Streaming platform Disney+ Hotstar on Tuesday released the line-up of its upcoming shows and movies, including special series headlined by Ajay Devgn and Pratik Gandhi and the returning seasons of fan-favourites Aarya and Special Ops. Devgn makes his streaming and series debut along with Esha Deol in the crime drama Rudra: The Edge of Darkness, while Gandhi, who became an overnight star with his portrayal of the infamous stockbroker Harshad Mehta in the financial thriller series Scam 1992, features in the murder mystery Six Suspects alongside Richa Chadha and Ashutosh Rana. Actor Sushmita Sen, who made an impactful series debut in Aarya, as a woman who is forced to take over her husband’s illegal drug racket after he is shot dead, is returning with the second season of the show.
Other popular shows that are returning with new seasons include the Pankaj Tripathi-starrer Criminal Justice season 3, and the espionage thriller Special Ops 1.5, starring Kay Kay Menon. Sunil Rayan, President & Head, Disney+ Hotstar said the content slate demonstrates the streamer’s “relentless pursuit of bringing original and locally relevant stories” to the consumers. “With our fresh slate of movies and shows, we are proud that India’s top stars and industry stalwarts have chosen to debut with us to present stories that are genre-defining clubbed with high-quality production that makes Har Watch, Top Notch,” Rayan added.
The streamer is introducing three new subscription plans, namely – Mobile for INR 499/- per year (a single device, mobile-only plan), Super for INR 899/- per year (access to 2 devices across mobile, web and living room devices) and Premium for INR 1499/- per year (access to 4 devices across mobile, web and living room devices) from September 1. Gaurav Banerjee, President & Head, Hindi and English Entertainment, Star India said the slate offers an array of blockbuster movies and multilingual original series in Telugu and Tamil. At Disney Star, we believe in the power of great storytelling. We have always challenged conventions and been at the forefront of content creation with powerful and category-defining stories ranging from strong women-centric narratives, mythology to history and contemporary tales,” he said. The new shows on Disney+ Hotstar also include the lavishly mounted period action drama The Empire, starring Kunal Kapoor, Dino Morea, Shabana Azmi and Drashti Dhami; the medical drama Human, starring Shefali Shah and Kirti Kulhari, and Siddharth-starrer tech thriller Escaype Live.
Nagesh Kukunoor’s political drama City of Dreams season two, supernatural thriller Fear 1.0, crime drama Gharshana and family drama My Perfect Husband and mystery thriller “Family Matters” are part of the newly announced slate as well. The list also features a romantic comedy based on Anuja Chauhan’s novel “Those Pricey Thakur Girls” starring Akshay Oberoi, Saher Bamba, Raj Babbar and Poonam Dhillon; the live animation series The Legend of Hanuman season two and dance reality show “Dance+” with Remo D’souza. The new movies that the streamer has acquired are the recently released Hungama 2, Collar Bomb, Bhoot Police, and Bhuj: The Pride of India, slated to premiere on August 13.
In addition to these shows and movies, the subscribers will also have access to Disney library titles, Disney+ shows and movies as well as sports content through LIVE streams of the biggest cricket tournaments, including the VIVO IPL 2021 and the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup – all within the next six months (as per current schedule). The platform will also showcase LIVE streams of upcoming Tennis, Football and F1 tournaments.
