Atrangii is all set for a total revamp on TV and OTT effective May 15. Twelve fiction shows and five non-fiction shows on TV and a ‘different kind of programming’ on OTT are in the works, according to Vibhu Agarwal, CEO, Atrangii TV & OTT.
The channel launched in mid-2022 and attracted a lot of attention coming from the founder of OTT app Ullu. It will take time in the competitive GEC space to wean audiences to a new channel, explained Agarwal, in conversation with MediaNews4u.com.
“The shows on TV are like slow poison, you can’t think that you completed one year and you could not achieve it. There are chances that we reach every household in the second year, and in the third year the percentage of achievement will increase. You need to make new shows on a continuous basis. The TV audience is very loyal towards their channel. They keep watching the show till it ends and when the promos of a new show begin, the loyal followers catch the new show. To get someone from that channel to yours is a big task. So, we have planned some international shows apart from the 12 Hindi shows according to people’s demand. We will be launching it within two months, after May 15, on Atrangii TV,” he revealed.
While Dil-e-Gumshuda, Parashuram and crime show Jaghanya Apradh did well, according to the CEO, there is a need for continuous infusion of content. The channel will make its foray into non-fiction shows and also introduce talk shows in its new programming slate. It will follow a 20:80 ratio, 80 pc being fiction.
He added, “For OTT we have planned different kinds of shows and web series in new genres. Shows in Turkish, Korean, Spanish will be dubbed in multi-languages as the viewers for these have increased in India. We will be buying this content from outside. We have full-fledged plans for Atrangii on TV and OTT. In TV, if we sustain for three years then there is no looking back. And in OTT if you can collaborate with other OTTs, the reach is far and wide and the push is fast.”
Overcoming Challenges
Agarwal revealed that coming from a digital content space, the channel launch followed the strategy of ‘OTT on TV’ with programming that was different – but the audience was still in staple ‘drama’ mode. High carriage fees meant that distribution was another challenge.
Agarwal remarked, “We are trying to revamp and bring it back in a different way. It’s almost one year and within this period we have got enough knowledge and have done a lot of research. We had thought that the four-hour programming which big satellite channels do, would be a boom, but didn’t get that mileage. We did DD FreeDish too, but we had to leave in November ‘22 as we didn’t get the proper slot and our channel was not reaching viewers.”
Atrangii OTT, on the other hand, ‘has grown very well’ said the Founder. The brand has forged some OTT distribution tie-ups which are to be announced. Atrangii has ‘shaken hands with’ some ‘big OTTs’, said Agarwal, without divulging names.
DD Free Dish and MSOs
Atrangii TV is off MSOs and as revealed by the CEO, off DD FreeDish too for now.
The CEO stated, “We are planning something on TV, which can’t be disclosed right now. A lot of paperwork has been done. We are doing something on Free Dish which no one must have done so far. We are coming on DD Free Dish but in some different way.”
The channel is available on DTH services Tata Sky, Dish TV and Airtel.
“MSOs increase your costing, more than production. So we have not covered MSOs right now. But since it’s a system you can’t stay away from it. As we are revamping after May 15, we will again approach some MSOs, pay the carriage fees and bring the TV under it,” explained the CEO.
New OTT offering
Of Atrangii’s OTT audience, 60 pc consume the AVOD offering while the rest pay the subscription fee.
Besides Atrangii, the group is set to launch a youth-centric OTT platform.
“We are launching one more OTT. The new OTT will have no web series, TV (content), documentaries… It is completely different, nobody has thought in that way, it is 100pc youth-centric,” added Agarwal.
The company has also forayed into podcasts and will be running it live as radio. A project related to telecom is also in the works, about which the Founder is tight-lipped.
With the relaunch, Atrangii TV and OTT will be promoted aggressively, underlined Agarwal.
“We have planned the marketing and will be focusing on TV, cinemas and newspaper ads. We have hugely invested in the upcoming fiction and non-fiction shows that would be coming back-to-back,” he surmised.
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