1. Reason by Anand Patwardhan
Where – Youtube
The film (more like an eight chapter series) charts the rise of religious and nationalist fundamentalism in Indian society. And all those who fight for the poor bear the brunt of rising Hindu majoritarianism and a complicit corporate media. He examines the far right at huge rallies where fascism is normalized, but also introduces us to rationalists who, despite appearing on hit lists, lead a growing resistance. Go to the Youtube channel here for all the chapters of the film. Watch the official trailer here.
2. Gully Boy by Zoya Akhtar
Where – Prime Video
Gully Boy featuring Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt is an underdog story about the life of a Mumbai-based rapper from Dharavi. It is also loosely inspired from the life and rise of rapper Divine – and the title inspired by his breakout song, Mere Gully Mein – and his troupe, who go by the name ‘Gully Gang’.
3. Laakhon Mein Ek (Season 2) by Biswa Kalyan Rath
Where – Prime Video
The Season 2 of the series features Shweta Tripathi as Dr Shreya Pathare. A bright and young medical student, she is made to conduct a cataract camp for the government in the remote town of Sitlapur, Maharashtra. While her own inexperience catches her out of her comfort zone, her idealism is also put into question as she’s thrown into the real world of a system that doesn’t work. Watch the trailer here.
4. Sonchiriya by Abhishek Chaubey
Where – Zee5
The dacoit drama is set in the Chambal in Madhya Pradesh against the backdrop of the Emergency in 1975-77, when the government has ordered a crackdown. The rebels of Chambal Valley are Lakhan (Sushant Singh Rajput), Man Singh (Manoj Bajpayee), Vakil Singh (Ranvir Shorey), Indumati (Bhumi Pednekar), and the police officer chasing them, Gujjar (Ashutosh Rana).
P.S. Needs your 100% attention as the language makes it a hard watch. Watch the trailer here.
5. Jonaki by Aditya Vikram Sengupta
Where – Netflix
Jonaki, an 80-year-old woman, searches for love in a strange world of decaying memories, her lover, now old and grey returns to a world she is leaving behind. The Bengali actress Lolita Chatterjee, who passed away last year, portrays the woman who relives the memories of childhood trauma, a lost Christian lover, and a husband she didn’t want. Watch the trailer now.
P.S. Jonaki has been temporarily pulled off the platform. But should be back up in a few days.
6. Baahubali: The Lost Legends (Season 4) by SS Rajamouli and Sharad Devarajan
Where – Prime Video
The animated series launched in 2017. set before the Kalakeya invasion in the first film, in a time when Baahubali and Bhallaladeva are both young princes of Mahishmati who go on epic adventures under the watchful eye of Sivagami and Katappa, as they try to prove who’s worthy of ruling the kingdom one day.
In the new season, Mahishmati and its protectors face their greatest challenge yet and find themselves targets of a mysterious new force seeking revenge on the legendary kingdom. Watch the trailer here.
7. Badla by Sujoy Ghosh
Where – Youtube, Google Play, iTunes.
Amitabh Bachchan and Taapsee Pannu are back on screen together with the film Badla. Interestingly the film is still in theatres. Taapsee plays a she is a cheating wife accused of the murder of her boyfriend. But is she framed or is she lying? And can her lawyer (Bachchan) save her? Watch the trailer here.
8. Music Teacher by Sarthak Dasgupta
Where – Netflix
Set against the landscape of Himachal, this is a story of Beni (Manav Kaul) still stuck in the hills as a music teacher, bitter and hurt, struggling to make ends meet, while his estranged student, Jyotsna (Amrita Bagchi), has made it big in Bollywood. As news of an impending concert by her in the small town arrives, the demons are rising back to the surface. Will Beni and Jyotsna find a way forward? The film also stars Divya Dutta and Nina Gupta. Watch the trailer here.
9. Selection Day (Season 1, new episodes) by Udayan Prasad
Where – Netflix
The series follows two teenagers Radha (Yash Shashank Dholye) and Manju (Mohammad Samad) are brought to Mumbai from Badhona Village in Madhya Pradesh, their strict cricket-obsessed father Mohan (Rajesh Tailang), in the hope of them becoming star cricketers.
The show, which released more episodes of Season 1 recently, is an adaptation of Aravind Adiga’s book. Watch the trailer here.
10. Mighty Little Bheem (Season 1) by Rajiv Chilaka
Ok, this one is for your kids. The first Netflix Original Kids Series from India, it follows Bheem as a 15-month-old toddler in the fictional kingdom of Dholakpur with his boundless curiosity and extraordinary might. Watch the trailer here.
Bonus! And special!
CLASH by Mohamed Diab
Where – Netflix
The 2016 film has landed on Netflix on 18 April and was amongst one of my top five films in that year. The opening film in the Un Certain Regard Section at Cannes Film Festival in the same year, it won the award for Best Film at the International Film Festival of Kerala.
Cairo, summer of 2013 – two years after the Egyptian revolution. In the wake of the ouster of Islamist president Morsi, a police truck full of detained demonstrators of divergent political and religious backgrounds roams through violent protests. Can the detainees overcome their differences to stand a chance of survival?
The Egyptian film is funny, insightful, poignant all at the same time and shot entirely in the confines of a police van. And reminds you just home much you can see through a window. Watch the trailer here.