There is good content and bad, and then there is expensive — blow-your-mind-with-figures — content. And it doesn’t get bigger than Amazon Prime Video’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. At a massive $1 billion budget, it is impossible to talk about the LoTR spin-off without addressing the moneys first. The season is expected to establish the Middle Earth franchise on the streaming platform, making it stand out in the race of OTT platforms.
Beyond this high stakes game, we have Akshay Kumar making his web debut (no, that wasn’t Laxmmi Bomb) with web thriller Cuttputlli, and Bollywood Wives returning with yet another edition of their Fabulous Lives. So, here’s a look at some of the shows and films streaming on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney Plus Hotstar, ZEE5 and SonyLIV in September. What’s your binge?
Cuttputlli: Disney Plus Hotstar
Streaming on: September 2
Akshay Kumar’s Cuttputlli releases on September 2. Set in Kasauli, Cuttputlli has Akshay Kumar in the role of a sub-inspector who is on a mission to arrest a ‘psychopath’ serial killer after a series of gruesome killings. Directed by Ranjit M Tewari, the film also stars Rakul Preet Singh and Chandrachur Singh in pivotal roles. While announcing the whodunnit thriller, Akshay had promised “enthralling twists and turns”.
Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives: Netflix
Streaming on: September 2
Netflix is back with Fabulous Lives Of Bollywood Wives Season 2. (Photo: Bhavana Panday/instagram) If a peek into the lives of Bollywood wives — Bhavana Pandey, Neelam Kothari, Seema Sajdeh and Maheep Kapoor — entertained you, then be ready to once again enter into their homes. The Netflix show, Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives is back with its second season and this time around, it probably comes with a higher dose of drama, glamour and intrigue. The show will see guest appearances from Ananya Panday, Karan Johar, Badshah, Sanjay Kapoor, Chunky Pandey, and Sameer Soni.
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The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: Amazon Prime Video
Streaming on: September 2
Morfydd Clark plays Galadriel in The Lord of the Rings: The Return of Power. (Photo: Screengrab/Prime Video) The upcoming Amazon Prime Video series is set in the Second Age of Middle Earth, thousands of years before the events in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. As per the makers, the show “will take viewers back to an era in which great powers were forged, kingdoms rose to glory and fell to ruin, unlikely heroes were tested, hope hung by the finest of threads, and one of the greatest villains that ever flowed from Tolkien’s pen threatened to cover all the world in darkness.”
Sundari Gardens: SonyLIV
Streaming on: September 2
Starring Aparna Balamurali and Neeraj Madhav, the Malayalam drama Sundari Gardens is written and helmed by Charlie Davis. The trailer of the film hinted at its shifting genres, from a sweet romantic drama to a dark drama. While Neeraj essays the role of an English teacher Victor, Aparna plays librarian Sundari Mathews, popularly known as Suma. She falls in love with Victor over the course of time and decides to follow her heart despite some red flags.
Jurassic World Dominion: BookMyShow Stream
Streaming on: September 7
The Colin Trevorrow directorial picks up from the events of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom that concluded with dinosaurs escaping into the world after being freed. Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard reprise their roles of Owen Grady and Claire Dearing, respectively as they are on the race to save the world along with Dern, Neill and Goldblum. The Indian Express’ film critic Shubhra Gupta found the film to be “a stodgy, too-constructed affair.”
Dahan: Disney Plus Hotstar
Streaming on: September 16
Tisca Chopra and Saurabh Shukla in stills from Dahan. The supernatural thriller series, Dahan – Raakan ka Rahasya explores the cursed caves, hidden treasures, and generational secrets. It has Tisca Chopra playing the role of an IAS officer who reaches a village in Rajasthan where she has to start a mining job. But the mine is a ‘cursed’ one according to the villagers. They advise her against visiting it. However, she goes ahead and opens it, resulting in a series of horrifying events. The series, directed by Vikranth Pawar, also stars Saurabh Shukla.
Jogi: Netflix
Streaming on: September 16
Diljit Dosanjh in the film Jogi. (Photo: Netlix/Youtube) The Ali Abbas Zafar film is based on the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in Delhi. The film is centred around three friends who struggle to survive the violence and take their loved ones to Punjab, which is considered safer. With Diljit Dosanjh playing the titular character Jogi, the series also stars Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, Kumud Mishra, Hiten Tejwani, Amyra Dastur and Paresh Pahuja.
Shiksha Mandal: MX Player
Streaming on: September 15
The MX Player Original Series Shiksha Mandal delves into the corruption, fraud, cheating and criminal conspiracy that affects the education sector in India. The show, set in Bhopal, follows “one of the biggest medical entrance exam scams” in the country and stars actors Gauahar Khan, Gulshan Devaiah, and Pawan Malhotra in pivotal roles. It has been directed by Syed Ahmad Afzal.
Jamtara season two: Netflix
Streaming on: September 23
Jamtara: Sabka Number Ayega Phirse will stream on Netflix. (Photo: Screenshot/ Netflix/ YouTube) After a successful season one, the Netflix series Jamtara is returning with its second season. The series is inspired by real-life events, based on the rampant growth of phishing calls and cybercrime in India. In the second season, actors Sparsh Shrivastav, Anshumaan Pushkar, Monika Panwar and Amit Sial will reprise their roles as Sunny, Rocky, Gudiya and Brajesh alongside Dibyendu Bhattacharya and Aksha Pardhasany. Ravi Chahal and Seema Pahwa are the new additions to the cast.
Tanaav: SonyLIV
Streaming soon
Tanaav, the official Indian adaptation of the Israeli series Fauda, is based in Kashmir in 2017 and is helmed by Sudhir Mishra along with Sachin Mamta Krishn. It stars Manav Vij, Arbaaz Khan, Sumit Kaul, Rajat Kapoor, Shashank Arora, Zarina Wahab, Ekta Kaul, and others. The official synopsis of the series reads, “Set against the idyllic backdrop of Kashmir in the year 2017, Tanaav tells the story of a Special Unit, their bravery, and courage. Delving into the human drama behind the ideologies, dealing with complex emotions and flawed characters, all of whom share the same feelings of love, loss, betrayal and revenge, Tanaav is a socio-political action drama with family at its core.”