News Headline
Peak TV and the year of the sheroes
A barrage of shows from across the globe has left a thin line between pampering and spoiling our consumers for choice. It, infact, nudged the coining of the term, Peak TV.When John Landgraf, the King of FX, at an industry event for TV critics uttered the phrase “Peak TV”, he was trying to address a problem, a problem all of us face in our lives these days … WHAT TO WATCH? He was only trying to get our attention to the fact that with the volume going up, audiences will find it difficult to find good shows they can enjoy. There is so much of good television around, that at times it is exhausting catching up to these shows.
New streaming services will add to the existing list of services already present in the country from the ever-popular Hotstar to international services like Amazon Prime and Netflix. 20+ OTT players, pivoting business models, regional explosion, self-censorship, and the classic AVod vs SVod debate will continue for the time to come. In the West, Christmas came early to content lovers with the arrival of 2 more platforms Apple TV and Disney Plus. In this battle of the giants, we will see a few smaller platforms perish and the strain on niche English TV channels will only continue to grow in India. But I am not going to jump onto numbers of platforms and who stands where and who caters to what. As famously said, people watch shows not channels and so I am going to stick to what shows made news this year. But is a burnout in the horizon and will the hyper competition see fewer active players in 2020?
“Sheroes in Spotlight”
It’s been the year of the “Writer” along with the Year of the “Female hero”. From Phoebe Waller-Bridge picking up outstanding lead actress to outstanding writing for a comedy series to writing the new Bond Franchise and Susannah Grant’s “Unbelievable, it’s been a definite year of the Female Hero, whether she has been in front of the camera or behind.These women have been behind some of the biggest hits of the year. Big Little Lies, Watchmen, Dead to Me and Glow Russian Doll were all shows led by female stars. But,also do imagine a year forcontent, where one forgets to actually talk about the last season of Game of Thrones or the last year of the 3 Masterchef Judges.
If in 2018 Wild Wild Country was the standout documentary series, 2019 was the year of the Fyre Festival and Elizabeth Holmes, the founder of blood-testing technology company Theranos, who went from the tech industry's darling to a pariah in just a matter of years. The streaming giants have exposed us to series of documentaries in 2019 from the ever popular All or Nothing to Drive to Survive or the much awaited docu-series on the Australian Cricket Team. Hopefully, these shows will continue to pave the wave for more docu-series, a genre which is under serviced in nature. It couldn’t reinforce Peak TV any better, not only is there an explosion of scripted content but also genres like documentary series which have added to the ever-expanding wish list.
The 200 million TV homes market
If anyone remotely thought the streaming hype and the world of OTT will dent the ‘bhagya’ of the popular soaps, they were mistaken. Even in 2019, we have an ‘Icchadari Naagin’ that continues to garner attention on primetime television sharing space with Yeh Rishta and Kumkum Bhagya. India will continue to remain a single screen market for the time to come and nothing will take away Indians from their staple diet of daily mother in law and daughter in law drama. This drama will continue to fold in front and behind the TV for the years to come. The mobile screen is going to compliment the TV screen, but not replace it in the next few years.Along with mainstream television, regional television is flourishing whether it is the nth year of the popular Marathi Show Chala Hawa Yeu Dya or the popular Tamil daily shows. The staple diet for most viewers is their daily soaps, which are complemented by the popular big-ticket shiny floor shows with big names like Salman Khan on the weekend on Bigg Boss, the popular TV format Big Brother is now in its 13th season or KBC which is now in its 11th season with megastar Amitabh Bachchan. These shows continue to rule weekends for the audience while the bahus take care of weekdays.
This is what makes India such an exciting market to work in for content producers. At one end of the spectrum, you have Taarak Mehta, Kundali Bhagya, and Kumkum Bhagya to a small show like Little Things that explodes suddenly as a Netflix original in season 2 to Family Man and Made in Heaven picking up all the accolades in their debut season. Delhi Crime was a standout female cop drama on the backdrop of the Nirbhaya case.
The phrase Peak TV suits India very well, with the mega bucks IPL cricket tournament attracting millions of eyeballs in the summer has made Hotstar a name to reckon with among the streamers in India. There is just so much to watch in these months with Cricket and Kabaddi leagues mushrooming in India. Hotstar launched its set of originals this summer in the middle of IPL and 2 shows that became household names were the popular BBC Drama series Criminal Justice and the popular Israeli drama Hostages, both launched with the same names in India.
