Riya Sengupta: Content on TV must adapt to the changing world and changing taste of viewers 

From being the creative director for projects such as Balika Vadhu, Kuch Rang Pyar Ke Aise Bhi, Pyaar Tune Kya Kiya, Sadda Haq, Bhootu, Nima etc, to becoming the Head of Programming Sun TV Bangla, Riya Sengupta had a long journey in showbiz. Her experiences of success and failure taught her a lot. Given her knowledge on television, she talks about the future of content on the small screen.

About the changes she has seen since Ballika Vadhu days, she adds, “I would say good content remains timeless, but it is constantly adapting to the interest of consumers. Honestly, the content of TV has always been family-centric, but that narrative has become far more realistic and relatable now.”

Explaining herself further, Riya says, “I feel every form of art has its own set of audience. With every advancement, the previous ones never become irrelevant and are also used as reference. For example, theatre coexists with cinema, cinema coexists with OTT, in the same way TV will coexist with the other mediums. TV content shall have to adapt to the changing world and to the changing taste of viewers to survive.”

Content is becoming global. There are several instances where much like films and series, popular TV shows have many remakes in different languages. Riya calls it a good thing.

“I believe at core, emotions have their own language. Remakes of regional hit shows only proves that human emotions are universal and it makes the stories reach wider,” she says, adding that Sun Bangla has a new slate of interesting content coming up. However, she does not want to divulge much and would prefer keeping her “strategies to” hidden from everyone for the time being