Minnal Murali and Netflix: Will Minnal Murali support Netflix? The sudden arrival of the Malayalam superhero

The preparations made by director Basil Joseph to present Minnal Murali in front of a Malayalee have a story to tell over the years. Therefore, the Malayalam film world is eagerly awaiting the release of the first superhero film in Malayalam. This is evident from the manner in which the controversy surrounding the set was discussed in the film world. But with the Corona crisis looming, news is coming in September that Minnal Murali will be an OD release. There is a lot of talk among movie lovers about the pros and cons of releasing a big movie on a platform like Netflix. But the film’s cast presented the film’s direct release as a matter of time, or a matter of survival.

However, since the acquisition of the film, Netflix, the global streaming giant, should not lose sight of the importance of the film from Malayalam. Netflix is ​​giving Minnal Murali a pre-release promotion that no other Indian release has done in recent times. Many of the real ‘superheroes’ in India are getting promotions for the ‘local’ superhero on the streaming screen. Cricketer Yuvraj Singh and former wrestler ‘The Great Khali’ are among them. That is, Netflix views the film as a Christmas release on their platform.

According to reports from the film industry, Minnal Murali will be the biggest hit release in Malayalam cinema to date. Netflix has acquired it for such a large sum. It was a lucrative deal for the film’s makers. Therefore, Netflix attaches great importance to the film Minnal Murali as the biggest deal ever made in India.

Globally, Netflix is ​​a global corporate entity that has grown from a small company that rents out CDs and DVDs to some corner of the world. So they will play everything from the small number of ‘show’ business to the big games. However, market observers generally believe that Netflix has not been able to gain a foothold in India since its arrival. While series like Sacred Games have garnered a lot of attention, at one point they themselves assessed that none of them produced the natural growth needed to make a local resource on Netflix’s Indian base. Many of Netflix’s original series in India benefited more than Indian content. The most important of these is ‘Money Heist’. The last ‘squid game’ is another example.

Netflix arrived in India in 2016. It can be said that this arrival is at the right time. Because it was the time of the introduction of 4G in India. Netflix has grown accordingly. Netflix has set foot in India by selling its trademark series ‘Narcos’ and ‘Stranger Things’. At the same time they had a great obstacle to grow beyond a certain limit. There was no other reason for that, but the price was the same as the plans. At the same time, the lack of Indian content bothered them. At the same time, rival Amazon Prime Video was focusing more on local films and another rival, the Disney Plus Hotstar, was attracting attention through its unique TV sports content.

The Kovid period of 2020 has changed the face of the streaming industry in India. As more and more people started streaming, it became the responsibility of these apps to expand their content library. It was also during this period that more and more films adopted the OT method when the theater was not open. It would not be wrong to say that Kovid really brought about the natural change that should take place in the Indian streaming industry in 3 years in ten to eleven months. It was at this point that Netflix decided to accept new content from India and expand. They introduced a new content style called Netflix South, which was a huge hit with Neeraj Madhav and Tamil pop singer Arivum all singing and acting. The song ‘Malayali Vanneda’ is still on the reels.

In its next phase, Netflix bought a film like Minnal Murali and gave it a big promotion. The US Christmas holidays are what Netflix’s’ season is all about. That’s why Netflix is ​​presenting ‘Minnal Murali’ as their flagship product, like a festive season grand theatrical release despite the signing of the contract and the handing over of the film. But promotion alone is not enough. That’s where Netflix took the next show to brighten up Murali and their entire season. It was about announcing a 60 percent discount on their plan.

Netflix has launched a monthly plan at Rs 199 after receiving complaints that it has been expensive since its arrival in India. The plan, which offers mobile screen streaming, will now be available for Rs 149. The basic Netflix plan has been reduced from Rs 499 to Rs 199. It is noteworthy that on the day when the main rival Amazon Prime Video became more expensive, the rates came down to attract Netflix subscribers. In other words, if they can enjoy a release like Minnal Murali for Rs 199, they plan to get more people into the Netflix experience. It may ultimately benefit Minnal Murali and Malayalam cinema. The Malayalam film industry has something to be proud of in the fact that at a time when Netflix is ​​gaining the most new subscribers in the world, a Malayalam film is coming to the forefront of their minds.

Last Updated Dec 19, 2021, 4:14 PM IST