Neestream

Neestream was officially launched with the release of the Malayalam film, Isakkinte Ithihasam starring Siddique, Kalabhavan Shajon, Bhagat Manuel, and Saju Navodaya - directed by R K Ajaykumar on November 1, 2020.[6]The first original feature film of Neestream was Prathividhi which was released on December 28, 2020.

Neestream is owned by Neestream Creations Private limited that has its headquarters at Kakkanad, India and is a part of the US-based JKH holdings.

Neestream was launched in 2019 as a new streaming platform catering to the Malayalam speaking population across the globe, the premium services were only available in the United States and Canada during this period. The users had access to a library of Malayalam movies, various documentaries and stream certain news channels live. The platform was launched to cater the needs of the malayalee audience as they consume more per capita news and entertainment content than most other linguistic groups in the developing world as expressed by Javad K Hassan, Chairman of Neestream.[7]

Neestream serves as a dedicated Malayalam platform that fills the much-needed gap when it comes to meaningful content for Malayalam speaking households around the world.

Neestream is owned by Neestream Private Limited that has its headquarters at Kakkanad, India and is a part of the US-based JKH Holdings.

Neestream was officially launched with the release of the Malayalam film, Isakkinte Ithihasam starring Siddique, Bhagath Manuel, Kalabhavan Shajon and Saju Navodaya – directed by R K Ajaykumar on November 1, 2020. The first original feature film of Neestream was Prathividhi which was released on December 28, 2020.

Neestream gathered a huge viewership with the direct release of the movie The Great Indian Kitchen starring Nimisha Sajayan and Suraj Venjaramoodu, directed by Jeo Baby on 15 January 2021 on the platform. The movie was rejected by several mainstream OTT platforms including Amazon Prime and Netflix and television channels due to some scenes related to the controversial Sabarimala woman entry issue. The movie had gathered a lot of excellent reviews from the critics and also the audience.

The platform is created to bridge the gap when it comes to meaningful content for Malayalam speaking households around the world and also entertaining other language speakers eventually.

Neestream will focus on unearthing talent and creators in Kerala and from within the global Malayalam speakers. Neestream plans to bring the finest and most informative content to its users. One of the major objectives of Neestream is to give the Malayalam audience in India and around the world the best of Malayalam entertainment and current affairs. In addition to streaming original contents and popular Malayalam movies, Neestream will also host contents from multiple live television channels. Neestream is a platform that will help the newcomers in the industry with a platform to showcase the regional contents. The platform is designed in a way that helps the owner of the content or its rights, besides the producer.

Neestream plans to stream around 40 movies annually, several other web series and few Malayalam TV channels. Besides new films, a library of Malayalam classics is also available to its users. The official debut of Neestream was with the Malayalam movie, Isakkinte Ithihasam starring Siddique, Bhagat Manuel, Saju Navodaya and Kalabhavan Shajohn. The movie is directed by R.K Ajaykumar and produced under the banner of Umamaheswara creations.

One of the most popular and streaming movie is ‘The Great Indian Kitchen’. The movie was rejected by almost all the mainstream OTT platforms as it comments on sensitive issues such as the Sabarimala women entry. The movie is directed by Joe Baby and stars Nimisha Sajayan and Suraj venjaramoodu. The movie received nationwide attention and appreciation. The movie was streamed over two lakh users within a week of its release on the platform.

Instagramam is a comedy web series directed by Asif Ali starring B tech fame Mridul Nair. Instagramam is Malayalam’s first full-fledged web series with almost 60 mainstream actors including Deepak Parambol, Ganapathy, Alencier, Aditi Ravi, Sunny Wayne and Saniya Iyyapan.[8]

Swargam Medu is a documentary produced by Neestream and directed by Vishnu C Prasad. The documentary is presently streaming on Neestream and was released in the year 2020.

Mangalam Bhavanthu is a light-hearted comedy web series, written and directed by Austin Joseph. The lead cast of the series includes Thushara, Jibin Kurisinkal, Biveesh Balan, Sarath Chandran, Aneeta Jacob and Pooja Avantika.

Neestream also has the rights to Mollywood Celebrity Cricket League 2021 and the event was streamed through Neestream. The sporting event consists of actors, directors, choreographers, producers and other people from the Malayalam Movie industry.

Vaanku is a Malayalam movie directed by Kavya Prakash and is based on the 2018 short story by Unni R. The movie stars Anaswara Rajan in the lead role and features Joy Mathew, Thesni Khan, Vineeth, Sreekanth Murali in the supporting roles. The screenplay was written by Shabna Mohammed and Ouseppachan composed the soundtracks.

Thimiram (2021) is a Malayalam movie written and directed by Sivaram Mony. The movie stars G. Suresh Kumar, Ameya Mathew, Vishak Nair and Meera Nair. Thimiram is a film that holds a mirror to the misogyny and patriarchy with a different approach that seems to pass on to future generations. The movie has a runtime of 1Hr 47min.[9]

Thirike (2021) is a Malayalam movie directed by George Kora and Sam Xavier. George Kora, portrays the role of one of the brother and the other one is played by Gopi Krishnan.

Tsunami (2021) is a Malayalam comedy-drama directed by Lal and Lal jr. and written by Lal. The movie stars Balu Varghese, Innocent, Mukesh, Suresh Krishna, Aju Varghese and Aaradya Ann. The movie revolves around a young man named Bobby and the events that follow after he goes to a seminary in Goa. The movie is produced by Alan Antony and the cinematography was done by Alex J Pullickal.  

