Small is Big

As the New Year settles in, the entertainment industry in India is in the middle of a revolution. Though Bollywood and to some extent Tollywood...

As the New Year settles in, the entertainment industry in India is in the middle of a revolution. Though Bollywood and to some extent Tollywood, is still primarily a big-screen industry, the small screen8212; which includes computers, portable DVD players, and iPods as well as televisions8212;is slowly proving to be an important source of revenue for the industry. In fact, one doesn8217;t need a crystal ball to see that Bollywood8217;s future is now inexorably tied to the small screen. Talk predicts that the further migration of Bollywood8212;even with its sticky celebrity culture8212;into home entertainment will be greatly accelerated in 2009.

DVD releases
Even a year ago, DVD or video release of a blockbuster film was a much-anticipated and much delayed event. Today, the DVD of even a stellar hit like Jab We Met releases within months of its theatrical release. While others like Vikram Bhatt8217;s Fear went straight for a DVD release.And these DVD comes with special features like deleted scenes and special interviews.

Satellite rights
Same is the case with the satellite rights of films. Today, a huge chunk of a film8217;s revenue comes from the sale of its satellite rights. Films like Race and Jab We Met were telecast in popular television channels barely a few months after their release.

Digital Video Recorders
Aamir Khan introduced us to it. The wonder called the digital video recorder which enables us to record, play back, pause and fast forward television programmes. But this is just the tip of the iceberg. The digital video recorder has a variety of flavours8212;stand-alone DVRs, portable DVRs such as the iPod, and integrated DVRs8212;that allow consumers to easily capture movies and TV programmes and then watch them when it is convenient. Soon, people would rather watch a downloaded film rather than trudge all the way to a hall.

The Blu- Ray
The blue ray phenomenon is yet to catch up in India, but it8217;s only a matter of time before this wonderful invention revolutionises the way we watch films. Although it is the same size as the present DVD, the Blu-Ray can hold six times as much data on multiple layers. The picture and sound quality makes the Blue Ray experience an experience worth your while.

Digital Television
Digital television, which has penetrated the most remote corners of the country, offers viewers high definition viewing experience. In the next few years, a huge part of the population will be able to watch a film at home, which approaches in visual quality the fare in cinema halls. And the couch potato will have many more, though not necessarily better, reasons for staying home.

PS All said and done, the big screen will still have its share of loyal patrons, at least in Kolkata. With IMAX finally in the city, we urge to you sit back and enjoy.