Every year an abundance of shows grace our screens both on online and television platforms. 2020 was no different. Despite the ongoing pandemic and its effects a whole bunch of shows made our heads turn just like the heads of millions of other viewers in India. Here are the top 10 shows that became a must-watch in just about every Indian viewer’s list.
Indian Matchmaking (Netflix):
Netflix’s surprise hit Indian Matchmaking took many by surprise when people found out that it was a show based on the reality of many modern Indians. The show placed focus immensely on its central matchmaker and narrator Seema Taparia. With her weird antics and on the face judgemental attitude, Seema was every bit of the matchmaker that she promised, especially after she first introduced herself as Mumbai’s top matchmaker. However, her matchmaking skills are by no means limited to the city of Mumbai. Instead, the show takes the arranged marriage idea to the United States and even to far reaching towns from Maharashtra. Seema auntie wasn’t the only person that caught everyone’s attention either. Nadia, Pradyum, Vinay, and Aparna were some of the contestants that lit up the internet through either their scandalous behavior or through their perspectives on the life around them.
Paatal Lok (Amazon Prime Video):
Actress Anushka Sharma is known for her choices of clever scripts that result in many blockbuster hits in Indian cinema. However in 2020 when theatres were closed all around the world the actress made headlines when she turned towards her producer side and released Paatal Lok. Despite being exclusively released on amazon prime the show brought forward some lesser sung actors into the limelight. Paatal Lok also told a tale that started grim but showed what really goes around big media houses in the country. Anushka Sharma’s direct involvement with the project has only increased the hype around her future projects as a producer for many of her fans.
Bandish Bandits (Amazon Prime Video):
Another amazon prime exclusive show, Bandish Bandits is truly one of its kind. With its focus set almost entirely on Indian classical music, bandish bandits is one of the first shows to ever devote its complete attention to the old classical form of music. What helped the show gain its popularity was also hidden in its details. Each of the actors who portrayed a singer took many months of training to accurately lip-sync Indian classical music. While the new actors in the show certainly proved their might, actors like Nazarrudin Shah also proved their acting finesse through many of these minor details sprinkled around in the show.
Four More Shots Please 2 (Amazon Prime Video):
As more and more women actors and producers take their positions in the Indian media sector, shows like four more shots please have become a direct result of their efforts. With its radical outlook on the lives of four women in modern India, the show does not shy away from any of the intimate details about the lives of these women. While many enjoyed the show for its acting and content many are full of anticipation when actress Kareena Kapoor showed her interest in a sequel of the show with some of her friends from Bollywood.
Mirzapur 2 (Amazon Prime Video):
For the longest time fans of the immensely popular show, Mirzapur were anticipating the release of its sequel to see the endgame of Guddu Bhaiya and Munna. What followed was nothing short of a brilliant show full of twists and turns. Just like the first part of the show Mirzapur 2 grounded Pankaj Mishra into the limelight of many who had missed his spectacular journey into Bollywood and Hindi tv shows. Mirzapur 2 is only a testament to his brilliant performance in all his works over the last decade.
The Haunting of Bly Manor (Netflix):
It is very rare when a horror-themed show takes the internet by storm. However, the haunting of bly manor which released on Netflix did exactly that. Instead of following the typical routine of jum scares in most Hollywood films, The haunting of bly manor focused on developing its characters so much so that the audience can connect with their fears and motivations as the story goes forward. The show is a masterclass on why horror films have always captured the attention of the world when done right.
Dark Season 3 (Netflix):
The final season of Dark, which is one of the best shows that ever came out also came out in 2020. The forces of good and evil vying for control of the very nature of time itself in the past, present and future of Winden wend further along their possibly unending temporal loop that we now know also spans a parallel universe. Jonas, having been rescued by Martha 2 in the second-season finale, is more determined than ever to stop the villainous Adam and return things to normal. But undoing a knot that has held Winden in balance for five generations requires a sacrifice, resulting in one of the most shocking and emotional conclusions to a TV show you'll see this year.
Scam 1992 (Sony LIV):
Based on the Hansal Mehta scandal from 1992 this show premiered on Sony liv. Even though the platform itself isn’t up to par with giants such as Amazon and Netflix, the show itself definitely gave a run for its money to many other shows that released around the same time. The show not only drew those who have experienced the 1992 stock market crash themselves but also those who are completely unaware of the scandal as well as to the share market as a whole.
The boys (Amazon Prime Video):
2020 was dominated by shows that premiered on amazon prime video. The second season of the brutal show The Boys also won the hearts and minds of many fans when it premiered in the later half of 2020. Despite an odd release schedule, the show kept many gripped to their seats with its brutal reimagination of what a superhero is like. The show also introduced many new actors and actresses but also took the lives of many reel life characters in the process.
