Netflix has revealed a string of features and TV series from India that are set to debut on the platform in 2024, including anticipated drama Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar from award-winning filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali.
A release date has not seen set for the first streaming project from Bhansali, who is known for historical epics such Gangubai Kathiawadi, which screened at the Berlinale in 2022, Sony-backed Saawariya and Devdas, which screened at Cannes in 2002. Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar will follow the lives of courtesans in pre-independence India and stars Manisha Koirala, Sonakshi Sinha and Aditi Rao Hydari, among others.
The slate comprises eight features, nine drama series and five unscripted series.
The films include Maharaj, the second project to emerge from a collaboration between Netflix and powerhouse studio Yash Raj Films, which was signed last year. Directed by Siddharth P Malhotra (Hichki), Maharaj marks the acting debut of Junaid Khan, son of Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan. Inspired by true events, it follows a journalist in the 1800s who takes on a powerful role-model of society.
YRF Entertainment will also produce Akshay Roy’s Vijay 69, about a man who decides to compete in a triathlon at the age of 69, starring Anupam Kher in the title role; and crime thriller series Mandala Murders, created and directed by Gopi Puthran. YRF’s first project for Netflix was hit miniseries The Railway Men.
Further features include Murder Mubarak, a whodunnit directed by Homi Adajania and backed by Maddock Films; thriller Do Patti, headlined by powerhouse actors Kajol and Kriti Sanon; and Amar Singh Chamkila, marking the streaming directorial debut of Imtiaz Ali and starring Diljit Dosanjh in the true story of a 1980s Punjab rockstar with a soundtrack composed by AR Rahman.
Also in the pipeline is Phir Ayee Haseen Dilruba, the sequel to hit 2021 thriller Haseen Dilruba, which will see the return of actors Taapsee Pannu and Vikrant Massey alongside new addition of Sunny Kaushal. Comedy will come from Luv Ranjan’s Wild Wild Punjab, in which a drunken group decide to avenge a friend’s breakup by crashing his ex’s wedding.
Two projects from creator Neeraj Pandey include Sikander Ka Muqqadar, a heist thriller film that spans 18 years, and crime series Khakee: The Bengal Chapter, a follow-up to Khakee: The Bihar Chapter.
Additional series include IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack, directed by Anubhav Sinha, which will recreate the longest hijack in Indian history; drama Dabba Cartel from Excel Entertainment production about five housewives who form a drug cartel; and courtroom comedy Maamla Legal Hai, headlined by Ravi Kishan.
Upcoming documentaries include Yo Yo Honey Singh: Famous from Sikhya Entertainment, offering an immersive look at the rapper’s life; The Greatest Rivalry: India vs Pakistan, breaking down the drama surrounding the cricketing opponents; and Nisha Pahuja’s Oscar-nominated documentary To Kill A Tiger, in which a farmer and father fights for justice following the sexual assault of his 13-year-old daughter.
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