Sameer (2020) is a Malayalam romantic drama directed by Rasheed Parakkal, starring Anand Roshan and Anagha Sajeev. Roopesh Thikkoti is the man behind the camera for Sameer.

Deira Diaries was directly released in Neestream on 19 March 2021.[10] The movie stars Abu Valayamkulam and Shalu Rahim. Written and directed by Musthaque Rahman Kairyaden, the movie was shot entirely in the UAE. Dheen Kamar was the cinematographer and the movie was produced by Madhu Karuvath.   

8½ Intercuts: Life and films of K.G. George is a Malayalam documentary film about one of the leading directors of Indian cinema – KG George. The film is directed by Lijin Jose and produced by Shibu G Suseelan. The film was screened in the International Film Festival of Goa and got selected for the non-feature section of Indian panorama.

Kakka (2021) is a short film released directly on Neestream starring Lakshmika Sajeevan, Satheesh Ambady, Sreela Nalledam, Shibukuttan and more. The movie is written and directed by Aju Ajeesh and has gathered much critical acclaims.[11]

The Malayalam movie, The Sound of age tells the story of how the youth perceives old age.[12] Written and directed by Jijo George the movie stars – Muthumani Somasundaran, Kainakary Thankaraj, Ranjith Manambarakat, Roshna Ann Roy etc... The movie is produced by Surendran Vazhakkad, Limmy Anto K and Mathew Mambra jointly. 

Triple Whammy is the first foreign language movie screened on Neestream. Triple Whammy is an English movie directed by Anish Chacko and produced under the banner of Doggo films. The movie is told from the point of view of Anjana played by Urvashi Goverdhan. Sanjay Manaktala, Tarak Ponnappa and Arun Nair are the other artists in the movie.

Aarkkariyam (2021) is a Malayalam mystery drama directed by Sanu John Varghese, starring Biju Menon, Parvathy Thiruvothu and Sharafudheen. Written by Sanu John Varghese, Arun Janardanan and Rajesh Ravi the movie is produced by Aashiq Abu and Santhosh T Kuruvilla

Neestream envisions to serve as a medium of exporting the Malayalee culture, brands, and products to the various parts of the worlds. It also aims at providing the content creators with an avenue to distribute their self-representations to a more diverse customer base.

Neestream gathered numerous subscription base and received appreciation for the release of the Malayalam movie, The Great Indian Kitchen on its platform. The movie was rejected by several mainstream OTT platforms including Amazon Prime and Netflix and television channels due to some scenes related to the controversial Sabarimala women entry issue. The movie was talked about by famous personalities, writers, journalists, activists and even the audience through social media platforms. It created a conversation around the system of patriarchy in Kerala.

Thirike is yet another Neestream premiere that had gathered a lot of critics and audience attention. The movie revolves around two brothers - one who suffers from down syndrome. The movie is directed by George Kora and Sam Xavier. George Kora portrays the role of one of the brother and the other one is played by Gopi Krishnan. Thirike gives the strong message to treat special kids like they would treat a normal human being instead of alienating them or making them feel bad about their condition.[13]

Gopikrishnan K Varma who plays the lead role in the movie holds the record of the first down syndrome actor to play the lead role in a commercial movie in the India book of records 2021.[14]

The platform also streams various other regional flicks and series that are worth watching and appreciations.

Most of the major releases of Neestream was done during the COVID 19 period. The COVID 19 period witnessed growth in the market of OTT platforms. Neestream streamed a large genre of movies and shows during this period. The official release of Neestream was done during this period on 1 November 2020, with the release of the movie ‘Isakkinte Ithihasam’

The lockdown in India witnessed significant growth in the usage of OTT and emerged as a threat to the television industry. The OTT platforms were limited to the urban areas and above middle-class ones but the lockdown brought in a change to that. The data shows that there was a spike in the internet and OTT users in small towns and cities. There was a huge surge in the paid subscription of OTT platforms. 2020 was a year that showed a huge user base for the OTT platforms 

The pandemic and the lockdown wreaked havoc on film theatres but it proved to be a boon for the OTT platforms. Most of the movies that were set to release during this period were either postponed or went for a digital release.  

Neestream is owned by Neestream Creations Private limited that has its headquarters at Kakkanad, Kerala, India. The OTT platform is a part of the US-based JKH Holdings that has its headquarters in Virginia, US. The technical backup for Neestream is provided by Viewway Solutions, an OTT building platform based in Kerala.

The core management team of Neestream Private limited consists of 6 members. Dr. Javad K Hassan serves as the chairman of Neestream Private limited. Other key members include - Saju Thomas (Director), Mariya Raju (Director), Manu Abraham (Director), Vinod P George (Director). Charles George is the present head of Neestream Private limited.

Neestream is developed to cater to the needs of the movie buffs spread across the world and provide them quality content in the form of movies, web series and live TV. It delivers the viewers with movies, web series, documentaries and stream news channels live. According to the sources, the platform will stream around 40 new movies annually and web services and live TV.

Neestream gathered a huge subscription base and popularity with the release of the Malayalam flick ‘The Great Indian Kitchen’

Registration is mandatory to stream movies and shows on the platform. The subscription is monthly, yearly or per film. The users can opt for subscription plans accordingly. Neestream has a subscriber base of more than 350,000 to date. Neestream can be streamed on the web and is compatible with almost all the leading platforms and devices.

Enlisted in The India Book of records 2021 for the movie Thirike[15]