The excitement for Tamil web series has shot up after the pandemic and the response to Prasanth Pandiyaraj Vilangu (2022), Muthukumar's Ayali (2023) and more recently S. R. Prabhakaran's Sengalam (2023) has been phenomenal. With streaming platforms witnessing a boom in viewership for more new content and series, there has been quite a lot of debate around why Tamil cinema stars are yet to make an entry into the digital space. To talk about what could possibly be the reasons for Tamil cinema stars to do more web series, directors S. R.Prabhakaran, Muthukumar and Prasanth Pandiyaraj recently took part in an exclusive interview with National Award-winning film critic Baradwaj Rangan, the Editor-in-Chief of Galatta Plus.
Upon being asked why our own Tamil cinema stars are not doing any web series, Sengalam director S. R. Prabhakaran states, "If there's a reach, they will come. There's no confusion for them with that. The artiste doesn't have an idea regarding the reach. When it doesn't become a hit, why should I take a risk by doing it is what they think. The mindset of the heroes is that they want the platform to be strong at first. Even Vijay Sethupathi did a series in Hindi (Farzi on Amazon Prime Video), which became successful on Amazon and received a big reach. So, he now has hope. Other stars will now see Vijay Sethupathi's hit and do web series next, I think."
Sengalam is a political thriller web series and is set around the world of politics in Virudhunagar in Tamil Nadu. Starring Vani Bhojan and Kalaiyarasan in the lead roles, the nine-episode series produced by Abinesh Elangovan under the banner of Abi and Abi Productions has been receiving a good feedback from fans ever since its premiere on the ZEE5 streaming platform.
Watch S. R. Prabhakaran in conversation with Baradwaj Rangan below: