Amidst talk of a downturn in streaming content, Netflix India announced its line-up for 2025 on Monday. The largely Hindi-language slate has new shows from frequent collaborators, extensions for popular series and original films.
Among the fresh shows that will be streamed on the platform over the year are Mandala Murders, Akka and The Ba***ds of Bollywood. Six original films have been announced thus far, most prominently Jewel Thief, led by Saif Ali Khan.
“From dreamy romcoms and high-stakes dramas to action-packed thrillers, beloved fan-favorite franchises, and laugh-out-loud comedies, there’s something for everyone,” Monika Shergill Vice President – Content, Netflix India, said in a press statement.
New series and additional seasons
The eight new shows include Gopi Puthran’s Mandala Murders, co-created with Manan Rawat and starring Vaani Kapoor, Vaibhav Raj Gupta and Surveen Chawla.
The synopsis: “In the quaint, mysterious town of Charandaspur, where fate, myth, and murder entwine, detectives Rea Thomas and Vikram Singh unravel a chilling conspiracy of ritualistic killings tied to a centuries-old secret society.”
Dabba Cartel stars Shabana Azmi, Jyotika, Nimisha Sajayan, Shalini Pandey, Anjali Anand, Sai Tamhankar, Gajraj Rao, Jisshu Sengupta, Lillete Dubey and Bhupendra Singh Jadawat. According to a press release, Dabba Cartel is about “five middle-class women and their families” who are “thrown into chaos when their low-key dabba service spirals into an unexpected venture – high-stakes drug delivery operation”.
Created by Shibani Akhtar, Vishnu Menon, Gaurav Kapur, Akanksha Seda, the show is directed by Hitesh Bhatia. The show will be premiered on February 28.
Glory, created by Karan Anshuman and Karmanya Ahuja, stars Suvinder Vicky, Divyenndu and Pulkit Samrat. The synopsis: “Raghubir Singh, a legendary boxing coach, is forced to reunite with his estranged sons, Dev and Ravi. Old grudges flare. Blood demands blood. While the ring waits, Olympic glory teeters on the edge.”
In The Royals, an aristocrat falls in love with a start-up investor. Bhumi Pednekar and Ishaan Khatter headline the show created by Rangita Nandy and Ishita Nandy.
Directed by Priyanka Ghose and Nupur Asthana, The Royals also stars Sakshi Tanwar, Nora Fatehi, Dino Morea, Milind Soman, Chunky Panday, Vihaan Samat, Kavya Trehan, Sumukhi Suresh, Udit Arora, Lisa Mishra, Luke Kenny and Zeenat Aman.
Akka, written and directed by Dharmaraj Shetty, stars Keerthy Suresh, Radhika Apte and Tanvi Azmi. The show is set in the 1980s in a matriarchal society in a fictional city in South India.
The synopsis: “Akka is the tale of gangster queens whose matriarchal rule is challenged when an outsider brings an unseen threat, spiralling the all-powerful sisterhood into a chaos storm of violence and survival.”
Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan makes his directing debut with a show about the Mumbai film industry. Titled The Ba***ds of Bollywood, the series has been created by Aryan Khan, with Bilal Siddiqi and Manav Chauhan credited as co-creators.
The synopsis: “An ambitious outsider and his friends navigate the larger-than-life yet uncertain world of Bollywood. The series blends self-aware humor with a high-stakes narrative – and promises a host of unforgettable cameos, blockbuster thrills and an adventurous ride into the world of Indian cinema.”
In Mallik Ram’s Super Subbu, co-written with Ramesh Eligeti, Sundeep Kishan plays a reluctant adult sex education teacher in a village. The Telugu series also stars Mithila Palkar, Murali Sharma and Maanasa Choudhary.
Saare Jahan Se Accha, created by Gaurav Shukla and directed by Sumit Purohit, is about the unsing contributions of Indian intelligence agents. The series stars Pratik Gandhi, Sunny Hinduja, Suhail Nayyar, Kritika Kamra, Tillotama Shome, Rajat Kapoor and Anup Soni.
The shows that have been given extensions include Richie Mehta’s Delhi Crime. The third season, led by Shefali Shah, co-stars Rasika Dugal, Rajesh Tailang, Huma Qureshi, Sayani Gupta, Mita Vashisth and Jaya Bhattacharya.
The official synopsis: “When the search for an injured baby’s missing mother unravels a massive human trafficking operation in India, DIG Vartika Chaturvedi faces the most challenging case of her career.”
The show is directed by Tanuj Chopra and written by him and Anu Singh Choudhary, Apoorva Bakshi, Michael Hogan, Mayank Tiwari and Shubhra Swarup.
Sudip Sharma’s acclaimed series Kohrra will be back for a second season. The synopsis: “A woman separated from her husband is found brutally murdered in her brother’s home and the case brings together the recently transferred Garundi with his new boss, the no-nonsense Dhanwant Kaur. But the two investigators soon realise that what’s as complicated as the case are the entanglements in their own personal lives.”
The first season’s writers Gunjit Chopra and Diggi Sisodia have written the second season too. Actor Barun Sobti will be joined by Mona Singh. Sudip Sharma will co-direct the series with Faisal Rahman.
Arjun Rampal has joined the cast of Rana Naidu’s second season. The Indian remake of Ray Donovan also stars Venkatesh, Rana Daggubati and Surveen Chawla.
Neeraj Pandey’s series Khakee: The Bengal Chapter, directed by Tushar Kanti Ray and Debatma Mandal, stars Bengali stars Prosenjit, Jeet, Parambrata Chattopadhyay along with Chitrangada Singh. The synopsis: “In the Bengal of the early 2000s, where gangsters and politicians reign supreme, a decorated cop's death paves the way for a fearless IPS Arjun Maitra – an unrelenting force ready to take on the chaos and restore justice.”
Original films
The original films include Siddharth Anand’s Jewel Thief. The Hindi movie stars Saif Ali Khan and Jaideep Ahlawat in the leads, alongside Nikita Dutta and Kunal Kapoor. The official synopsis: “A jewel thief is hired by a powerful crime lord to steal the world’s most elusive diamond, the African Red Sun. His perfectly planned heist then takes a wild turn.”
Vivek Das Chaudhary’s Toaster is a comedy about a miser who gets obsessed with the titular electrical appliance. The film stars Rajkummar Rao, Sanya Malhotra, Abhishek Banerjee, Archana Puran Singh, Upendra Limaye, Seema Pahwa and Jitendra Joshi.
Also among the original films is Ibrahim Ali Khan’s acting debut in first-time director Shauna Gautam’s Nadaaniyan.
The son of Amrita Singh and Saif Ali Khan and the younger brother of Sara Ali Khan, 23-year-old Ibrahim Ali Khan will star alongside Khushi Kapoor in the Delhi-set Nadaaniyan. Also in the cast are Mahima Chaudhary, Suniel Shetty, Dia Mirza and Jugal Hansraj.
Vivek Soni’s Aap Jaisa Koi stars R Madhavan and Fatima Sana Shaikh in what is described as a romantic drama.
Madhavan also stars in Test alongside Siddharth and Nayanthara. The synopsis of S Sashikanth’s Tamil film: “The worlds of three people converge during a historic cricket match, ultimately forcing them to make life-altering decisions.”
Among the previously announced releases are the Oscar-nominated short film Anuja (February 5), Rishab Seth’s comedy Dhoom Dhaam, starring Yami Gautam Dhar and Pratik Gandhi (February 14) nd the cricket-themed docuseries The Greatest Rivalry: India vs Pakistan (February 14).
The Great Indian Kapil Show will return for a third season. Vir Das has a new comedy special, titled Vir Das Fool Volume.
After the Chopras and the Roshans, the Kapoors are getting the celebrity docuseries treatment. Clan member Armaan Jaain – the son of Raj Kapoor’s daughter Rima – has created Dining with the Kapoors.
Helmed by The Romantics director Smriti Mundhra, the show features Kareena Kapoor Khan, Karisma Kapoor, Saif Ali Khan, Neetu Kapoor, Ranbir Kapoor, Agastya Nanda, Navya Naveli Nanda, Kunal Kapoor and Zahan Kapoor, among others.
