Libraries are filled, it’s time to select: A fan’s OTT diaries

I love Game of Thrones…I love English entertainment series. Been watching it for years now. In India, we usually watch it on the net or grab it from friends and family members (with similar taste).

However, with Game of Thrones streaming on Hotstar, a new possibility emerged, Indian English entertainment aficionados watching vidhesi content on desi platform.

Thus, I decided to reach out to IndianWikiMedia (as per its ‘write for us’ section) to write my thoughts on the same. Hence, here I am.

Once Game of Thrones got over, there was a sense of getting back to the old way of watching, however, I was keen on exploring the options in the Indian OTT space.

Video streaming services are gaining popularity in India since the OTT platforms got introduced. People use their mobile phones or laptop to cater to their entertainment needs. Due to the busy schedule, catching up to these favourite TV shows when aired is pretty much impossible. But OTT services like Amazon Prime, Hotstar and Netflix target these particular audiences. These OTT services enable the masses to access and watch their favourite TV show, anytime and anywhere.

Each of these OTT platforms have its own set of libraries focusing on different audiences. Amazon Prime may not contain any original series like Netflix (English entertainment), but it still has plenty binge-worthy TV series to enjoy, in totality 37.Netflix has about 74 original series, Hotstar on the other hand focuses on Indian Television series (Sarabhai vs Sarabhai and Shockers), but its viewership definitely widened by adding Game of Thrones to its repertoire. Now Hotstar has 87 International TV shows in its paid library.

So let’s see which shows are provided by which OTT platform:

Hotstar

Game of Thrones, True Detective, Silicon Valley, Veep, Vinyl, Leftovers, Band of Brothers, Entourage, The Sopranos, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Modern Family, Prison Break, Castle, New Girl, Rome, American Horror story, Homeland, Billions, This is us, Westworld, Ballers, Big little lies, Hung, Strike Back, Fresh Of Boat, Tyrant, Strain, Room no. 104, The Newsroom, Doctor Who

Amazon Prime

Fortitude , Mr. Robot, Hand of God, Poldark, Fleabag, Red Oaks, Doctor Who, Odd Squad, The News Room, Justified, The Americans, Orphan Black, Broadwalk, Catastrophe, Grim, Covert Affairs, Hannibal, Wife, House of Lies, Wolf Hall, Defiance, Girls

Netflix

12 Monkeys, Akame Ga Kill, AirGear, Animal Mechanicals, Breaking Bad, Archer, Between, Black Mirror, Black Sails, Bloodline, Blue Mountain State, Bo on the Go, Broadchurch, Comics without Boarders, Derek, Dexter, Dinosaur train, Ever after High, Forensic File, Fresh Meat, Ghost Hunt, Gunslinger Girl, Larva, Lucid Dream, Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Max & Ruby, Max Steel, Narcos, Orange is the new Black, Popples, Project Mc2, Puffin Rock, Richie rich, Scream, Sense 8, Shadow Hunters, Some Assembly required, The returned, Trailer Park Boys, Wet Hot American Summer.

It might look plenty on the platter, however, most have already been watched previously, yet it’s good that we have a legal platform to watch the favourite shows.

Out of the lot, here are some of my favourite ones:

Amazon Prime

Avatar- The Last Air Bender

This particular animated series is based in a fictional world in which countries are divided by the elements…. Fire, Water, Air, Earth. And citizens of these respective countries have a skill which is bending… they can bend the elements. This cool story rotates around a person who can use all the elements- The Avatar.

Mr Robot

A young programmer who is a cyber-security engineer by day and a vigilante hacker by night.  He is later on recruited in an underground hacker organization to take down a multinational organization.

Catastrophe

This charming series tells a story about two people who have a one night stand and later on regret their actions. Yes, the girl gets pregnant ad she lives in London while the father of her future child lives in Boston. The story gives you a slice of life with the portrayal of real problems in their lives with a hint of comedy.

Hannibal

No need to tell you about the legendary fictional character Dr. Hannibal Lector, a forensic psychiatrist and a cannibalistic serial killer. The psycho thriller series runs around this character.  

Netflix

Arrow

This series is based on a vigilante who is trying to save his city from crimes. There are a series of dark characters involved with addictive story lines and attractive characters. The first two seasons are a good watch, but the third one gets a little repetitive. Overall though, it is a good watch.

Dexter

The series revolves around a terrific blood-spatter analyst at the Miami police department who is trying to keep his second life separate, a serial killer, yes. First season being an awesome watch, the series gained popularity quickly.

13 Reasons Why

This particular series has a really interesting cliff-hanger. A teenage girl commits suicide and leaves behind 13 tapes. Each tape directed to a particular individual who is in some or the other way responsible to make her commit suicide.

Daredevil

Definitely one of the greatest superhero shows. This show contains all the addictive quarks a Marvel Cinematic Universe has, but it is darker. A rare sight in a Marvel superhero. It is quite brutal with eye-popping action sequences.

Hotstar

Game of Thrones 7

One of the greatest stories of our time is a HBO original fantasy drama. Available on Hotstar premium one has to buy subscription to watch this enticing series. But definitely worth it.

How I Met Your Mother

This sitcom is a comedy genre story told by a father to his children of how he met his wife i.e. their mother. The story basically starts from about 10 years before he meets the love of his life. How the situations make him a man who would later fall in love with the mother of his kids.

Other major OTT networks like Voot and Sony LIV are yet to include international shows in its library. Hopeful of more inclusion soon. VIU has some Korean shows and ALTBalaji few English and Korean entertainment. Nothing that would excite me to watch as of now.

Concluding, I would like to say let’s say no to piracy. These shows are made for us and definitely are worth what we pay for, but we need to subscribe so that they keep coming up with awesome content that they usually do. These OTT services provide you with HD prints along with subtitles, so definitely worth our time and money.

(Article sent by Raj Shetye, student of communication studies in Mumbai)