feel webs are opening space for female-fronted performers and creators. It has been a fantastic year for women-oriented shows on OTT platforms, and most have been able to break gender stereotypes. The study’s objective is to how the representation of women is increasing on the OTT platforms. It was essential to use the survey method to conduct the research. Representing women through OTT platforms is one of the most important topics of discussion nowadays. It is necessary to understand that the better way to describe women is to recode attributes such as softness, sensitivity, emotionality, and gentleness as positive qualities rather than weaknesses.

Keywords – OTT platforms, Netflix, Women, streaming service, trends, a strong lead, representation

INTRODUCTION

Almost every internet user is familiar with OTT platforms and media services. An over-the-top (OTT) media service streaming media service offered directly to viewers via the internet. OTT bypasses cable and satellite television platforms, which traditionally act as a controller or distributor of such content.

OTT platforms in India are multiplying in terms of subscribership mainly due to several factors. Digital India plays a significant role in promoting the use of OTT platforms to stream diverse content worldwide. A youth-oriented population has led to an increase in OTT platforms such as Netflix. The drop in smartphones and cellular data prices has enabled a large chunk of the population to access online media. India currently has about 220-250 million smartphone users, which may hit 500 million.

The necessity for strong female characters on-screen has been on for a while behind the camera, and many feel webs are opening space for female-fronted performers and creators. It has been a fantastic year for women-oriented shows on OTT platforms, and most have been able to break gender stereotypes. The medium in the last year has produced and promoted more women-centric content than mainstream cinema has done over the previous five years.

From YouTube to Netflix to Amazon Prime, all have concentrated on a content line-up led by a woman cast. Shows like ‘Lust Stories,’ ‘Four More Shots Please’ and many others saw record viewership last year.

It is also essential to discuss why the most popular or highly publicized shows and movies with women protagonists had leading ladies who were either easy target taking revenge, victims taking a stand, or privileged women having fun with a side dose of ambition?

There are, no doubt, different content genres, but we need to find a way a woman can be something apart from being displeased or not if we can enjoy Stranger Things, Crown, House of Cards, Marvellous Mrs. Maisel, and 13 Reasons, why all shows feature women in lead roles but tell entirely out-of-the-way stories. Why do we struggle to create strong content featuring women in an Indian context? Is it because we are very attached to Hindi GEC or are sticking to a working formula?

To study women’s representation on OTT platforms, Dynamic and diverse representation of women in orthodox television has been suppressed through the eyes of many ideologies since their introduction to television. Extra video streaming platforms have created new avenues for making televisual content for mass audiences with less censorship and restrictions. Less censorship opens a door of opportunity for studying some representation and focusing on women’s original television for over-the-top platforms. How much does representation matter to us when we see a television character that we do not like? Do we pay attention to the use of strong women characters in each television series? Have we ever considered the pre-production process of writing and casting for our favourite show’s names or the platform from which we view the series? Have we ever questioned why a women’s character is used stereotypically in a show? These are the questions that many people consider when watching television.

There is no opposing that OTT platforms have a massive role in liberating women from wretched prisons. In a country where regular shows still have protagonists being victims. Digital content allowed women to do stuff like date, drink, smoke, mess up, marry, divorce, and consider life apart from winning the most sanskaari of them all pageant. It also opened the doors to topics like violence and the sexual assault of women, which are difficult for GEC channels to work with, given that television programs are usually for family viewing.

Many would agree that female characters on the small screen are not precisely the modern-day woman’s epitome apart from a few exceptions. Hindi cinema has created a level-playing field by showcasing actresses who pursue their dreams against all odds. Some recent Hindi films prove this. A look at the internet content will show that an equal number of shows either have a strong female lead that makes us sit up and notice. For instance, in The Test Case, actress Nimrat Kaur is the only woman in a group of Indian Army officers. While in Pushpavalli, comedienne Sumukhi Suresh decides to follow her dreams after being pursued by her mother to marry a nice Brahmin boy and settle down. In Marvel’s Jessica Jones, American actress Krysten Ritter plays a detective who, despite suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, does not shy away from kicking some ass when the need arises. In the upcoming Sacred Games, Radhika Apte was playing a RAW agent. All these shows, which play on digital platforms, feature strong and have a voice of their own.

