Move over, mega serials

Ever binge-watched an entire season of The Office and desperately wished you’d see a local version of Michael Scott sometime on TV? Or laughed/ wept your eyes out over a F.R.I.E.N.D.S marathon, and wondered if one of the mega soaps would ever have a character even mildly relatable to the current generation?
Well, you’re not alone in that respect. Hundreds, nay, thousands of young (potential) filmmakers/actors/comics have brooded over the tantalising prospect of creating a local show, inspired, or taking influence from great American/Brit sitcoms and dramas that they have grown up watching — for decades now. But how to displace the dominance of mothers-in-law in weepy family sagas that have ruled the TV airwaves forever?

Welcome then, to the belated age of web series on YouTube! What began slowly, but surely, as an encouraging movement, in the form of sketches and vlogs, has now evolved full-throttle into YouTube groups creating entire episodes and seasons now — which have captured the fancy of the Gen Y, and are vociferously lapped up every week. In an age where the best Indian content you can find on television is full of cliched melodrama, these witty and hilarious series come as a welcome change and a force to be reckoned with.

Take the case of Chennai-based Put Chutney’s Ctrl Alt Del, which traces the humdrum lives of everyday IT employees working at a software firm. The pilot, which just premiered earlier this week (starring well-known faces from the city’s theatre and comedy scene), is an instant hit — being immediately relatable to many viewers, who can only watch and smile in wry humour.

Says dancer Abhirami Iyer, who essays the role of an exasperated narrator in the satirical series, “We try to make the scenes and dialogues as quirky and interesting as possible, but at the heart of it is the fact that many of the viewers are going through the exact same thing daily IRL! My character, Rohini, for instance is kind of like Monica Geller from F.R.I.EN.D.S … she’s funny, has strong feminist tendencies and is someone you probably meet every day in your lives! That’s why it clicks.”

Similarly, when moms, in-laws and grandparents sit down to have their fill of drama every evening, who really wants to combat them for the TV remote, eh? Coimbatorean Naveen Richard of Them Boxer Shorts, has struck gold with his Better Life Foundation, a mockumentary that brings about severe Office déja vu — and the funnyman agrees —“As more and more viewers migrate from TV to the internet, it made sense to create quality content on YouTube — especially in English for Indian audiences. The Office was something that used to cheer me up during exams, and make me feel all happy inside. I really wanted to create something similar in the local context — I have too much respect for the original to rip it off or tarnish it, but I did take inspiration.”

Following the exploits of youngsters running an NGO, the show would also remind one of the likes of Modern Family or Parks and Recreation, where characters break the fourth wall to address the viewers — often , in deadpan style. “We understand the show is only for a niche, Netflix-loving audience of sorts. But I was curious to see how people would receive this, and the feedback shows that we are ready now. The idea is to bring out more such stuff, and reach out to wider audiences!” Naveen adds.

Stray Factory’s original offering Black Sheep, about the trials and tribulations of pursuing the most sought-after career path — engineering — is also set in namma ooru. Vaishwath Shankar who plays the lead’s best friend, says, “Of course, the popularity of web series is growing. YouTube has a lot of good content and we are much more comfortable accessing it on our electronic devices. It’s only going to improve from here on.”

He goes on to say, “It has taken time for the concept to catch up in the south because we have divided identities. We have channels like Rascalas, Put Chutney and Kanan Gill who all put out extremely different work. I think the north caters to a more global audience. Once the audience becomes more vocal, the creators here will also be able to dole out that kind of content.”

Actress Nupur Murthy recently played a Coimbatore girl in the first Indian Facebook Live web series Confessions — It’s Complicated about three girls trying to make it in Mumbai. She shares, “Before acting in this series, I wasn’t interested in them. But now, I believe this is what the future will look like. It’s so convenient to watch them — you can even see them on the pot! Even my mother watches them, so we know it’s not just the younger crowd who is part of our audience.” She adds, “For actors, any avenue is great since it lets us display our skill. Be it television, cinema or web sketches. I’d love to do more of them, even ones that are centered around south India.”

Clearly, it’s time for an upgrade as far as our TV time is concerned — and don’t worry, entertainment is guaranteed!

(With inputs from Kaavya Pillai)