Six Indian Web Series Featuring Popular Bollywood Celebs To Look Forward To In The Coming Months
In times when the world is grappling with the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, OTT platforms have come as a boon for entertainment lovers stuck at home amid this global crisis. The good news is, the web space is only getting better, bigger, and more exciting this year, especially with more and more Bollywood stars embracing the platform and marking their OTT debuts. From thriller to cop drama, to dark comedy to women-centric stories — there is indeed some promising content lined up for OTT release in the coming year. And we simply can’t wait to pop the corn and plonk down on the couch to catch these big-screen stars in action on our home-screen. Here’s a list of some upcoming Indian original web series, featuring popular B-town actors to look forward to in the coming months.
Finding Anamika
Directed by: Karishma Kohli and Bejoy Nambiar
Staring: Madhuri Dixit Nene, Sanjay Kapoor, Manav Kaul, Lakshvir Sara, Muskkaan Jafari, Suhasini Muley
The upcoming web series — Finding Anamika — is undoubtedly one of the most-awaited Indian originals this year and why not? After all, the series marks the debut of the Dhak-Dhak girl of Bollywood — Madhuri Dixit Nene — in the digital world. Finding Anamika has caught the fancy of many ever since the evergreen diva of the big screen announced it on her social media handles along with a stunning picture of herself from the series. She wrote in the caption, “Beauty, poise, grace and elegance are all words you’d associate with Anamika. But skeletons are hidden in her closet and all come rushing out when an untoward event takes place. There’s always more than meets the eye, isn’t there?” Produced by Karan Johar under the Dharmatic Entertainment banner, the series is based on a suspense drama about a global superstar who suddenly goes missing without a trace. The story unfolds as police and loved one’s search for answers to her disappearance, and her perfectly crafted facade is stripped away, revealing hidden truths and painful lies in the life of an iconic actress. Both — the plot and the cast — for this one seems extremely interesting. So, get ready to binge-watch this one as soon as it starts streaming on Netflix.
Fallen
Directed by: Reema Kagti and Ruchika Oberoi
Staring: Sonakshi Sinha, Vijay Varma, Gulshan Devaiah
Cop based drama is the trending flavour of the season in the OTT world and joining the bandwagon is — Fallen, which also happens to be versatile actress Sonakshi Sinha’s digital debut. What makes this series exciting is the fact that it will be showcasing the Dabangg actress in a never-seen-before avatar and is supposedly based on a real story. According to the sources, the story is based on the real-life story of a south Indian man, involved in wedding fraud, where he conned several young widows into matrimony and swindled their money and gold. Sonakshi will be playing the role of a fierce cop name Anjali Bhaati alongside Gulshan Devaiah, who is also playing a policeman in the show. Talking about the series, Gulshan said, “It’s a crime thriller surrounding a bunch of cops from interior Rajasthan. I finally fulfil my childhood fantasy of playing an onscreen cop.” Director Reema Kagti said in a statement, “Sonakshi is an actor with the ability to seamlessly fit into every character she plays. She plays a tough cop in the series, and it is a delight to see her sink her teeth into the skin of the character. I’m excited to collaborate with Amazon Prime Video once again and truly looking forward to bringing this show to audiences across the world.” Binge-watch alert for this one as well.
Rudra – The Edge Of Darkness
Directed by: Rajesh Mapuskar
Staring: Ajay Devgn
Another big-screen star making his OTT debut is none other than the action king — Ajay Devgn and naturally, we are quite excited. Directed by National Film Award winner — Rajesh Mapuskar, Rudra- The Edge of Darkness is the Hindi remake of the hit British series Luther and features Ajay Devgn in the lead. Commenting about the series, Ajay said in a statement, “My attempt has always been to tell unique stories and work with good talent. The idea is to raise the bar of entertainment in India. The digital world excites me, and I am looking forward to working with Applause and BBC to bring this series to life on Disney+ Hotstar VIP. Rudra - The Edge of Darkness is a compelling and highly intriguing story and I can’t wait to begin this new journey. Playing a cop on screen is not new to me, but this time the character is more intense, complex and dark. What drew me most to his persona, is that he is possibly the greyest character you may come across in recent times.” Now that does sound intriguing. Can’t wait for Rudra to take over our home screen!
Sunflower
Directed by: Vikas Bahl and Rahul Sengupta
Staring: Sunil Grover, Ranvir Shorey, Girish Kulkarni, Ashish Vidyarthi, Radha Bhatt
If you still haven’t seen the teaser of this Zee5’s upcoming series, then you must. It will be enough to pique your curiosity and get you excited as well. Helmed by Vikas Bahl, this dark comedy is the story of a middle-class housing society in Mumbai called Sunflower and features the funny man – Sunil Grover in a quirky avatar. Commenting about the show, Sunil said, “Sunflower is full of mystery. I am grateful and excited to be part of such a fresh genre and script created by Mr Vikas Bahl. I don’t think something like this genre has been attempted before. So, I am excited and this one will surely blow your minds.” And, we can’t wait for that, right!
Aranyak
Directed by: Vinay Waikul
Staring: Raveena Tandon, Parambrata Chatterjee, Ashutosh Rana, Zakir Hussain, and Megna Malik
2021 definitely seems like the year of grand OTT debuts of silver screen actors. Apart from Madhuri, Ajay and Sonakshi, even Raveena Tandon is making her OTT debut this year with Aranyak. Poised to release this year on Netflix, Aranyak is a supernatural crime thriller directed by Vinay Waikul. Aranyak revolves around the mysterious disappearance of foreign teenage tourist in a misty Himalayan town, and the investigation by two mismatched cops that ensues. Commenting about her character in Aranyak, Raveena said in a press conference, “Aranyak is a mysterious, intriguing story based in Himachal. My character’s name is Kasturi Dogra. Kasturi struggles to balance her personal and professional life, like many women. This is her story.” Besides Raveena Tandon, the show will also feature Parambrata Chatterjee, Ashutosh Rana, Zakir Hussain and Megna Malik.
Hush Hush
Directed by: Kopal Nathani
Staring: Soha Ali Khan, Juhi Chawla, Ayesha Jhulka, Karishma Tanna, Shahana Goswami, Kritika Kamra
Headlined by some of the finest actresses of B-town, what makes Hush Hush one of the most hotly-anticipated series of 2021 is the fact that the whole show is completely driven by women. Hush Hush marks the digital debut of award-winning Indian movie star Juhi Chawla as well as that of Ayesha Jhulka along with leading ladies Soha Ali Khan, Karishma Tanna, Shahana Goswami and Kritika Kamra playing pivotal roles in this exciting thriller-drama. With a unique female gaze at its core, Hush Hush propels forward the movement of women telling their own stories. The series is also helmed by some of the finest female talents behind the camera and features an almost all-female crew, right from the production designer, costume designer, supervising producer, co-producers, to art, costume, production coordination to even the security team. While nothing about the plot is revealed, Tanuja Chandra, Creative Director and Executive Producer of Hush Hush said, “Video streaming in India has brought about a significant change in storytelling by pushing female narratives to the fore and I couldn’t be more pleased! It’s what directors like me have waited for. Amazon Prime Video and Abundantia Entertainment, both have been bringing diverse and authentic women’s stories to audiences in India and abroad for a while now and I’m thrilled to join forces with them for Hush Hush to create something with this wonderful team that I hope will be truly special.” Can’t wait to watch this women-powered drama.