Can India Make a Show like 'Adolescence'? Creators Reveal Stifling of Art, Netflix Insiders Note 'Pressure' of Numbers
Indian creators have voiced their concern over why mounting a show like 'Adolescence' which champions original narrative and pushes the envelope of daring storytelling, is impossible in the country's current streaming landscape.
How far can you go for storytelling? It depends on the streaming executive you're dealing with. Days after the British crime drama Adolescence became a runaway global hit—amassing over 24 million views since its Netflix debut earlier this week—Indian creators and writers have voiced their concern over why mounting a show of its ilk, which champions original narrative and pushes the envelope of daring storytelling, is impossible in the current streaming landscape of the country.
The discourse first took steam when filmmaker Hansal Mehta raved about the series on X, highlighting how even the idea of a show like Adolescence in India would likely be "deemed unsuitable for commissioning—considered too niche, something that wouldn't travel 'wide.'"
"It makes you wonder: Is such exceptional work the domain of the first world, while countries like India are relegated to mass-producing mostly mediocre content, deemed appropriate for an audience whose intelligence is consistently underestimated?" he wrote, setting off a chain reaction with other filmmakers joining the discussion, including Sudhir Mishra and Shekhar Kapur. It culminated in a scathing post by Anurag Kashyap, who called out Netflix India's lack of vision, misplaced priorities, and stark contrast between its global and Indian content strategy.
The Hollywood Reporter India spoke to several creators who have worked with streaming platforms in India, to understand what would come their way if one pitches a show like Adolescence— that examines the fault lines of society in the backdrop of a young boy accused of a murder.
"The first feedback that would come is that it's not 'massy' enough, and that the show has no potential to travel wide," a top filmmaker, who has battled several diktats of streamers, told THR India on the condition of anonymity.
"If you tell them that a show like Black Warrant did numbers, the response would be that it's a one-off example. If you bring up Adolescence, then they would point you to something like The Diplomat (2023 Netflix series). A developing country like India has become a producer of cattle feed of 'content' for the population. The likes of Alfonso Cuarón's Roma (2018), Martin Scorsese's The Irishman (2019), and Adolescence get made overseas with absolute freedom and no budget limitations. Which enables the artists there to think freely. Do you think Vikramaditya Motwane or Anurag Kashyap can't make a Mindhunter here? Of course they can. But will they be allowed to? No."
Another creator, who has worked across platforms, pointed out how streamers in the country have brought in the "same box-office bastardisation" to the OTT space. This means everything is "safe, sanitised, and boring."
"When they look at India, they look at numbers. And that creates a model that reverse-engineers commissioning ideas that they think can work wider. So, nothing political, nothing sexual, nothing 'mature'. Adolescence tackles so many complex themes under the garb of being an investigative procedural. But there is no way it could have even been passed in its current form in India."
Since the streaming model can be sustained only on subscriptions, there has been an increasing reliance on approving ideas that come with a promise of delivering numbers.
"A show like Trial by Fire (2023) gets a lot of acclaim, but not numbers, and then that sets the tone for what will not be commissioned," the filmmaker said.
"The need for subscriptions means more market capitalisation. Where do you get those numbers from? From a country like India. In the US, they feel the audience is 'mature', whereas here we are told that India's Squid Game moment hasn't happened. But how will it happen if these are the diktats we deal with?"
THR India asked Netflix India for a comment on its strong diktat, emphasis on toned-down storytelling, and lack of push for daring, original ideas. There was no comment. An insider on the condition of anonymity told THR India that executives are always "under pressure" to deliver numbers.
"If a show tanks, then you are accountable for it. So there is tremendous pressure to justify what you back. One also has to keep in mind various social factors before commissioning a project. Yet, there have been breakout films and shows every year. Just last year there was Imtiaz Ali's Amar Singh Chamkila," the insider shared.
A top producer who has worked with Netflix India said makers often break their backs dealing with feedback that has "nothing to do with creativity".
"Sometimes they state, 'Don't make your character come from a film background, as it doesn't connect with people.' Imagine being told then, that the father in Adolescence can't own a plumbing business? There is no place for nuance when the insistence is on making everything black-and-white which can be defined by an adjective. That gives you no space to breathe and stifles art from the first stage of storytelling itself before it even takes some wings. We are still a long way from coming of age," the producer added.