A couple of weeks before the release of Sitaare Zameen Par, when members of the media met Aamir Khan, a camera crew perennially chased him even when he went about doing regular chores inside his Mumbai office. We also spotted that crew at the launch of PVR INOX’s Aamir Khan Film Festival and his 60th birthday celebration.We were told it’s to record footage for the content on Aamir Khan Talkies, a new subsidiary YouTube channel of Aamir Khan Productions. Across the next few weeks, there were exclusive throwback interviews and discussions with Ashutosh Gowariker (on Lagaan) and Vir Das and Abhinay Deo (on Delhi Belly). There was also the much-concealed Aamir audition for Ravi Kishan’s role in Kiran Rao’s Laapataa Ladies.Aamir covered all major YouTube channel while promoting Sitaare Zameen Par. Given his firm stand on signing any streaming rights deal for the film, we had to ask him then: “Will it come out on YouTube?” Aamir firmly said no, and claimed that it’d come on a digital platform or satellite television only a year after the theatrical release.Cut to two months later: Aamir on Tuesday announced Sitaare Zameen Par would indeed skip streaming to premiere on Aamir Khan Talkies on a pay-per-view model. “Watch a superhit film for just Rs 100,” screamed the hoarding in his background, as he even apologized to the media for lying to them about the film not premiering on YouTube after its theatrical run.Aamir Khan’s pay per view model explained“I’ve grown up on cinema. Cinema has given me everything. So I had to lie in order to protect the cinema then,” Aamir confessed. But by introducing this ‘disruptive’ pay-per-view model on YouTube, is Aamir really saving cinema or replacing it? He claims he’s been perturbed by the fact that Hindi cinema is reaching only a minor fraction of the humongous Indian population, and has been looking for a solution for the past 15 years. YouTube, in comparison, enjoys a massive reach making the cinema accessible to all corners of the country. He cited how the platform is used by 55 crore Indians at least once a day while only 2-3% of the population goes to theatres.But another section of the entertainment industry feels Aamir is not taking the easy way out, but just moving with the times. “If you can democratize content, while making it conveniently accessible, then what’s the harm?,” says a budding YouTuber, adding, “Aamir is just asking you to look at cinema differently. Going to a theatre is for the elite now. His films would still go to the theatres first. But those who’re not fond of going to the cinemas or can’t afford it, he’s servicing to them too, through YouTube.”OTT vs pay-per-viewIf digital is bound to replace the moviegoing experience, then why is there so much hullabaloo around cinemas disappearing post pandemic thanks to the growing appetite and access to streaming? Aamir himself has championed cinemas by not subscribing to the streaming model, which entails a film dropping on the platform eight weeks after its theatrical release. Aamir argued that while he’s not against the OTT industry, the eight-week window didn’t suit him as it makes the audience less inclined to step out for a theatre visit.Story continues below this adBut industry insiders claim Aamir circumventing the eight-week-window diktat of streaming via YouTube also has to do with the economics of the arrangement. “Actually, why Aamir sahab is going for YouTube is after Laapataa Ladies didn’t work in theatres and most of the money it made on streaming went to Netflix,” says PS Ramanathan, who looks into the distribution and marketing of Rajshri Films. That’s another production house which has been building its YouTube presence with the help of nostalgic interviews with character actors. It’s also made shows for TV and streaming. However, its mainstay still remains cinema.“In a pay-per-view model, you pay Rs 100 for every viewing (a film on Aamir Khan Talkies can be stored for a month, but has to be watched within 48 hours once you begin watching). So it’s like appointment viewing or dedicated viewing as opposed to a subscription fees to a streaming platform, which includes a bouquet of other content from around the globe. The Rs 100 then goes directly into the pocket of Aamir Khan Productions. But ultimately, it depends on the film — would someone pay even Rs 100 to watch a film at home?,” adds Ramanathan. Laapataa Ladies, produced by Aamir Khan, released on Netflix India after theatrical release.He quotes the most recent instances of Mohit Suri’s romantic drama Saiyaara, which like Sitaare Zameen Par, is a mid-budget, middle-of-the-road film. After action epics took over, romance was relegated to streaming post pandemic. But what Sitaare Zameen Par, a light-hearted coming-of-age film achieved, Saiyaara took that to another level at the box office. Unlike in the case of the former, one can clearly see from the poster of Saiyaara that it’d drop on Netflix India eight weeks after its theatrical run. But the shows are still running full, with