With women making up half the world population, Wallin, Director — Consumer and Brand Communications Asia, Netflix, believes that their objective is to reflect the total human experience across their programming. Strong female characters certainly have a prominent role within that. “We bring this to life by empowering diverse storytellers, many of which are females, to tell their stories,” she says. Moreover, while international shows and characters have struck a chord with the audience, she believes that there is a broad scope for homegrown female-centric shows.

“We already know there is a strong supply of talented Indian writers and content makers. So, there is a huge range to create powerful female characters that each Indian out there can relate to. We are already moving in that direction. Stand-up comedian Aditi Mittal will have her stand-up special on OTT platforms in India. Documentaries like Ladies First and Daughters of Destiny and original series like Sacred Games and Leila have truthful female representation,” she reveals.

Vijay Subramaniam, Director, Amazon Prime Video India, tells us that the fantastic response to women-centric shows such as The Marvelous Mrs. Maise has resulted in them developing more series that celebrates women’s spirit. He says, “Shortly, we will have Made in Heaven created by Zoya Akhtar and Reema Kagti and an unnamed series by stand-up comedian Anu Menon.”

“Starting from the early days of television, many TV shows across genres like drama, comedy, and mythology have succeeded due to strong female lead characters. We see this success getting not only carried over to digital platforms but also taken several notches ahead, given the scope to experiment with stories and bolder themes,” concludes Archana. This past year saw a successful surge in female-led shows’ general drift and the trend of illustrating women, not as mere dream-girls. Characters with legitimate real-world jobs inspire us to make it big in life rather than instill in us coveted desires of traveling exotically or marrying our ‘true love.’

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

While the necessity and scope for solid female representation on-screen and behind the camera is a talk that has been on for a while, many feel webs are opening space for female-fronted performers and creators. (Mukherjee,2020)

It has been a relatively amazing year for female-oriented shows on OTT platforms, and most have been able to break gender stereotypes. The medium in the last year has produced and promoted more women-centric content than mainstream cinema has done over the previous five years. (Roy,2019)

OTT platform has massively supported women’s voices. Moreover, they allow us to talk about content that stretches the boundaries. We also like the way OTT functions. They are so respectful of our creative freedom. OTT has enhanced the sensibilities of our audience as well. (Roy,2021)

A closer look at the content available will show us that almost an equal number of shows either have vital female lead roles that make us sit up and take notice. (Singh,2018)

This past year saw a successful surge in female-led shows’ general drift and the trend of illustrating women, not as mere catalysts, or mannie-pixie-dream-girls. Characters with legitimate real-world jobs inspire us to make it big in life rather than instilling in us coveted desires of traveling exotically or marrying our ‘true love.’ (Sharma,2019)

OBJECTIVE

This research intends to examine the representation of women on the OTT platform.
To know people’s opinion about the name of women in their favourite show.
To explore how the representation of women through OTT platforms so different from the traditional performances and movies.
Why have people started to prefer OTT platforms more?

RESEARCH METHOD

The search is based on the research of many national and international authors and news articles, which provides an in-depth analysis of the subject’s topic. In media studies, various students/researchers have utilized the literature reviews to know about women’s representation on OTT platforms.

RESEARCH DESIGN

Researching research papers on Google scholar after researching keywords like OTT platforms, Netflix, Women, streaming service, trends, a strong lead, representation.
Analysis of the result obtained after surveying 500 people in which the audience ranges from students to working, from different age groups, different genders, and extra income class.

DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

The findings of this research have drawn from a survey of 500 people. This survey contains nine questions. The questions asked were related to women’s representation through OTT platforms and how many people of different age groups, genders, and other income classes watch OTT platforms.

