The Indian OTT scene has grown dramatically over the past few years. While you can find web shows of varied genres, including romance, mystery, or slice of life, a favourite amongst web show makers is the gritty crime thriller.
The tales of criminals and their grey-shaded motivations provide enough fodder for writers to carve out unique stories and create crime thrillers that have us on the edge of our seats.
Best Indian Crime Thriller Web Series
From shows inspired by true crimes to ambitious race-against-time stories, here are all the Indian TV shows that are a must-watch for any thriller enthusiast…
Delhi Crime
This police procedural follows a team of Delhi Police and their investigation into different crimes each season. The first season is based on the aftermath of the horrific 2012 Nirbhaya gang rape case that shook the country to the core. The show followed DCP Vartika Chaturvedi (Shefali Shah) as she investigated the crime along with her team. It also won an International Emmy and recently released a second season too.
Watch it here
Tabbar
The show explores the lengths a man would go to to protect his family with the unsettling story of ex-policeman Omkar Singh and the unfortunate incident that changes his life forever. One of the most underrated crime thrillers of recent times, Tabbar stars Pawan Malhotra, Supriya Pathak, Gagan Arora, and Ranvir Shorey.
Watch it here
Breathe
Another thriller that blurs the line between good and evil as it is about the lengths people would go to save the people they love, Breathe stars R. Madhavan and Amit Sadh. The story follows a police officer who is tasked with investigating a series of seemingly unconnected murders all leading to an unlikely suspect. The show spawned a successful sequel as well which starred Abhishek Bachchan as one of the main leads.
Watch it here
Paatal Lok
Be warned, this show can get pretty hard to stomach as it doesn’t skimp on darkness and gore. Loosely based on Tarun Tejpal’s 2010 novel The Story of My Assassins, it follows a disillusioned cop who lands a high-profile case of an assassination gone wrong. It stars Jaideep Ahlawat, Gul Panag, Neeraj Kabi, and Abhishek Banerjee.
Watch it here
Sacred Games
India’s first Netflix original series, Sacred Games is based on an eponymous 2006 novel by Vikram Chandra. The show marked Saif Ali Khan’s debut in the OTT space as he played the role of a troubled officer who receives a call from gangster Ganesh Gaitonde (Nawazuddin Siddiqui), who tells him to save the city from inevitable doom in 25 days. The themes of religious politics and corrupt Godmen, unsurprisingly, stirred controversy at the time of the show’s release.
Watch it here
The Family Man
This spy thriller by genius duo Raj and D.K cements their position as two of the most brilliant minds in the Indian filmmaking space. The show follows Srikant Tiwari (Manoj Bajpayee), an unassuming middle-class man who is secretly working as an intelligence officer for Threat Analysis and Surveillance Cell (TASC), a fictitious branch of the National Investigation Agency. It also stars Priyamani, Sharad Kelkar, Sharib Hashmi, Dalip Tahil, and Sunny Hinduja. For the show’s second season, Samantha Prabhu came onboard as one of the main antagonists.
Watch it here
Criminal Justice
Based on the 2008 British series of the same name, the show combines genres and presents an intensely watchable legal crime thriller mystery that would keep you guessing. The first season follows a cab driver whose life takes a turn for worse after he is falsely accused of the murder of a woman he had driven home one fateful night. The show stars Vikrant Massey, Pankaj Tripathi, and Jackie Shroff. It also has a second season and a third season that released this month.
Watch it here
Mirzapur
Inarguably one of the most popular Indian web series of all time, Mirzapur follows the lives of the citizens of the titular town, including the feared mafia don Kaleen Bhaiyya (Pankaj Tripathi), his power-hungry son, and the two sons of an upstanding lawyer whose ambitions lead them on a path filled with danger and mayhem. Aside from Tripathi, the show stars Vikrant Massey, Ali Fazal, Shweta Tripathi, Rasika Dugal, and Divyendu Sharma.
Watch it here
Special OPS
This high-octane thriller follows Himmat Singh (Kay Kay Menon) a RAW agent who assembles a team of five agents spread across the world to hunt down the mastermind behind a series of terror attacks on India. The show’s success led to a prequel being made on the story of Himmat Singh before the events of Special OPS season one.
Watch it here
