5 interesting new Indian films and series to catch on OTT platforms this weekend Poster from the Telugu film Alanti Sitralu

• September 23, 2021

This week our regular OTT recommendation list is dominated by films and series from the South India. In any case, Malayalam and Tamil have been dominating the Indian OTT space in the last year or so.

We have an interesting police series based on real events in Bengaluru, titled Crime Stories: India Detectives. Such a series is new in India.

In Tamil, we have the near satirical Raame Aandalum Raavane Aandalum. In Telugu, it is the hyperlinked story Alanti Sitralu. In Malayalam, we have picked actor Jayasurya’s 100th film Sunny. We round up the list with the much expected Season 2 of the popular Kota Factory series, a wry look at the ‘educational assembly lines’ in the Rajasthan town of Kota.

Crime Stories: India Detectives

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Synopsis: As the title of series makes it clear, it is about sleuthing on crimes. As it happens, it is on actual cases handled by the Bengaluru City Police. 

This docu-series casts an eye on the Indian criminal investigation as a process. It doubles up as a social commentary on how criminals are born and how people from lower strata of the society are treated by the system.  Originally shot in Kannada, with subtitles in English, the series throws light on the procedurals into solving cases. It begins from the moment a call comes to the control room about the basic details of the crime, how it is passed along the chain of command to arrive at a suitable plan of action and the methodology adopted to solve each of these cases.

The series takes up four different crimes and how the cops with limited resources and systemic wherewithal managed to crack it. From tracking bus tickets to the e-commerce purchases of the accused, the series is also an eye-opener on how the old system now uses technology more adroitly. The four gripping stories involve murder, extortion and kidnapping.

Alanti Sitralu

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Synopsis: The screenplay unfolding through hyperlinked stories is now emerging as one of the popular styles in filmmaking these days. We recently saw this in the Tamil film Kasada Tabara. Alanti Sitralu too is a hyperlinked drama following the journeys of four characters. It is about the events in the life of a Story : The tales are about four people – a boxer, a 40-year-old sex worker, a guitarist and a a gangster. Their lives intermingle due to destiny’s weird ways. What are the consequences they face when they try to rebuild their respective lives and ways is the underlying theme. It is all about relationship drama told with a forgiving gaze. It is all part of the kaleidoscope that we choose to call life in a metro.

Raame Aandalum Raavane Aandalum

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Synopsis: This comedy drama is about a village that is breaking news on all television channels across India, but the irony is that the people of that village don’t have electricity to watch TV. A 35-year-old farmer loses his bulls named Karuppan and Vellaiyan, who were like children to him and his wife Veerayi. While he starts searching for his bulls with his friend, he accidentally meets a reporter, who helps him. In the midst of a great struggle, the bulls will have to be found and the village must be developed as well. 

The media circus and how politicians use the gullibility of the public is an important part of the film. It is one of the four films that Amazon Prime Video has signed a deal with Tamil actor Suriya’s production house.

Kota factory – Season 2

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Synopsis: After having a successful season 1 run, the Kota Factory is back with series 2 一 this time on Netflix. Kota is one of the cities in India known for training students for various entrance exams. The city has become a hub for students all over India as they come here to prepare for entrance exams. 

The Kota Factory follows the story of a 16-year-old Vaibhav who moves to Kota from Itarsi. The series shows the students’ lifestyle in the city along with their efforts to get into IIT.

Sunny

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Synopsis: This is Ranjith Sankar and Jayasurya’s 8th film together. When a director and actor have such belief in each other, you understand that the film will stand testimony to their rapport. The film is centred on a single character who has lost everything in his life – love, money and his best friend. It is a tale that has mixed suspense and sentiments. 

It is an intriguing film on self-healing emotionally. Shattered and hopeless, a businessman smuggles himself back from Dubai to Kerala in the midst of a global pandemic and shuts himself from society. Deeply stuck in an emotional turmoil and while killing himself softly and slowly, he befriends a couple of curious strangers over the course of seven days, who change his perspective.

“This is my 100th film as an actor and I couldn’t be more humbled to play yet another striking character. I have had a prolific partnership with Ranjith throughout, and this one is truly special,” Jayasurya was quoted as saying.

Along with these offerings, a few other interesting films like Naduvan (Tamil), Aakashvani (Telugu) are also premiering on the OTT space. Of course, you do have the IPL telecasts. So, enjoy an entertaining weekend of films and sports.

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This week our regular OTT recommendation list is dominated by films and series from the South India. In any case, Malayalam and Tamil have been dominating the Indian OTT space in the last year or so. We have an interesting police series based on real events in Bengaluru, titled Crime…