Tamil film ‘Sarpatta Parambarai’ to have a sequel

New Delhi: Tamil-language period sports action film Sarpatta Parambarai directed by Pa. Ranjith, that had streamed on Amazon Prime Video, will now have a sequel. The film stars Arya, John Kokken, Shabeer Kallarakkal, Dushara Vijayan, Pasupathy, Anupama Kumar and Sanchana Natarajan.

Popular films made for over-the-top (OTT) video streaming platforms are being remade in different languages or are inspiring sequels, many of which are slated for theatrical release. South Indian language movies Home and Soorarai Pottru, both released on Amazon Prime Video, have been picked up by Abundantia Entertainment for Hindi remakes.

Malayalam film The Great Indian Kitchen is out with a Tamil version. Action drama Khuda Haafiz starring Vidyut Jammwal that streamed on Disney+ Hotstar has also had a sequel. While content creators emphasize on the wide reach of these platforms and the potential to enhance appeal in a new language, critics point to the continuing dependence of the Hindi film industry on southern stories, given the lack of originality in the north.

The trend underpins the fact that stories can find an audience irrespective of platform, and the creative strategy of many production companies is to be screen-agnostic, senior industry executives have said. The wide reach of streaming platforms, besides the connect and impact of these stories, gives creators the confidence to take them forward in a different language or to a new distribution medium, they point out. The seamless transition of stories in the coming years can happen not only between movie and web screens but extend to comic books and gaming as well.

As far as rights to the streamed films go, there may be different models of structuring contracts between OTT platforms and film producers, some may be limited to the concept or script of the individual film or remain exclusive to the service only for a particular period of time.