Top 5 Must-Watch Indian Web Series from 2019: Expert Picks

As seasoned entertainment analysts with years of experience reviewing premium streaming content, we've sifted through the overwhelming choices on platforms like Amazon Prime, Netflix, and Hotstar to bring you our top 5 standout Indian web series from 2019. These aren't ranked by any particular order—just our honest favorites amid thousands of options.

1. Made in Heaven
Amazon Prime | Season 1 | Release: March 8, 2019 | Episodes: 9 | Directors: Nitya Mehra, Zoya Akhtar, Prashant Nair, Alankrita Srivastava

Karan Mehra (Arjun Mathur) and Tara Khanna (Sobhita Dhulipala) run a high-end wedding planning company in Mumbai. Amid personal struggles, staff dynamics, and demanding clients, each episode explores a new wedding while weaving interconnected stories. Production on Season 2 is already underway.

Why watch:

• Insightful peek into the elite's lavish yet flawed lives.
• Unveils harsh realities of Indian marriages.
• Mirrors societal hypocrisies like dowry, sexual exploitation, superstition, honor killings, virginity pressures, and NRI marriages.
• Overlapping characters add depth.
• Fictionalized takes on real headlines.

2. Inside Edge
Amazon Prime | Season 2 | Release: December 6, 2019 | Episodes: 10 | Directors: Akash Bhatia, Karan Anshuman, Gurmeet Singh

India's pioneering cricket league drama returns, centering on the fictional Mumbai Mavericks IPL team. Beyond the pitch, it dives into off-field intrigue: match-fixing, betting, Bollywood-politics ties, and corporate cricket machinations.

Why watch:

• Fresh take on an unconventional sports theme.
• Authentic portrayal of cricket's glamour and grit.
• Exaggerated nods to real scandals like Padmaavat controversy, spot-fixing, IPL shifts to South Africa, and bans on Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings.
• Rich ensemble cast with intricate, linearly told subplots.

Read: Rotating the cast

3. The Family Man
Amazon Prime | Season 1 | Release: September 20, 2019 | Episodes: 10 | Directors: Raj Nidimoru, Krishna DK

Secret agent Srikant Tiwari (Manoj Bajpayee) balances covert ops against a massive terror threat eclipsing 26/11 with family life. He races to thwart disaster in Delhi while navigating personal and professional chaos.

Why watch:

• Headline-inspired realism.
• Stellar performances by Manoj Bajpayee, Priyamani, and Neeraj Madhav.
• Nuanced handling of terrorism, Kashmir, Pakistan without forced patriotism.
• Balanced views on beef vigilantism, hate speech, ISI, Balochistan, Syria, sleeper cells, and marital issues.
• Thorough research on locations and events.

Also read: Chief of Staff Season 3

4. Out of Love
Hotstar | Season 1 | Release: November 22, 2019 | Episodes: 5 | Directors: Tigmanshu Dhulia, Ejaz Khan

Remake of BBC's Doctor Foster, this thriller follows Meera (Rasika Dugal), a career-driven wife who suspects her husband Akshay of infidelity. Amid family doubts, suspense builds in this emotional rollercoaster.

Why watch:

• Sustains thriller tension through relational drama.
• Fresh spin on familiar infidelity tropes.
• Realistic depiction of urban cosmopolitan couples.
• Multilayered characters revealed progressively.

5. Leila
Netflix | Season 1 | Release: June 14, 2019 | Episodes: 6 | Directors: Deepa Mehta, Shankar Raman, Pawan Kumar

Adapted from Prayag Akbar's novel. In dystopian 2047 'Aryavarta', water scarcity fuels a segregated society with walled ghettos. Shalini (Huma Qureshi), a Hindu widow whose Muslim husband was killed, searches for her abducted daughter Leila.

Why watch:

• Chilling 'us vs. them' future that feels all too plausible.
• Capitalism's brutal extremes.
• Mirrors radical regimes like Taliban or Saudi Sharia, but with Hindu extremism.
• Subtle allusions to dictators like Hitler, Gaddafi, Saddam, and Kim Jong-un.