With small but consistent steps, the Mizo film industry has made significant progress in the past few years with independent film makers expanding genres and exploring new territories. Viewers are offered new narratives and fresh faces. There is also a gradual move from the monotonous storyline and the forced moral messages that one often finds in the earlier Mizo films. Recently, the romantic comedy genre has become the public’s favourite following the success of films like Scooty.

A new rom com release, Dengi I Love you, created a buzz among local film enthusiasts ever since its release on 2 August 2021 through Bawmrang TV, a recently launched streaming app. Written and directed by B. Lalbiakvela, the film offers a love story with a range of emotions, from fun-filled comic scenes and dialogues to heart touching emotional ones. While addressing the issue of alcoholism, the story also deals with the hardships and difficulties involved in family life while simultaneously displaying the strong bond that marks familial relationships. However, few days after the release, the film makers encountered a technical problem with the streaming app and had to switch to Lersia Play to host the film. The romantic comedy is now available on lersia.com.

The progress in the film industry has been significant and with the introduction of streaming services like Lersia Play, the future of the Mizo film industry looks more promising than ever. The promise of streaming services is that, with a stable internet connection and some cash to pay for the rent or subscription fee, viewers can easily watch whatever movies they want available on the app or the site. This is evident in how big streaming services like Netflix and Disney Hotstar have revolutionized the dynamics of the film industry ever since their inception. And it won’t be so different out here. Lersia Play, the first movie streaming app in Mizoram, is an app developed by Lailen Consulting Pvt Ltd in collaboration with Leitlang Pictures. In this app, Mizo movies and TV shows are available for rent on a pay per view basis and plans are in motion to expand to other states of the North East region, and hopefully on a national scale, to promote and improve the economy of the movie industry. The future of the local film industry will be determined, to a great extent, by streaming services like Lersia Play and Bawmrang TV as Mizoram has no proper fully functioning theatre till today. These streaming services will, hopefully, bring about a change in the production and consumption of films in Mizoram. The past few years have been a hectic ride for directors and film crews who often had to multitask with production, distribution and even make up for the lack of actors in the industry. With the help of streaming services, the local film industry will gradually be able to move away from door-to- door ticket sales and organizing film screening at local community halls.    

There can be no lie in saying that the film industry has been struggling with lack of financial aid and funds from the government. Budget amount sanctioned by the state for the film industry has always been comparatively low when compared to other categories like sports. However, movie enthusiasts and independent filmmakers have taken their own initiatives and filmmakers like Mapuia Chawngthu has become one of the big names in the industry and gained national recognition when ‘Khawnglung Run’ was selected for screening in the Goa International Film Festival. One can rightly say that, as of now, it is only the sheer passion and determination of the filmmakers that is sustaining that Mizo film industry.