Mumbai: Sameer Gogate has been leading BBC Studios’ production business in India as general manager since 2019. In the last two years, he has played an instrumental role in steering the internationally renowned brand to its deserved status in India.
Smartly leveraging the OTT boom in the country, he was able to earn a reputation for BBC Studios beyond just being the producer of ‘Jhalak’. Through the pandemic years the studio produced over 11 shows for OTT including ‘Criminal Justice’ (three seasons), ‘What the Love’, ‘Out of Love’ (two seasons), ‘The Office India’ (two seasons), ‘Rudra’, ‘Guilt’ and ‘Sons of the Soil’. This year, they ventured into the regional markets with scripted formats.
Gogate has spent over 16 years in the Indian media and entertainment industry across the TV and film businesses. During his stint with Viacom 18, he oversaw the commercial function for the GEC Colors and managed co-productions and acquisitions for the Studio business at Viacom18 Motion pictures. He also set up the film business at Endemol. As chief development officer at Eros International, he managed their in-house productions and the regional slate of films.
In this exclusive interview with Indiantelevision.com, Sameer Gogate talks about his two years journey with the brand, the ‘BBC Studios advantage’ which made British formats such as ‘Criminal Justice’, ‘The Office India’, ‘Out of Love’, and ‘Luther’ runaway success in the India market, and upcoming plans for 2022.
Edited Excerpts:
On looking back at 2021, and how it was for BBC Studios
BBC Studios has come a long way from being known just as a producer that made ‘Jhalak Dikhla Jaa’. In that same time period, we have picked up ten commissions in the OTT space. I think we are largely OTT-skewed today, and that’s because of our premium dramas like ‘Criminal Justice’, ‘Out of Love’, ‘Guilt’, and ‘Rudra’. The demand for scripted content in the market is high, and by virtue of our quality formats and the British talent that’s associated with them, it’s easier for us to work with certain clients in the OTT space.
On the "BBC advantage", and the kind of content being created
We have got great and relatable stories to tell at BBC Studios, and our biggest advantage is the ‘premium-ness’ of BBC Dramas that has two reasons for it. First is the synergy with British formats which have themes that are easily adaptable for the Indian market. This ensures a quicker turnaround (right from the development to the execution stage) due to the already established success of the show.
The second advantage is the quality of dramas that are coming out of the UK, all associated with top British writers. To have access to these dramas that have been through numerous stages of development, checks, and balances, and discussions, just make it easier and quicker for us to adapt them for the Indian audience while maintaining the ‘premium-ness’ i.e. the high quality of writing and the higher production value that BBC is associated with. By virtue of this ‘premium-ness’, we have further been able to attract quality talent, whether it’s the directors, writers, or actors.
On the genres most in-demand in 2021
In principle, crime and thrillers always do well. But at the same time, we were also able to produce a ‘Sons of the Soil’ for Amazon which is a factual content piece. Going forward, you will see more factual content from us in India. We are currently working on another docu-piece which is likely to be announced by the middle of next year and our first scripted original. Apart from that, there is demand for premium dramas (non-crime genre), and I see that going up as we move ahead. Streaming services also want more regional and local content today.
On the economics of producing content for OTTs, including films
At BBC Studios we are not saying ‘no’ to movies, but the focus has been on scripted dramas. Regarding OTT economics, I’d say it’s important to be flexible and yet not compromise on the ‘premium-ness’ of the content. The cost consideration for us is two-fold; one is the price in terms of the time required to produce these premium drams, and the second is the actual cost of making them. We want to remain adaptable on both fronts to win the trust of our clients.
On the production and other challenges that spilled over from 2020
There are two parts of our business; production and development. The production part did suffer because teams were working from home during covid, there were far too many challenges on-ground especially during the second wave. But the last one-and-a-half years have taught us a lot on how to be flexible, nimble, and yet not compromise on our quality. Even though India witnessed a very bad second wave and it did affect things on-ground we used the time effectively for developing our content slate, and are now looking forward to 2022 with a strong pipeline.
On OTT content growing as a full-fledged ‘industry’ in India
We are at that point if we haven’t crossed it already. India is a unique market that has the same audience watching ‘Anupama’ and ‘Out of Love’ on the same platform. So, clearly, TV and OTT are going to coexist, even as more and more people consume media on OTT even after the pandemic.
On looking ahead to 2022, and plans for BBC Studios India
2022 will see new genres come to the fore. There will be a lot more factual entertainment and new formats in the unscripted reality content space as well. On the scripted side, India is almost there in terms of our quality but the ‘premium-ness’ of dramas can only go a notch higher from here. This being another Covid year we could deliver only two shows, ‘Guilt’ and ‘Luther’ (Rudra), but the pipeline for next year, including regional, is almost three times this.
