Yearender 2020: Most-talked about series of the year that ruled web space

A Pakistani drama web series and Zindagi’s first Original, Churails revolves around Karachi's secret detectives whose mission it is to expose the city's unfaithful, elite husbands. The lives of the lead actors become intertwined after one of them discovers that her husband was cheating on her. The show won immense praise amongst the critics and audience alike and is currently streaming on ZEE5.

ZEE5's franchise Abhay earned much praise for its first season. The narrative revolves around Abhay Pratap Singh, a sharp investigating officer who understands a criminal’s mindset. He can go to any extent to solve a case but ends up dealing with his personal demons. Season 2 marked the return of Kunal Kemmu aka Abhay Pratap Singh. The 8-episode series also has an ensemble cast, all of whom are power-packed performers, Ram Kapoor as the super villain. Joined by Asha Negi and Nidhi Singh opposite Kunal Kemmu. Chunky Panday, Bidita Bag, Raghav Juval, Indraneil Sengupta and Asheema Vardhan in a never seen before villain avatar.

State of Siege: 26/11 based on Sandeep Unnithan’s best-selling novel ‘Black Tornado: The Three Sieges of Mumbai 26/11 is an 8 episode series produced and created by Abhimanyu Singh of Contiloe Pictures and co-created and directed by Matthew Leutwyler. The series unravels the untold stories and is a true to account narrative of the various events that turned into the prolonged terror siege of Mumbai on 26th November 2008. The crime thriller throws light on the lesser-known facts and the challenges faced by NSG commandos during the rescue operation. Starring Arjan Bajwa, Arjun Bijlani, Vivek Dahiya, Mukul Dev, Sid Makkar and other key talents.

According to Variety, Netflix's 'The Crown', which is inspired by the award-winning play, 'The Audience', tells the inside story of the decades-long reign of Queen Elizabeth II and the struggle between her private and public self. Season four begins in the late 1970s, where Queen Elizabeth, played by Olivia Colman, and her family find themselves preoccupied with safeguarding the line of succession by securing an appropriate bride for Prince Charles, played by Josh O'Connor, who is still unmarried at 30.

As the nation begins to feel the impact of divisive policies introduced by Britain`s first female Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, played by Gillian Anderson, tensions arise between her and the Queen. The tensions grow worse as Thatcher leads the country into the Falklands War, generating conflict within the Commonwealth. Meanwhile, Charles` romance with a young Lady Diana Spencer (`Emma Corrin`) provides a much-needed fairy-tale to unite the British people.

The Season 4 of 'The Crown', which is written by Peter Morgan, also stars Helena Bonham Carter as Princess Margaret, Tobias Menzies as The Duke of Edinburgh, Erin Doherty as Princess Anne, Emerald Fennell as Camilla Parker Bowles and Marion Bailey as the Queen Mother.

Set in the 1950s, The Netflix series The Queen's Gambit is a story about a young girl who reveals an astonishing talent for chess and begins an exciting journey to success and stardom while grappling with addiction.

The Netflix series made headlines earlier this year for the topic it deals with. The show is based on the phishing scams which took the country by storm.

Talking about the show, director Soumendra Padhi had said in an interview, "The issue of phishing is so common and yet so underrepresented in the media. I’ve been to Jamtara and spoken to multiple people about how these scams are pulled off -- the stories are so real and yet so unbelievable that I knew I had to share them with the world. Based on true-crime incidents, the series required a great deal of research and detailing to bring to life various characters and motives. I’m so excited to collaborate with Netflix to take this story from a small town in India to audiences around the world."

The Netflix show chronicles around the lives of popular 'star wives' namely Seema Khan (wife of Sohail Khan), Maheep Kapoor (wife of Sanjay Kapoor), Bhavana Pandey (wife of Chunky Panday) and Neelam Kothari Soni (wife of Samir Soni). The series gives a glimpse about the glitz and glamour world which they enjoy while juggling between the personal and professional lives.

In Amazon Prime's second season of popular web series 'Mirzapur', the show becomes more immersive with power, politics and revenge at the centre of it.

On one hand, the fight between Munna and Guddu to take over Mirzapur intensifies, on the other hand, the narrative takes us to the power corridors where a nexus between politics and criminals prevails. The women of Mirzapur have become bolder and more complex and will not hesitate in using any means to achieve their goals. The canvas gets bigger this season, but the rules remain the same - without spilling blood you won’t survive here!

Amazon Prime's Paatal Lok is a hinterland story on the shocking revelations by a down and out cop after landing the case of a lifetime when four suspects are nabbed in the assassination attempt of a prime time journalist. The case turns out to be a devious maze where nothing is what it looks like. The pursuit of it leads him to the dark netherworld - the 'Paatal Lok', and to shocking discoveries in the past of the four suspects.

Amazon Prime's Bandish Bandits is a young, dynamic love story between an excellent Indian classical singer shackled by centuries of tradition and a free-spirited pop star who makes up for her mediocre talent with her sensational skills as a performer. It is the story of Radhe and Tamanna who, coming from very different worlds, set out together on a journey of self-discovery to see if opposites, though they might attract, can also adapt and go the long haul.

The second season of the 2019 Amazon Original Series that depicts the journey of a friendship through the lens of four uniquely imperfect women as they navigate matters of love, relationships, ambition, sexuality and identity.

Amazon Prime's Breathe: Into The Shadows is a gritty, psychological thriller series that follows the lives of ordinary people faced with extraordinary circumstances.  How far will you go to save the life of a loved one?  

The Forgotten Army is the dynamic story of Lt. Sodhi and his daredevil band of men and women who fought a heroic battle for the independence of India as part of the Indian National Army which was forged out of British defeat in Singapore during WWII and led by the charismatic, indomitable Indian leader Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. It's available on Amazon Prime Video.