The obsession of franchises will not fade so easily, whether it is Kasautii Zindagii Kay, Love Lust and Confusion 2, Nagin 4, Inside Edge 2, the yearning to attract audience in a cluttered market will always remain high. This hype supersedes the reality in this Indian market.
The Chinese year of the pig has ended well for Hotstar and it abodes well for the theme of the “Sheroes”.Out of Love starring Rasika Dugal has emerged as an outright winner in the year, based on the popular BBC Drama series Dr. Foster, starring Suranne Jones who won the Bafta in 2016 for Best Actress. The show has put Rasika Dugal on the top of the list of female actors in the country and has only strengthened her case after Delhi Crime and Mirzapur. The real pleasure after watching this series lies in the fact that a powerful female protagonist is at the center of it all and the series has not treated the character like a victim, which not many players were willing to experiment with, at least with Indian originals to begin with.
Will the audiences continue to be pampered with more quality shows? Will mainstream TV get their ratings mojo back? Will English cluster in India survive the heat from the streaming giants? Will mobile phones become replacement devices? Will more platforms launch content services? A lot will unfold in 2020.
Let’s see what content choices it leaves for us in 2020 from being a year of sequels like Family Man, Delhi Crime, Mirzapur, Hostages, Criminal Justice, Out of Love to Peak TV staying for a couple of more years, only time will tell.
(The author is business head, Productions BBC Studios. The views expressed are his own and Indiantelevision.com may not subscribe to them.)
NEW DELHI: Hamdard Laboratories gathered a cross-section of India’s achievers in New Delhi on Friday, handing out the Hakeem Abdul Hameed Excellence Awards to figures who have left their mark across healthcare, education, sport, public service and the arts.
The ceremony, attended by minister of state for defence Sanjay Seth and senior officials from the ministry of Ayush, celebrated individuals whose work blends professional success with a sense of public purpose. It was as much a roll call of achievement as it was a reminder that influence is not measured only in profits or podiums, but in people reached and lives improved.
Among the headline awardees was Alakh Pandey, founder and chief executive of PhysicsWallah, recognised for turning affordable digital learning into a mass movement. On the sporting front, Arjuna Awardee and kabaddi player Sakshi Puniya was honoured for her contribution to the game and for pushing women’s participation onto bigger stages.
The cultural spotlight fell on veteran lyricist and poet Santosh Anand, whose songs have echoed across generations of Hindi cinema. At 97, Anand accepted the honour with characteristic humility, reflecting on a life shaped by perseverance and hope.
Healthcare honours spanned both modern and traditional systems. Manoj N. Nesari was recognised for strengthening Ayurveda’s place in national and global health frameworks. Padma shri Mohammed Abdul Waheed was honoured for his research-backed work in Unani medicine, while padma shri Mohsin Wali received recognition for his long-standing contribution to patient-centred care.
Education and social development also featured prominently. Padma shri Zahir Ishaq Kazi was honoured for decades of work in education, while former Meghalaya superintendent of Police T. C. Chacko was recognised for public service. Goonj founder Anshu Gupta received an award for his dignity-centred rural development initiatives, and the Hunar Shakti Foundation was honoured for empowering women and young girls through skill development.
The Lifetime Achievement Award went to former IAS officer Shailaja Chandra for her long career in public healthcare and governance, particularly in the traditional systems under Ayush.
Speaking at the event, Hamdard chairman Abdul Majeed said the awards were a tribute to those who combine excellence with empathy. “These awardees reflect Hakeem Sahib’s belief that healthcare, education and public service must ultimately serve humanity,” he said.
Minister Seth struck a forward-looking note, saying India’s young population gives the country a unique opportunity to become a global destination for learning, health and wellness by 2047.
The ceremony also featured the trailer launch of Unani Ki Kahaani, an upcoming documentary starring actor Jim Sarbh, set to premiere on Discovery on 11 February.
Instituted in memory of Unani scholar and educationist Hakeem Abdul Hameed, the awards have grown into a national platform that celebrates those building a more inclusive and resilient India. For one evening at least, the spotlight was not just on success, but on service with substance.
