'When I Can¡¯t Bear To Watch Them, How Can I Star In Them?': Nawazuddin Siddiqui On Quitting OTT

After creating his niche in the Indian film industry, Nawazuddin Siddiqui rose to global stardom with his critically-acclaimed movies.

He made a seamless transition from films to web shows and did projects like Sacred Games, Raman Raghav 2.0, Raat Akeli Hai, etc.

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However, despite the success, Siddiqui now wants to quit acting in web shows.

Twitter

Expressing his displeasure, he has explained why he will not be doing any more series for the web.

In an interview with Bollywood Hungama, Nawazuddin Siddiqui says web shows have now become 'redundant.

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He was quoted in the report as saying,

"The platform has become a dumping ground for redundant shows. We either have shows that don¡¯t deserve to be seen in the first place. Or sequels to shows that have nothing more to say."

Talking about his hit series Sacred Games that was renewed for a second season, he added,

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"When I did Sacred Games for Netflix, there was an excitement and challenge around the digital medium. New talent was being given a chance. Now that freshness is gone. It¡¯s become a Dhanda (racket) for big production houses and actors who are now so-called stars on the OTT platform. Major film producers in Bollywood have cut lucrative deals with all the big players in the OTT field. Producers get whooping amounts to create unlimited content. The quantity has killed quality.¡±

He also called the platform 'unbearable.¡¯ He added, ¡°When I can¡¯t bear to watch them, how can I bear to be in them?¡±

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Nawazuddin Siddiqui also made another point on the fear of 'parallel star culture' propagating because of the success of streaming platforms and shows. He added,

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¡°Yeh star system bade parde ko kha gaya (this star system killed the big screen). Now we have so-called stars on OTT claiming big money and throwing tantrums like Bollywood A-listers. They forget. Content is king. Woh zamana chala gala. When stars ruled, before this lockdown and the digital domination, A-listers would release their films in 3,000 theatres across the country. People had no choice but to see them. Now they have unlimited choices.¡±

The actor was last seen in 'Serious Men', that released on Netflix.

Netflix

Siddiqui was also nominated in the Best Actor category at the International Emmy Awards. "Serious Men" is based on Manu Joseph's book of the same name.

Nawazuddin Siddiqui has been on a spree to share some bitter truth about the entertainment industry. Just a few days ago, he also spoke about racism.