Most respondents are female, with 58.4% (292 participants), while the male respondents are 41.6% (208 participants).

Most respondents are 18 – 25 years old, with 51% (255 participants), while the second most respondents were between 25-35 years old with 24.4% (122 participants). Some responders were below 18 with 21.6% (108 participants), between 35-45 years old with (1.8%) 9 participants, and above 45 with 1.2% (6 participants).

Most respondents were participants who have done or are doing Masters with 61.8% (309 participants), while the second most respondents were participants who have done or are doing Under graduation with 21.8% (109 participants). Some responders have done or are doing secondary education 13.8% (69 participants) and participants who have done or are doing Ph.D. with 2.6% (13 participants).

When asked, do we watch movies and shows that have strong female leads? Yes, most responses were Yes with 87.8% (439 participants), while the No responses were 12.2% (61 participants).

When asked, do we think there is enough representation of women in the OTT platforms? Most responses were No with 75.6% (378 participants), while the Yes responses were 24.4% (122 participants).

When asked which platform has more women-centric content? Most respondents chose Netflix with 56.7% (282 participants), while the second most chose Amazon Video Prime with 10.5% (52 participants). Some responders chose Disney+ Hotstar with 21.6% (108 participants), Sony liv with 5.6% (28 participants), Zee5 with 4.4% (22 participants), and Alt Balaji with 0.8% (4 participants).

When asked, do we think OTT platforms are somehow responsible for the negative portrayal of women in society? Most responses were No with 64.4% (322 participants), while the Yes responses were 35.6% (178 participants).

When asked, do we think we struggle to create differentiated content featuring women in an Indian context? Most responses were Yes with 97.6% (488 participants), while the No responses were 2.4% (12 participants).

STUDY OF OBJECTIVE

This research intends to examine the representation of women on the OTT platform.

This study’s main objective is to analyse why women’s representation through OTT platforms is so important. The necessity for strong female characters on-screen has been on for a while behind the camera, and many feel webs are opening space for female-fronted performers and creators. It has been a fantastic year for women-oriented shows on OTT platforms, and most have been able to break gender stereotypes. The medium in the last year has produced and promoted more women-centric content than mainstream cinema has done over the previous five years.

Many television viewers have adopted the compromising position that stems from an increase of women in television and their represented image. Since strong women characters are featured in many shows and leading some, the opportunity conversation has been addressed symbolically.

There is no disapproving that OTT platforms have played a massive role in liberating women from wretched prisons. In a country where television shows still have lead women to be either victims or vixens. The digital content allowed women to do regular stuff like date, drink, smoke, mess up, marry, divorce, and consider life options apart from winning the most sanskaari of them all pageant. It also opened the doors to violence and sexual assault against women, which are tricky for GEC to work with. Television programs are usually for family viewing.

To know people’s opinions about the representation of women in their favourite show.

During the covid 19 pandemics, the number of people subscribing to OTT platforms increased significantly. The audience starts watching more and more OTT content, which also increased the content of stronger female leads like ‘Lust Stories,’ ‘Four More Shots Please,” Aarya,’ ‘Mirzapur, ” got a surge of viewership in the last year.

OTT platforms have started producing more and more shows with female leads because people are becoming more interested in solid leads.

Some of the examples are:

Aarya Sareen – Aarya (Disney+ Hotstar)

Between a world of men, a woman trying to rescue her family was not expected to succeed. However, Aarya, a single mother, puts her moral beliefs aside and enters the dirty world of drug dealing, just for her family’s sake. Her strength for her kids makes her threaten at the same time. While she gets blood on her hands and beats men around her in a game where everyone is against her, Arya’s dark and fantastic character leaves behind plenty to think about.

Damini Rizvi Roy – Four More Shots Please (Amazon Prime)

A progressive and ambitious Damini is confident to share opinions. Her work is her passion and her utmost priority in life. Damini’s idealist attitude and her need for things to be her way shatter the societal norms in a subtle yet impactful way. She has her vulnerable moments but refuses to succumb to the obstacles that come her way; she instead faces the challenges head-on. Damini is a true idol for women of today’s era.

