The big screen’s back in spotlight as Rs 13,000 crore box-office revival fades OTT boom

Mumbai: The Indian film industry is returning to a theatre-first release model, reversing the post-pandemic trend of direct-to-streaming premieres as studios increasingly prioritise box-office revenues while streaming platforms pull back on spending.

Today, films are typically arriving on streaming services around eight weeks after their theatrical release, compared to a window of 2-4 weeks for certain films during the post-pandemic period when many titles bypassed theatres altogether, industry executives said.

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“Movies are reaching OTT platforms much later after their theatrical release. So, OTT is no longer a substitute. In fact, it never really was,” said Ajay Bijli, managing director of leading multiplex chain PVR Inox.

According to a Ficci-EY report, while the total number of films released on OTT platforms across Indian languages remained steady at 500 in 2025, direct-to-digital premieres fell 50% to 30 from 60 in 2024. So, 470 films released in theatres first before arriving on OTT platforms last year, compared with 440 in 2024.

Gross box-office collections hit a new calendar year high of ₹13,000 crore in 2025, up 14% from ₹11,400 crore in 2024, according to the report.

Bijli said box-office performance acts as a benchmark for how OTT deals are structured. “Theatrical performance, word of mouth, and box-office collections have a very positive impact on viewership when a film arrives on OTT platforms after eight weeks,” he added.Meanwhile, streaming platforms have tightened their spending on movie rights acquisition, leading to a demand-supply correction and rationalisation in pricing and spending. The merger of Disney+ Hotstar and JioCinema into JioHotstar also helped reduce competition for content. As a result, digital and OTT revenues for films declined 7% year-on-year to ₹2,900 crore in 2025, according to Ficci-EY estimates.

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While cricket rights and theatrical films continue to remain the key subscriber acquisition driver for streaming platforms, there is growing acknowledgement within the industry about the need to build a sustainable economic model that benefits all stakeholders.

During a recent interaction, Gaurav Gandhi, vice president, Asia-Pacific and ANZ, at Prime Video, said consolidation in the streaming market has reduced both content investments and overall output.