Breaking the Silence: Representation of Gender Violence in Digital Streaming

The proliferation of Over the Top (OTT) platforms have emerged as dominant force for global media content consumption. OTT platforms offer a vast array of content across the genres that address wide range of social issues including Gender based Violence (GBV) that has gained prominence. GBV is frequently depicted in web-series, films, documentaries and more. This study aims to examine the representation of gender based violence on digital platforms with a focus on narrative techniques, character dynamics, thematic representation of gender based violence and also how these depictions shape the societal attitudes, understanding and response towards such violence. The study explores the broader social, cultural, and psychological impacts of these portrayals on audiences, particularly in terms of normalizing, sensationalizing, or challenging gendered violence. OTT platforms have become a key space for nuanced storytelling, often bypassing traditional censorship, which allows for more explicit and graphic representations of sensitive topics, including domestic abuse, sexual assault, and intimate partner violence. The analysis is grounded in a selection of OTT productions that feature GBV as a central theme, assessing how these narratives either reinforce or resist dominant cultural discourses surrounding gender violence. OTT platforms have the potential to challenge harmful norms and raise awareness about gender-based violence, the nature of these representations must be critically assessed to ensure that they contribute positively to ongoing societal conversations about violence, power, and gender equality.

Keywords: Films, Gender based Violence, OTT Platforms, Societal Attitude, Web-Series