'Regional is the new global because of OTT'

Vitthal Teedi on OHO Gujarati

OHO Gujarati, India' premium Gujarati content platform has been consistently delivering heart-warming stories since its launch in April this year. One of the biggest shows to come out of the platform is Vitthal Teedi featuring Pratik Gandhi in the lead. Directed by Abhishek Jain who is also the co-founder of OHO Gujarati, the show has garnered a positive response from critics and audience alike.

In conversation with mid-day, Gandhi and Jain talk about the success of the show, how people across geographical regions are now logging into regional platforms to watch content in languages other than their native tongue and also look back on an eventful journey and their association which started in 2014 with Gujarati film Bey Yaar.

What kind of reactions and feedback have you been getting for Vitthal Teedi which is streaming on OHO Gujarati?

Pratik Gandhi: We have received some amazing feedback. People have actually liked the show. A lot of non-Gujarati have watched and liked it. They have accepted the new way of storytelling which is coming from Gujarati web-series. All this while there was a thin line between urban and rural Gujarati films and this myth has been broken by the show. Whoever started this term, I believe meant urban was a new way of storytelling. But I believe if the story belongs to a certain region, town or a village which was the case with Vitthal Teedi, it can still be told in a contemporary way. We have reached out to a younger audience to Gujarati literature and cinema.

Abhishek Jain: The response has been fabulous and overwhelming. We never thought people would be open to a web-series in gujarati and what was really surprising for us was what Pratik mentioned that there were a lot of non-Gujarati who loved it, obviously going with the popularity and credibility that Pratik has since the release of Scam 1992. The Harshad Mehta Story. It has also created a certain amount of expectation when we collaborate again together. So it is all about raising the bar.

Did the massive success of Scam 1992 The Harshad Mehta Story create any kind of pressure?

Abhishek: Personally, I didn't feel any kind of pressure. We are so involved in our story that it doesn't really bother us as to what has happened in the past and not take it to the head. But the subconscious approach about pitting this series and the character of Pratik is a little different from what he has done as Harshad Mehta was there. We were also dealing with the 80s era, our main character was in a similar profession that is gambling so all these things made us conscious about putting Pratik in a different light. The language and the milieu helped us in keeping us away from any sort of comparison.

Pratik: After Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story, many people told me that your next project is going to be really crucial for your career. But I was really clear that I wanted to select a project with my gut feeling, something that I have always done. I never gave any second thoughts whether Vitthal Teedi was a correct follow through. Yes, I had to take out Harshad and bring Vitthal alive, whether it was through my body language or something else which was the most challenging thing. But I'm glad I could manage to do that and people have liked what I did with my character.

Why do you think that people today are open towards watching regional content?

Pratik: I believe regional stories have a lot of new things to stay. They are fresh, rooted and the audience feels connected to it. There is such a rich literary heritage to choose from in Bengal, Gujarat, Kerala and everywhere. I beleave regional is the new global. There are no language barriers. We are watching Spanish shows here and I feel people are probably watching Gujarati content in Spain.Also, I believe that regional stories are content driven and not dictated by stars. I recently watched Joji (Malayalam film) and I was blown away with what Fahadh Faasil did with it. Similar content has been churned from Gujarati industry. There is no doubt that Gujarati cinema has given some brilliant cinema but there was a big gap in between where we lost a lot of younger audience who were disconnected. But with the new style of filmmaking this audience is coming back.

Abhishek: Be it technology or it's way of telling the stories, I believe cinema is one of the art forms that has constantly evolved over the years. And I feel this is a part of that evolution. We are trying to penetrate and get a larger audience for regional content. Any cinema which has a good story to tell will be accepted as people no longer prefer a particular language. From the easy availability of the internet to so many OTT platforms available with a wide variety of content and the advent of subtitles has helped regional cinema have a global reach.

Tell us about a platform like OHO Gujarati which is coming up with some interesting content.

Pratik: I believe a platform like OHO Gujarati is making content creation and consumption very democratic. As the audience has more choices, makers will also try and experiment. There are so many artists who are waiting for a break and all this is possible with this platform. This platform is for Gujaratis and for the Gujaratis. OTT has broken the barrier of box-office performance on the first weekend. Today, the possibilities are endless and a lot of experiments are happening. An actor like me is able to come out of regional cinema and come and perform something in Hindi mainstream cinema.

Abhishek: With the advent of OTT platforms over the time, it is helping every person who is in the business of storytelling and find more avenues of expressing themselves. When we were thinking of creating an OTT platform the idea was how far can we go and tell stories which we are really excited about and not worry about a larger audience and big screens. With that intention we started this OTT platform which is looking for fresh stories, new talents. This opens up a plethora of opportunities to collaborate with each other. There are many new artists in Vitthal Teedi who are extremely talented and got visibility and recognition because of Pratik's popularity.

You've worked together in the past and have a long standing association. How have you'll evolved over the years?

Abhishek: As an artist, craftsman and technocrat, evolution is a must in every aspect in the field that we are in. We started our journey from Bey Yaar (2014) and to be honest I had my apprehensions as Pratik was coming from a theater background where he had a tremendously good job. But adapting to cinema from theater can be straining but he did it really well. And now for OTT platforms where characters have to be developed in detail, he has again adapted with a lot of ease. For me it is posing a challenge with Pratik as to what next? He has done everything and I am looking forward to his next challenge and I am sure he will do well there too.

Pratik: We generally don't praise each other but this question gave us a legal opportunity to do it (laughs). I have known him since he approached me for Bey Yaar and I still remember he was fresh from the film institute. He was fresher but he had a lot of passion and I could see his love for cinema. When he narrated Vitthal Teedi, I could see the same zest and some enthusiasm. And as a performer you'd want to be associated with someone who is passionate about his craft.

Rupal S