The leading OTT platform also plans to launch 13 films and 15 web series apart from six comedy shows, four documentaries, and three reality series. Netflix is currently working with some of the marquee names in the content industry for these projects, including Karan Johar’s Dharmatic Entertainment, Reliance Entertainment, T-Series, Mani Ratnam, Roy Kapur Films, Endemol Shine India, Viacom18 Studio’s Tipping Point, and RSVP Movies.
“At Netflix, we love to tell stories that bring us together, films and series told authentically by Indian creators you love as well as voices that are new. But how do we identify that one story that everyone will love? We don’t. Each and every one of us has our own tastes and moods and all of us want to see our lives reflected on screen,” Netflix India Vice President-Content Monika Shergill said in a statement.
She further stated that the upcoming line-up features more variety and diversity than ever seen before. “From the biggest films and series to gripping documentaries and reality, and bold comedy formats, we are taking our next big leap in India to bring you more than 40 powerful and irresistible stories from all corners of the country.”
On the anvil is a sassy series titled ‘Bombay Begums’, a relationship drama ‘Ajeeb Daastaans’, love and longing in ‘Meenakshi Sundareshwar’, and the aftermath and consequences of desire in ‘Penthouse’. In addition, there is ‘Jagame Thandhiram’ starring Tamil superstar Dhanush; ‘Haseen Dillruba’, starring Taapsee Pannu; ‘Dhamaka’ starring Kartik Aaryan; ‘Sardar Ka Grandson’, featuring Arjun Kapoor and Neena Gupta; and ‘Decoupled’ starring R Madhavan.
The platform has planned a Raveena Tandon mystery thriller ‘Aranyak’ and a twisted love story ‘Yeh Kaali Kaali Ankhein’. Also running will be the second season of shows like ‘Delhi Crime’, ‘Kota Factory’, ‘Jamtara’, ‘Masaba Masaba’, ‘Mismatched’, and ‘She’.
In comedy, Netflix is teaming up with comedian Kapil Sharma in addition to Comedy Premium League. “This is just a taste of the films and series to come. We are so excited to share these rich and diverse stories from the best and brightest creators and talent from India to the world,” Shergill added.
FAST LAUGHS
Meanwhile, Netflix has launched what it calls ‘Fast Laughs’ for mobile users to challenge Instagram Reels and TikTok. Mobile users can now have an instant, full-screen feed of funny clips from Netflix’s comedy catalog. Fast Laughs, presently available only for iOS device owners in select countries, resembles TikTok or Instagram Reels.
“Different short clips — taken from shows like Big Mouth or stand-up specials from comedians like Jerry Seinfeld and Ali Wong — play directly within the Netflix app. If one of the shows, films, or specials sparks interest, people can add said title to their saved list to watch later,” Netflix said in a statement late on Wednesday.
Fast Laughs offers a full-screen feed from films such as Murder Mystery, series like ‘Big Mouth’, sitcoms like ‘The Crew’, and stand-up from comedians such as Kevin Hart and Ali Wong.
“You access the feed through your bottom navigation menu by clicking on the Fast Laughs tab. Clips will start playing — when one ends another begins, to keep the laughs coming,” Netflix said.
Fast Laughs will also allow smartphone users add series, films, and stand-up specials to their list. Besides, users can also share those clips on WhatsApp, Instagram, Snapchat, and Twitter. Netflix will also soon start testing Fast Laughs for Android users.
