iWorld
TV not ready for the characters I write: ‘Pushpavalli’ creator Sumukhi Suresh
NEW DELHI: Amazon Prime has been investing heavily in Indian originals for its platform, and it seems like comedy is one of the most preferred genres. Several stand-ups and sketches by Indian comics have been hosted on its home page and have gained immense popularity as well. One such show is Sumukhi Suresh’s Pushpavalli, directed by Debbie Rao, which recently came out with its second season.
Speaking to Indiantelevision.com about her experience of creating Pushpavalli, Suresh went all praise for the platform stating that she is glad that the show is on Amazon Prime. “No other OTT platform would have done it the way Prime did. My fellow writer had a very dark vision for the show. I was very sure that we wanted to show revenge. During my meeting with Prime, sometime in March 2018, I was pleasantly surprised to see their reaction to my vision. They supported me in making it darker. They told me to make her murder someone,” she said.
Suresh further added, “Also, there are many OTT platforms which are apprehensive about taking up a show (Indian original) in English. It was so wonderful that they let me keep the show in English and also supported me.”
She also revealed that the platform gave her full liberty to plan and execute the marketing for the show. “They helped me in understanding what is wrong and what will work more but they truly supported my vision. For example, the whole 'explain the season within 60 seconds' videos we did for Instagram was my idea and we did that with full support from Prime.”
Asked if making season 2 of the show added pressure given the first season was a raging hit, Suresh quipped that her team and she are very self-critical and that helped them deal with the expectations.
“We were very cognizant of the fact that we need to write a tighter script and we needed to be very fast-paced. The first season had ended on a very dramatic note and it was our responsibility to take it back to comedy and then to drama,” she explained.
According to Suresh, the writing team gave a very close-to-shooting script to director Debbie Rao who then added her thought process to make the wonderful show. Rao also edited the show herself to make sure everything was pitch-perfect.
Another difference that the show had this time was a better budget. Suresh mentions that the first season was shot within just fifteen days because of the tight budgets. But this time, she had better control over the finances and a better amount of money to spend.
Asked if she wrote the show with business in mind, or to get creative satisfaction, Suresh found herself in a tight spot. The very loquacious woman took a brief pause before answering, “If I have to write something and I have this dilemma if the scene has to make business sense or should fit the narrative of the show, I will go with the latter.”
She also added that she is writing for the female audience. “I have no shame in admitting that I write for the women. I don’t care if a man doesn’t like my show at all. I will continue to write for women.”
She, however, admitted that while creating shows for platforms like Prime, one of her goals is to get more subscribers for them. She feels that she should be able to give a return on investment to the platform so they are eager to get her back on the platform.
Asked if she has some other shows up her kitty for the platform other than Pushpavalli season 3, Suresh said that she is busy juggling between three other writing rooms currently but there isn’t any OTT platform in her head where she would be putting them.
“One of the shows is going to be a thriller, one is an out and about comedy. The third show is very close to my heart that I am developing from a slice of my mother’s life. This will be a mix of comedy and drama,” she noted.
Will she be open to taking any of the shows to television? Suresh thinks that the platform is not ready for the sort of characters she writes.
“I can give you two hundred and five hundred and even more episodes but you will not like the characters that I write,” she said with laughter.
She, however, is willing to work on a movie with director Debbie Rao, which she feels will be a blockbuster if ever made.
iWorld
Anirudh Ravichander and Universal Music India join forces to take South India’s sound to the world
The composer behind 13 billion streams launches Albuquerque Records with UMI as its exclusive global partner
MUMBAI: Universal Music India has struck an exclusive partnership with Albuquerque Records, the freshly minted independent label of singer-composer Anirudh Ravichander, in a deal that bets big on South India’s booming pop and hip-hop scene going global.
The arrangement, announced on 17 March, will see Universal Music India handle future pop and hip-hop releases by Anirudh himself, as well as artists signed to the new label. A first release is already in the pipeline for April, featuring Anirudh.
The numbers behind the man are hard to ignore. Debuting in 2012 with the viral sensation “Why This Kolaveri Di”, Anirudh has since clocked over 13 billion audio streams across more than 770 tracks, cementing his position as the No.1 South Indian artist on Spotify by total streams. His fingerprints are all over some of the Tamil film industry’s biggest musical moments, from Hukum and Vaathi Coming to Arabic Kuthu and the A23 Theme.
But Albuquerque Records is a different beast. Built for the non-film space, it is designed to nurture independent talent and champion the next wave of Indian pop voices. “Universal Music India’s leadership in pop and hip-hop made them the natural partner,” said Anirudh. “I’m excited to take independent voices to audiences around the world.”
Universal Music India’s chairman and CEO Devraj Sanyal was equally effusive. “Anirudh represents the future of Indian music, bold, original, and with enormous potential,” he said. “Identifying transformative talent is our superpower, and this partnership reflects that belief.”
Sanujeet Bhujabal, managing director of Universal Music India, framed the deal as more than a distribution play. “Albuquerque Records represents Anirudh’s bold artistic vision in the world of pop and hip-hop,” he said. “True to his legacy of innovation, this partnership is set to establish yet another landmark creative space, this time for the emerging world of iPop and beyond.”
For Universal Music India, the deal deepens a long-running push into South India’s four key language markets: Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada and Telugu. The label already has regional imprints, film partnerships with Maddock Films and Excel Entertainment, and a growing non-film roster. Landing Anirudh, arguably the south’s most bankable music brand, is a statement of intent. South Indian music has the streams. Now it is coming for the world.
