They are over a decade old but believe they have the fire of a start-up. Monisha Advani, 52, and Madhu Bhojwani, 51, together with filmmaker Nikkhil Advani, have produced 13 films, and are busy navigating India’s homegrown OTT platforms, from Sony LIV and Zee5 to international players like Disney+Hotstar. Web series like medical thriller Mumbai Diaries 26/11 and the biopic Rocket Boys are from their stable. As are espionage films like D-Day. So what drivesMumbai-based production house, Emmay Entertainment’s content? “We need to be like soothsayers. Anything we listen to today as an idea or a story is going to take 18-24 months to be realised,” begins Monisha. “If that’s the duration, we have to be cognisant of the fact that 24 months down the line, a new generation will to be added to the consumer base.”
The trick, she believes, is to develop content in anticipation of audience’s evolving consumption patterns. “For example, there may be a need for nationalistic content at some point or an underdog sports story during Olympics. There’s no sure-shot formula; you may put your last paisa into making a show, yet it takes the click of a button for someone to say it doesn’t appeal to them,” she shares. Interestingly, of the 13 films Emmay Entertainment has produced, six were built around ‘national pride’ — D-Day, Airlift, Batla House, Satyameva Jayate 1 and 2 , and Bell Bottom — and several star either Akshay Kumar or John Abraham. “I think Emmay is known to seed national pride in most of its content, whether films or shows. This is not by design. These stories resonated with us on a creative level and by sheer coincidence ignite a sense of patriotism,” insists Monisha.
A still from Rocket Boys | Photo Credit: Special arrangement
The future of India’s booming OTT market
She highlights a change in the country’s content consumption, from multi-generational viewers sharing one screen to a more personalised viewership, especially among India’s young adults. This has been more evident in the past two years, courtesy social media and OTT platforms. “They are an exciting, empowered voice that’s transforming us into a more inclusive and tolerant society. Emmay Entertainment recognises this. We are currently developing character-based series that explore these conversations in a non-invasive, preachy manner,”she says. Recalling their journey, she adds that the company’s framework is gender agnostic and driven by meritocracy. “Over 60% of the direct workforce at Emmay are women and they are present in practically all our departments. In terms of indirect engagements, we worked with over 20,000 gig workers during the past 24 months.”