By now, almost every avid Bollywood buff must have seen a still of actress Karisma Kapoor with her face covered in blood from her upcoming movie, Murder Mubarak. The film is set to release soon on an OTT platform, and finally, fans of the actress will get to see her in front of the camera once again, not just for photoshoots and judging reality shows, but for a full-fledged film.
Karisma had been one of the reigning queens of the 90s and early 2000s, but as newer actresses came in and Bollywood evolved into a more glam-centric industry, the kind of films Lolo did seemed to not impress even her ardent fans anymore. And as she struggled to find her place in the more modern Bollywood, she faltered at reconnecting with the audience, and eventually got lost in the frenzy of the new faces that emerged on the silver screens.
But with the advent of OTT, she seems to have found her footing in the industry once again. Karisma marked her OTT debut in 2020 with Mentalhood, and it also officially marked her acting comeback. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and audience still getting comfortable with consuming content on the web, the project failed to grab eyeballs. But second time seems to be a charm for the actress, and as the trailer of her next OTT venture, Murder Mubarak, dropped on Tuesday, fans went gaga over Karisma, gushing about how they were excited to watch her in a never-seen-before avatar.
And it's not just Karisma who has benefitted from the OTT wave. Her sister, actress Kareena Kapoor Khan, left everyone pleasantly surprised with her performance in the film, Jaane Jaan, which released on Netflix last year. After being part of glam and masala entertainers on the silver screen with films like Good Newwz and Veere Di Wedding, she won hearts as she shed her sheen and turned into a ferocious and stealthy mom in Jaane Jaan. With the film, Bebo, in her own words, reinvented herself as an actor, and the response that Jaane Jaan received has only encouraged her to do more of the good work.
It's not just the Kapoor girls who have benefitted from the OTT boom. A number of other stars who ruled the screens in the 90s and then vanished from the filmy scene, have returned with a fresh makeover, courtesy OTT platforms. Our very own 'Sheher Ki Ladki', Raveena Tandon has been making waves on the web with her performances in shows like Aranyak and Karmma Calling.
After not really creating a memorable impact on the big screens, actor Sanjay Kapoor has finally found his calling in the OTT world, as a result of which, he has become a recurring face in almost every big web production. He has starred in web projects like The Gone Game, Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives, The Last Hour, The Fame Game, Made in Heaven, Bloody Daddy, and will be next seen in Murder Mubarak.
Veteran actress Dimple Kapadia is yet another prominent star whose name is spotted in the cast list of every OTT venture of late. After several loose roles, she made headlines with her role in the 2021 web series Tandav, following which people seemed to have "rediscovered" her.
She went on to star in theatrical films like Brahmastra, Pathaan, Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar and Teri Baaton Mein Aisa Uljha Jiya -- all three of them superhits -- and simultaneously, she also catered to her newfound fanbase on the web with OTT projects like A Thursday, Saas, Bahu Aur Flamingo, and now with the upcoming movie, Murder Mubarak.
So does this mean that the OTT platforms, that were once just serving as a medium to tell off-beat stories made on a low budget with lesser-known actors, have now turned into a portal of comeback and reinvention for the senior Bollywood stars?
