OTT infuses Indian flavour into global showbiz

he success of Delhi Crime at the International Emmys is, a cherry on the sundae, but Indian stories and Indian talent of the digital space have been making a strong impact the way Bollywood or our mainstream cinema never really did.

India and Indianness are foraying the world of showbiz in the West, and much of it has to do with the country’s growing presence in the OTT space. The success of Delhi Crime at the International Emmys is, a cherry on the sundae, but Indian stories and Indian talent of the digital space have been making a strong impact the way Bollywood or our mainstream cinema never really did.

Priyanka Chopra

She will soon be seen in “We Can Be Heroes” and “The White Tiger”. The actor has also sealed a two-year multimillion-dollar, first-look television deal with the global streaming platform Amazon. “My Amazon television deal is a global deal, so I can do Hindi language, I can do English language, I can do whatever language I want,” she had said about the deal. Presently, Priyanka is also collaborating with Amazon on two television projects – “Sangeet”, an unscripted series co-produced with her husband, Nick Jonas and “Citadel”, a spy series in which she will star with Richard Madden.

Mindy Kaling

Mindy Kaling traced her relationship with Indian culture and used her “relationship with being Hindu” to narrate the story of a 15-year-old Devi, first-generation Indian American, and her desperation to feel that she belongs in the society in the delightful “Never Have I Ever”. The Netflix show was a big hit, and has been renewed for a second season.

The White Tiger

American-Iranian director Ramin Bahrani has brought his expertise to make India-centric “The White Tiger” for Netflix. The film stars Adarsh Gourav along with Priyanka Chopra and Rajkummar Rao. The director enjoyed working in India, and shared that he wants to make another film in the country soon.

Radhika Apte

The actor will be uniting with Charlie Hunnam in “Shantaram”. The show is based on Gregory David Roberts’ 2003 novel of the same name and tells the story of Lin (Hunnam), a man on the run from an Australian prison looking to hide in Mumbai. It is about how he finds a new life in the slums and the underworld of the megapolis. It is reported that the Apple TV series might star Amitabh Bachchan, and will be shot in India itself.

Ma Anand Sheela

The lady who shot to global fame with Netflix’s documentary “Wild Wild Country” on controversial spiritual guru Rajneesh, will be getting her own version on the streaming platform. The documentary is backed by filmmaker Karan Johar.

Huma Qureshi

The actor will soon be seen in American filmmaker Zack Snyder’s Netflix original film, “Army Of The Dead”. It follows a zombie outbreak in Las Vegas even as a man assembles a group of mercenaries to pull off the greatest heist ever.

Indira Varma

Another Indian origin celebrity who arrived in the scene much before Mindy Kaling, the British actor has made her mark on the all-time blockbuster series “Game Of Thrones”, the Amazon show “Carnival Row” and the film “The One And Only Ivan”, which released on Disney+ Hotstar.

Utkarsh Ambudkar

Indian origin American actor Utkarsh Ambudkar, who acted in “Pitch Perfect” and “Blindspotting”, will be seen in a Christmas comedy “Godmothered”, which will release on Disney+ Hotstar.

Rizwan Manji

The Canadian actor of Indian origin is known for playing the character of Ray Bhutani in Netflix’s “Schitt’s Creek”, which made history at the 72nd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards as it took home the majority of awards at the ceremony, which was held virtually amid the coronavirus pandemic this year.