YouTubers, digital content creators struggle to find mainstream draw

While YouTubers and digital content creators are trying to make the transition to mainstream film and television, many are struggling to make it big with traditional audiences. While Zakir Khan’s comedy show, Aapka Apna Zakir on Sony Entertainment Television has been taken off air, many other influencers, with the exception of Bhuvan Bam and Prajakta Koli, are yet to land lead roles in films or shows, with their presence limited to supporting characters. Entertainment industry experts said this can be a challenge when your target audience is niche and you’re more used to creating your own material for social media than playing off other actors and pre-written material in an organised set-up.

Different formats

“Digital content creators are placed within tight walls where they carve niches and cater to them brilliantly. But the moment they step out, it doesn’t work because the thinking for long-format and short-format content is very different and they are unrelated spaces,” said Harish Bijoor, brand-strategy specialist and founder of Harish Bijoor Consults. Bijoor cited the example of TV comedian Kapil Sharma trying his luck in the movies and failing because it is difficult to straddle these different worlds. “In trying to be everything to everyone, you end up being nothing to anyone,” Bijoor added.

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To be sure, it wouldn’t be fair to refer to these creators entirely as flop stories. Names such as Kusha Kapila and Dolly Singh have started small in movies and shows and are usually picked for parts where their presence is exciting enough to appeal to millennial and Gen Z audiences without them having to carry the project on their shoulders. “They cannot really headline a movie made for mass-market audiences because the viewers watching TV or going to single screen cinemas are very different,” explained Shubhangi Bhatia, strategy consultant at BOD Consulting.

Koli, who plays the lead in Netflix original Mismatched that targets young digital audiences, played a supporting role in comedy drama Jug Jugg Jeeyo, a theatrical release. In case of a Zakir Khan, who has also played the lead in OTT originals, his image and gimmicks are geared towards a 15-35 age group whereas the audience watching television includes late millennials and older family members. “Being popular on social media doesn’t mean you’re popular everywhere and makers are looking for talent, and not just social media clout,” Bhatia added.

Queries sent to Sony as well as to Khan and Koli, remained unanswered.

Character roles

To be sure though, entertainment industry experts are also quick to point out that digital creators play a variety of roles on social media and there is already interest in them, which gives them an advantage compared to other aspirants. “People are very interested in seeing them but the script is king so they have to be in sync with and the right fit for the project. Some of them may not fit the particular socio-economic milieu of a film or may be comfortable doing their own thing but cannot transition to a character,” said Nandini Shrikent, a casting director. Makers have to keep the entire project in mind but content creators already have a foot in the door, she added.

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Compared to the character created by them on digital that they already have a grip on, it is important for comics and social media faces to be naturally good actors and play off other actors in movies and shows, industry experts say. “Their capability is already proven but it all depends on what they make of the new show or movie. Sometimes, issues of censorship dilute the impact and the aura from social media may not translate on to the big screen,” said Aadore Mukherjee, a casting director.

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