To analyse how the representation of women through OTT platforms so different from the traditional shows and movies.

Most would agree that female characters on the small screen are not precisely the modern-day woman’s epitome apart from a few exceptions. Hindi cinema has created a level-playing field by showcasing actresses who pursue their dreams against all odds. Some recent Hindi films prove this fact. A closer look at the content available will show us that almost an equal number of shows either have a strong female lead in roles that make us sit up and take notice.

For instance, in The Test Case, actress Nimrat Kaur is the only woman in a group of Indian Army officers who are training to join the Special Forces. While in Pushpavalli, comedienne Sumukhi Suresh decides to follow her dreams after being pursued by her mother to marry a nice Brahmin boy. Marvel’s Jessica Jones, a detective who, despite suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, does not shy away from kicking some ass when the need arises. In the Sacred Games, Radhika Apte is playing a RAW agent. All these shows, which stream on digital platforms, feature strong and have a voice of their own.

Why have people started to prefer OTT platforms more?

OTT platforms in India are multiplying in terms of subscribership mainly due to several factors. Digital India plays a significant role in promoting the use of OTT platforms to stream diverse content worldwide. A youth-oriented population has led to an increase in OTT platforms such as Netflix. The drop in smartphones and cellular data prices has enabled a large chunk of the population to access online platforms. India currently has about 220-250 million smartphone users, which may hit 500 million.

From YouTube to Netflix to Amazon Prime, Alt Balaji, ZEE5 all have concentrated on a content line-up led by a woman cast. Shows like ‘Lust Stories,’ ‘Four More Shots Please’ and many others saw record viewership last year.

CONCLUSION

The reason for this study is to analyse the representation of women through OTT platforms. The OTT platforms have opened new gates for the consumption of web series. OTT can help content reach millions of consumers at a fraction of the cost of a formal release and traditional promotions. The promotion of a new movie on DTH and OTT simultaneously can garner millions of views. The production house could have millions within the first weekend of release with their online ads. OTT platforms like Netflix, Disney+ Hotstar, Amazon Prime have started showcasing many female-oriented movies and web series in the last four years.

A survey of respondents was analysed to get the desired results. Most responses were people from18-20 years old, and the second majority was above 40 years old. The respondents mainly were college-going students to working professionals. Most respondents were male. The survey floated online, and a conclusion from the responses to the survey is drawn.

Over-the-top video streaming platforms have created new re for making televisual content for mass audiences with less censorship and restrictions. Censorship opens a door of opportunity for studying some representation and focusing on women’s original television for over-the-top platforms.

There is no denying that digital platforms have played a massive role in liberating women from wretched prisons. In a country where television shows still have leads being either victims or vixens. OTT platforms allowed women to do stuff like date, drink, smoke, mess up, marry, divorce, and consider life options aside from winning the most sanskaari of them all pageant. It also opened the doors to topics like the sexual assault of women, which are tricky for GEC channels to show, given that television programs are usually for family viewing.

In conclusion, the OTT platforms have opened many doors for women-oriented web series and movies. As Wallin, Director — Consumer and Brand Communications, Asia, Netflix believes that their goal is to reflect the total human experience across their programming. Strong female characters certainly have a significant role within that. “We bring this to life by empowering diverse storytellers, many of which are females, to tell their stories,” she says. Moreover, while international shows and characters have struck a chord with the audience, she believes that there is a broad scope for homegrown female-centric shows.

Limitations of the study and scope for future results

The current findings of the study have some limitations that can address in future research. There was a limited number of people we could ask the questions for the survey. Another limitation is that only one way to the research was online conduct of the study.

For further research, a more significant amount of people should be asked to fill the survey. Moreover, additionally, interviews and case studies can be conducted for more accurate research.

REFERENCES

Representing Women through OTT Platforms

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