Both the seasons of 'Aashram' that is available on MX Player was a hit among audiences. 

Season 1 of the show, which has been directed by 'Gangajal' helmer Prakash Jha, talks about politics in the spiritual world. It talks about the world of a spiritual leader, played by Bobby Deol. 'Aashram' is based in the Fictional city of Kashipur. The empire created by a Godman Baba Nirala, called 'The Aashram', comes under the radar after a skeleton of a devotee from the lower caste, is found in the adjacent forest land, disrupts the peace of the city in the crucial times of the upcoming state elections.

Season 2 of the series revolves around the corruption and crime that happens under the guise of faith. Chandan's Bhopa is the main aide and partner-in-crime of a conniving self-styled godman, Baba Nirala, played by Bobby.

AltBalaji and Zee5's Mentalhood is a relatable show filled with the highs and lows of six ‘Supermoms’ who do their best to match the unrealistic expectations of parenthood with a smile on their faces. The show beautifully showcases the topsy-turvy ride of various kinds of mothers that exist and how they manoeuvre their way through unreasonable expectations and eccentricities to raise their children. The show marks the digital debut of Bollywood actress Karisma Kapoor playing the role of Meira Sharma, who hails from a small town along with her husband Anmol (played by Sanjay Suri).

Bebaakee, on AltBalaji, is a story of love, passion, and madness between two people, Sufiyaan and Kainaat. In the show, their bond that begins due to their mutual love for journalism is a roller coaster ride of emotions. Although destiny brings Sufiyaan (Kushal Tandon) and Kainaat (Shiv Jyoti Rajput) together in this Romantic web series, they are unable to understand whether their passion is accompanied with either love or hate. Rounding off the trio, Imtiaz (Karan Jotwani) makes the entry in their lives that takes them by shock. While Imtiaz is what every woman wants, Sufiyaan sets out on a mission to ruin Kainaat and Imtiaz. Amidst the chaos followed by Imtiaz’s entry, what will happen to him? Will Kainaat and Sufiyaan end up together?

AltBalaji's Bicchoo Ka Khel is a crime-drama with a dash of quirkiness. Set amidst Banaras, the show narrates a tale of a mastermind, Akhil who escapes the system despite committing the murder that takes place at a college festival. Bicchoo Ka Khel depicts Akhil’s story who has one crucial mission- to seek revenge for his father’s death. But what happened to his father? How does Akhil plan on getting revenge for his death? How does he twist the system to escape unscathed despite committing the crime? Find out the answers from Akhil himself.

Set in 1980’s & 90’s Bombay, Scam 1992 follows the life of stockbroker Harshad Mehta - his meteoric rise and catastrophic downfall. Directed by National Award-winning filmmaker Hansal Mehta, this SonyLiv  series is based on journalists Debashis Basu & Sucheta Dalal’s book, The Scam. The series features an ensemble cast of Pratik Gandhi, Shreya Dhanwanthary, Sharib Hashmi, Ananth Mahadevan and more. 

Starring Abhay Deol, Pankaj Kapur, Piyush Mishra, the SonyLiv series revolves around a CBI investigation of a flight crash. The plot takes a drastic turn when they find out that JL50 that crashed a week ago is the flight that took off 35 years ago from Kolkata. 

Two distressed people, their distorted versions of the truth, some blurred memories, and contrasting perspectives of the same incident will take the viewers on an edge-of-the-seat ride of emotions in this intriguing Voot Select drama Marzi. 

Set in the hilly terrains of Shimla, Marzi is a gripping drama that explores a romance gone tragically wrong where both sides seem to have enough to hide and a lot to lose! The story of a night that changes the lives of Sameera Chauhan and Anurag Saraswat forever. Sameera is a smart and dedicated teacher, not long out of a relationship and unsure about getting back to another one. 

Anurag is a renowned surgeon whose son is a pupil at Sameera’s school. An initial attraction leads to a date, but neither fully realises the far-reaching consequences that their meeting will have on each other or their families.

Voot Select's Crackdown is a high octane action drama/espionage series revolving around RAW’s special ops team trying to crack through multiple smaller decoys to uncover a larger conspiracy and to prevent a major threat to national security. In the process, they find an able ally in a girl whose identity remains a mystery.

Hotstar Specials show Aarya, streaming on Disney+Hotstar VIP, starts with a loving wife & doting mother (Aarya), her reluctance to be involved in the illegal narcotics family business; whose life is suddenly turned upside down, her family is threatened and, in the quest to protect them she is forced to become the very person she always avoided. She realizes that to protect her family from criminals, she herself needs to become one! Former Miss Universe and actor Sushmita Sen made her digital debut as the protagonist in this titular show, after staying away from the spotlight for over a decade. Popular actor Chandrachur Singh also returned to the screen in this riveting story. 

After a ground-breaking Season 1 left audiences on the hook, Hotstar Specials upped the ante of crime thrillers in India with the launch of Hostages Season 2 streaming on Disney+Hostar VIP. As the plan of killing CM Handa (Dalip Tahil) in Season 1 goes awry, audiences were left guessing about Prithvi Singh’s (Ronit Bose Roy) next move. The story now begins shortly after revealing that CM Handa is indeed alive and Prithvi Singh has kidnapped the politician, but an unfortunate chain of events ends up making Prithvi a hostage himself. 

The biggest spy action thriller of 2020, Special Ops is a fast-paced show based on the role of Indian intelligence in a series of real terror attacks that India faced over the last 19 years. Starting with the 2001 attack on Indian Parliament, the show on Disney+Hotstar VIP goes back and forth in time covering several other events including 26/11, Kashmir terror attacks amongst others; and the chase for the single mastermind behind these attacks – making it the longest manhunt in Indian Intelligence for India’s deadliest enemy.