MUSBA HASHMI speaks with Vivek Srivastava about how English entertainment is changing with new content as well as remakes of classic shows

From the adaptation of Hollywood shows like Hostages, 24 to remakes like The Office, the foreign content which once didn’t have many takers, now makes for an interesting watch for the audience. So much so that the producers are in no mood to stop experimenting or getting inspired from the Hollywood series even though we have been watching Indian versions of the Hollywood films for quite some time now. But, the trend of remaking shows for TV is new.

To add value to content, Romedy Now, a part of  The Times Network which have channels like Movies Now, MN+, has gone through a refreshed brand identity with the introduction of originals, new shows and movie premieres. The channel unveiled its refreshed identity with its first original show The Love Laugh Live Show.

Vivek Srivastava, President — Strategy and Business Head, English Entertainment Cluster says that this refreshed identity of Romedy Now will the re-energised content to offer viewers an unparalleled and complete English Entertainment viewing experience. “The Love Laugh Live Show marks our debut in originals and will explore various categories across travel, food, beauty and lifestyle, bringing two exciting shows a quarter to the viewers,” he adds.

Though there are more remakes and adaptations of foreign shows, the number of original English content remains very low. Srivastava has a take on this. “The reason why makers don’t risk making more original English language shows is because of the diverse Indian audience. It will be very odd to see a show in which all the characters speak English. Therefore, they prefer making shows with a pinch of Hindi in it. It is to retain the traditional element and connectivity with the audience. Also, if we are making a show for the premium households than English can be dominant in that but if we are making a show for the mass households then Hindi or regional languages have to be there,” he says.

There is a reason why English channels are not bringing in the latest shows that air in the US. “We are bringing the latest shows as well but unfortunately what we remember are the evergreen shows. Also it takes a lot of time for the foreign shows to get registered in India. But yes, at this point of time, the classic works better than the new shows,” Srivastava tells you.

The market penetration for these shows at present is the Tier-I cities but this is about to change. “We are now planning to penetrate into Tier-II and III cities as well,” he says.

But, will they work as good as in Tier-I cities? “If a film like The Lion King can do so well in the Tier-II and -III cities, then I see no reason that these shows will not do good in them. The audience is changing and is opening up for newer content. I believe they will do better,” he tells you.

And this latest fad for the English entertainment content is not going to end anytime soon. “English entertainment has long way to go. We are the second largest English speaking country with about 10 per cent English speaking population, which means the language is set to grow. The choice of content has become far more global and the audience will start consuming this content at a greater rate soon.

“Apart from the English channels which have been promoting the English content aggressively from the past few years, there are some digital mediums too that are coming up with English content and is changing their entire offering on the basis of some of the English shows. This in itself is an indicator that English content is here to stay,” he tells you.

The Love Laugh Live Show airs every Saturday at 9 pm.