3 min readUpdated: Feb 8, 2026 04:43 PM IST
Nearly a decade ago, Netflix entered the Indian market with the anticipated original series Sacred Games. Based on the eponymous novel, it delved into Mumbai’s web of organised crime, corruption, politics and espionage. As the streamer’s subscription base expanded over the years, its content offering has become as diverse as a thali.
Sharing their playbook for 2026, Monika Shergill, Vice-president, Content, Netflix India, told The Indian Express, “Stories are more universal than we give them credit for. As a brand, our mission has been to entertain the world, which comprises audiences across cultures. That’s why an Indian series like Taskaree: The Smuggler’s Web can work so well in many countries, just as we enjoy Korean dramas, Japanese anime or Hollywood content.”
The streamer has just announced its 2026 slate featuring 30 titles — series, reality shows and films spanning genres and formats. Operation Safed Sagar is the story of the Indian Air Force’s role in the Kargil War while Chumbak, a slice-of-life series led by Neena Gupta, celebrates the often-forgotten joy of community. Producer-writer Nilanjana Purkayasstha brings a gripping thriller with Yeh Dil Sun Raha Hai while Maa Behen, starring Madhuri Dixit and Triptii Dimri, promises to turn family chaos into a comic thriller.
Prominent films include the Saif Ali Khan-starrer Hum Hindustani, the story of India’s first general election; Ikka features Sunny Deol and Akshaye Khanna in a courtroom drama; Accused is a psychological drama starring Konkona Sen Sharma and Kartavya, a social-impact story from Red Chillies Entertainment. “It started out as a journey to understand what a service like Netflix needed to be. It was experimental and full of learning. The best stories come out of innovation,” says Shergill.
Monika Shergill, Vice-president, Content, Netflix India. (Photo courtesy: Netflix)
Addressing the need for edgy content, Shergill says: “India is heterogeneous and Netflix has to entertain everyone. We programme for the broadest spectrum. There’s casual entertainment as well as myth-busting. People assume mainstream titles can’t be thought-provoking. But when you offer good content, viewers embrace the entertainment and are left with something to think about.”
With Ekta Kapoor’s reality series, Lock Upp, and Desi Bling, a show on wealthy Indian expats, that experimentation continues. Even as shows such as The Great Indian Kapil Show, Bhuvan Bam’s Dhindora, Maamla Legal Hai and Mismatched, return for new seasons, the third instalment of Lust Stories will see a new set of directors — Vikramaditya Motwane, Kiran Rao, Shakun Batra and Vishal Bhardwaj — at the helm.
Tapping into the southern fandom, there will be the Tamil-language rom-com series #Love; cross-cultural drama Made in Korea and R Madhavan’s Legacy. In Telugu, Takshakudu ,will be Anand Deverakonda’s Netflix debut while Super Subbu will be the platform’s first Telugu original series. “Indian audiences are among the most experimental and adventurous. We like to go on a journey of exploration with creators, trying to unlock their potential. We are also enabling these stories to be presented in the best possible form on screen,” says Shergill.
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