It was a relatively dull for streaming this year as OTT platforms banked more on established franchises than new IPs. Anticipatory seasons like the third outing of Prime Video’s Family Man was lukewarm and Panchayat season 4 suffered from anti-incumbency. There were also some new entrants like Dabba Cartel, Dupahiya and Kankhajura which showed blips of ingenuity but weren’t exactly wrecking balls.
Amidst a dry landscape, in no particular order, here are some series which left a mark in 2025:
The year started with promise with Vikramaditya Motwane and Satyanshu Singh’s true crime-nerdy prison-drama Black Warrant. The pacy series is an intricate study of the jailers and the jailed in Tihar. It's a show whose pleasure lies in spotting the historical titbits peppered around. Zahaan Kapoor is solid as the baby-faced, rookie jailer who has to take on Tihar. Rahul Bhat is smirky-fun as his opportunistic senior. But the most enjoyable is Sidhant Gupta as the sly, serpent-killer Charles Sobhraj.
(Streaming on Netflix)
Hindi film industry is a circus with some crazed animals in Shah Rukh Khan's son Aryan Khan’s debut series. The desi Entourage revolves around upcoming superstar Aasmaan Singh (Lakshya Lalwani) who, along with his friends, family and manager, tries to survive the big bad world of Bollywood where egos are grander than film sets. The series is fun and frivolous with cameos rivalling an Ambani wedding. From Shah Rukh to Salman to Aamir, everybody is game to take on a joke. For me, the moment of the year would be Raghav Juyal simping over Emraan Hashmi. I can’t even deny, ‘akkha Bollywood ek taraf aur Emraan Hashmi…’
(Streaming on Netflix)
OTT’s most memeworthy Jaat cop Hathiram Chaudhary (Jaideep Ahlawat) returns for another trip to noirland in Sudip Sharma’s sophomore outing of the pandemic hit. This time, Delhi cop Hathiram has to find answers in the serpentine hillroads of the Northeast. Less scathing in its politics but Paatal Lok season 2 is still as intriguing. The plot is dense and Sudip has more than one surprise up his sleeve. Jaideep too is incessantly watchable as Hathiram and his Haryanvi retorts are still unmatchable.
(Streaming on Prime Video)
What can be more terrifying than Delhi streets at night? The male gaze is a haunting presence in Smita Singh’s horror-series Khauf. Monika Panwar plays Madhu, a girl who has moved to the big city to escape the torment of her past. She lives in a women’s hostel whose members are being stopped from venturing outside by an invisible force. Is it a ghot or just fear? Khauf is psychological horror slow-cooked and served. Watch it for Monika Panwar’s exemplary performance and Rajat Kapoor’s godly act as a spirit-catcher, who might also be a serial killer.
Trust SonyLIV to come up with great shows that remain underrated. The mouthful-titled Black White & Gray- Love Kills is a true crime documentary satire where the medium itself is the story. A British journalist is making a documentary about a series of murders, on of which was of a politician’s daughter who ran away with her driver’s son (the main suspect). The series progresses as a true-crime docu-drama and portrays how fiction can be dressed up to be more truthful than truth itself.
(Streaming on SonyLIV)