Netflix started 2020 off with a bang, releasing a new Original Hindi movie, an Original stand-up special, and two new Original TV series in the month of January. The service added some non-Original films in Hindi, Assamese, and Tamil as well. Here are all the new Indian movies and TV series added to Netflix in January 2020.
N = Netflix Original
New Indian Movies on Netflix: January 2020
Ghost Stories (2020) N
Language: Hindi
Runtime: 144 Minutes
Directors: Zoya Akhtar, Anurag Kashyap, Dibakar Banerjee, Karan Johar
Cast: Janhvi Kapoor, Sobhita Dhulipala, Sukant Goel, Mrunal Thakur, Avinash Tiwary
Genre: Horror | Added to Netflix: January 1
The four directors behind the anthology movies Bombay Talkies and the Netflix Original Lust Stories reunite to offer their takes on the horror genre. The four spooky shorts feature everything from cannibals to curses to ghastly grannies, along with some insightful social commentary. A couple of the films are quite gory — though not director Karan Johar’s entertaining short, which is as glitzy and polished as a ghost story can be.
Made in China (2019)
Language: Hindi
Runtime: 127 Minutes
Director: Mikhil Musale
Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Boman Irani, Mouni Roy
Genre: Comedy | Added to Netflix: January 12
A wannabe entrepreneur teams with a sex therapist to sell an illegal Chinese aphrodisiac in India, but the businessman’s wife isn’t happy when she discovers the source of her husband’s newfound riches. Based on Parinda Joshi’s novel, Made in China.
Bulbul Can Sing (2018)
Language: Assamese
Runtime: 94 Minutes
Director: Rima Das
Cast: Arnali Das, Banita Thakuriya, Manoranjan Das
Genre: Drama | Added to Netflix: January 15
In her follow-up to Village Rockstars — India’s official submission to the 91st Academy Awards — director Rima Das shows the struggles of three teenagers coming to terms with their sexual identities within the confines of their conservative small town. Netflix has few Assamese-language titles in their US catalog, so this is a welcome addition.
Motichoor Chaknachoor (2019)
Language: Hindi
Runtime: 132 Minutes
Director: Debamitra Biswal
Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Athiya Shetty
Genre: Romantic Comedy | Added to Netflix: January 20
Nawazuddin Siddiqui does a 180 from his role as the villainous Ganesh Gaitonde in the Netflix Original series Sacred Games to play an aging bachelor desperate to marry in this romantic comedy. When he meets a feisty beauty desperate to get out of India, they must decide if their marriage will be more than a business arrangement.
KD (A) Karuppudurai (2019)
Language: Tamil
Runtime: 114 Minutes
Director: Madhumita
Cast: Mu Ramaswamy, Naga Vishal
Genre: Drama | Added to Netflix: January 21
When 80-year-old K.D. wakes from a coma to find his greedy heirs plotting his demise, he makes a break for it. The octogenarian teams up with a cheeky little boy for the road trip of a lifetime, learning about the real meaning of “family” along the way.
Sillu Karuppatti (2019)
Language: Tamil
Runtime: 133 Minutes
Director: Halitha Shameem
Cast: Nivedhithaa Sathish, Leela Samson, Samuthirakani, Sunaina, Manikandan
Genre: Romance | Added to Netflix: January 26
It’s quite the month for Indian anthology movies on Netflix. Sillu Karuppatti features four short romantic films about couples young and old, all by director Halitha Shameen.
Vir Das: For India (2020) N
Language: English
Runtime: 75 Minutes
Directors: Ajay Bhuyan, Vir Das
Cast: Vir Das
Genre: Comedy | Added to Netflix: January 26
Actor and comedian Vir Das gets his third Netflix stand-up special for Netflix, after Abroad Understanding and Losing It. This time, Das offers his observations on international travel and touts the supremacy of Parle-G biscuits among the world’s cookies.
Shimla Mirchi (2020)
Language: Hindi
Runtime: 129 Minutes
Director: Ramesh Sippy
Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Hema Malini, Rakul Preet Singh
Genre: Romantic Comedy | Added to Netflix: January 27
The second Rajkummar Rao comedy to join Netflix in January sat on the shelf for several years before getting a short theatrical release in India earlier this month. In Shimla Mirchi, Rao plays a young man whose proposal letter winds up in the hands of his intended bride’s single mother, who is more than ready to get hitched herself.
New Indian TV Series on Netflix: January 2020
Chhota Bheem Kung Fu Dhamaka (2019)
Language: Hindi
Seasons: 1
Episodes: 10
Cast: Pinky Pal Rajput, Sonal Kaushal, Julie Tejwani, Jigna Bharadhwaj
Genre: Animation | Added to Netflix: January 1
First a feature-length film of the same name, the series Chhota Bheem Kung Fu Dhamaka follows the little cartoon hero’s adventures with his friends as they explore China.
Jamtara: Sabka Number Ayega (2020) N
Language: Hindi
Seasons: 1
Episodes: 10
Cast: Amit Sial, Dibyendu Bhattacharya, Aksha Pardhasany, Monika Panwar
Genre: Crime | Added to Netflix: January 10
Based on a true story about a phishing campaign run out of the town of Jamtara, a group of young men get rich running a phone scam. The true cost of such easy money is revealed when the local police get suspicious and a powerful politician demands a cut of their profits.
What the Love! with Karan Johar (2020) N
Language: English
Seasons: 1
Episodes: 7
Cast: Karan Johar
Genre: Reality, Makeover, Dating | Added to Netflix: January 30
After a lifetime cocooned within Bollywood’s lavish bubble, the idea of producer-director-host Karan Johar offering practical dating advice to ordinary single people is kind of hilarious. Nevertheless, his new show What the Love! with Karan Johar promises glamorous makeovers, feel-good moments, and guest appearances from Bollywood celebrities Huma Qureshi (the Netflix Original series Leila), Saif Ali Khan (Sacred Games), Ali Fazal, Parineeti Chopra, Arjun Kapoor, and Sunny Leone.
Which of the newly added Indian movies and TV series will you be watching? Let us know in the comments below!