the film having collected over Rs 266 crore at the domestic box office already.Will people go to theatres if they can watch it on OTT?The Netflix logo on the poster of Laapataa Ladies is what both Aamir and PVR INOX Managing Director Ajay Bijli suspected as the reason why the film didn’t achieve a theatrical business like Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s 12th Fail did the previous year. Like Aamir did for Sitaare Zameen Par, Chopra didn’t sell the digital rights of 12th Fail to any platform till weeks after its theatrical release. Yet the collection kept rising in theatres even when the film dropped on Hotstar.Story continues below this ad“Ultimately, it depends on how good the film is. If it’s a bad film, nobody would watch it even for free in the convenience of their home. The movie should speak for itself. If it’s a good film, people would watch it either in cinemas or on YouTube or on streaming for any cost,” says Akshaye Rathi, Director at Vidharbha Exhibitors. He feels the footprint of YouTube is far bigger than any individual OTT platform, so it’s a win-win for both the audience and the producers who want to avoid the eight-week window that streaming imposes.But not every producer is as influential as Aamir or Chopra. “If you go for YouTube, it would disturb your entire cashflow distribution,” argues Ramanathan. Streaming is the second biggest revenue vertical for most films these days, followed by theatrical. Many films, big and small, primarily rely on that revenue to break even and take risks with a theatrical run. Ultimately, it all comes down to the economics. For instance, Kamal Haasan promised to sidestep the four-week window for Tamil films with his new crime thriller Thug Life. But when the film bombed in theatres, Netflix India dropped its price, compelling the makers to release it earlier than planned to cover the losses. Aamir Khan and Kareena Kapoor’s Laal Singh Chaddha dropped on Netflix India after theatrical release.Aamir had to do it too with Laal Singh Chaddha in 2022. During the promotions, he put it on record that the film wouldn’t release on streaming before six months since its theatrical outing. But after the movie failed in cinemas, he had to release it on Netflix India earlier than scheduled. That’s where it got immense love and redemption, and so did Laapataa Ladies. Like it was with SS Rajamouli’s RRR in 2022, the film got immense love across the world after it came out on OTT. By owning the complete rights of his upcoming films instead of selling them to streaming platforms, Aamir also has the bragging rights of singlehandedly taking India to the Oscars, like he once did with Lagaan back in 2002.“One can’t challenge the intent of Aamir. Even if he wants to take all the credit, he does want Indian cinema to reach both the country’s masses and the audience across the globe. Like in the case of Satyamev Jayate, he already had StarPlus onboard, but he made sure the show is telecast on Doordarshan simultaneously because its reach was far wider then. Complete ownership just drives his creative instincts,” says a former employee of Aamir Khan Productions.Story continues below this adHowever, another insider informs SCREEN that Aamir is even contemplating to release some of his smaller films directly on Aamir Khan Talkies, even skipping the theatrical release. While he’ll save the tentpole ones like Sunny Deol’s Lahore 1947 and Junaid Khan’s Ek Din for the cinemas, Vir Das’ Happy Patel may find a home on YouTube instead. With some streaming platforms making theatrical run a metric to set the price, cinemas retain their relevance.Also, if a Sitaare Zameen Par can drop on digital just six weeks after its theatrical release, even less than the eight-week window of streaming, would the YouTube model not be used arbitrarily for recovery? “If that’s the plan, then how are we saving cinemas then? I miss the Aamir Khan of Dhobi Ghaat (2010) days who would sneak in a role in an indie film instead of making the film all about himself. Of course, it’s a partnership with YouTube so there must be other commercials involved. He has to turn every simple move into a revolution in order to sell it, which just evades me,” says an industry insider.Also Read — Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2, Traitors, IPL, Kapil Sharma: How streaming is replicating television, the very beast it wanted to tameBut trade experts like Rathi and Ramanathan feel Aamir will need YouTube’s full support to institutionalize his distribution model, not just for marketing and positioning, but also for curbing piracy. “My biggest concern is piracy. It’s anyway so rampant, and a new film releasing on YouTube would make it even more prone. Streaming platforms have sound mechanisms in place to prevent piracy, but that’s not the case with YouTube so far,” says Rathi. Ramanathan agrees and adds, “This is a very new model. So it’s hard to say if it’d work. I feel at best, it’d be a substitute to the streaming model, not a replacement.”