The year 2021 brought a mixed bag of content, like any other year. We witnessed numerous refreshing storylines unfold and some plots done to death. However, it won’t be wrong to say that the OTT platforms ruled this year. With a slew of new web series and follow-up seasons of popular ones, we rarely had any shortage of choices.  

1. Tabbar 

The family drama, unlike any other, is a must-watch for the gripping storyline, outstanding performances and originality. Veterans such as Pavan Malhotra and Supriya Pathak Shah deliver, as expected, but the newcomers ably support the leads. Tabbar is the edge-of-the-seat thriller Bollywood couldn’t give us. 

2. The Family Man Season 2

The crime-thriller remains among our topmost choices this year too. Manoj Bajpayee’s acting prowess did draw us to the series in the first season. But it won’t be misleading to say that Samantha Ruth Prabhu as Raji made the second installment what it was. 

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3. Aarya Season 2

Sushmita Sen returned to the screens with a bang and we just couldn’t stop talking about her performance in Aarya. This year, the second part of the series dropped with more complicated storylines and twists. We see Aarya evolve as a mother as well as an anti-hero. 

4. Aspirants 

Even though the TVF series was constantly compared to Kota Factory, it managed to claim its position as one of the finest web-series in 2021. The shows that revolves around UPSC aspirants and their struggles became an instant hit. 

5. Gullak Season 2 

Another show churned out by TVF was the second installment of Gullak. It beautifully captures the quirks of a typical Indian middle-class family. If you haven’t watched this gem already, it’s never too late!

6. Little Things Season 4 

The show came to an end with its fourth season. They continued to show love more realistically than we had ever seen before but with more exceptionally written characters.  

7. Kota Factory Season 2 

Kota Factory remains among our beloved shows as the follow-up season outdoes itself. There are more hurdles, more motivational speeches and more mature worldview. 

8. Mumbai Diaries 26/11

The series presents a fictionalised account of the Mumbai attack and chronicles the horrors of that dark night. The storytelling is spot on and so are the performances in the high-intensity drama. 

9. Bombay Begums 

The series that stitches together the stories of five women, from different walks of life, deserves a place among the finest solely for the commendable performances delivered by the star cast. More than anything else, the Bombay Begums introduces us to flawed but relatable female protagonists.

10. The Empire 

The series based on the historical fiction novel series ‘Empire of the Moghuls’ revisits the Mughal history. However, the weak script and cliches fail the ambitious project. 

11. Grahan 

The period drama is engaging and gripping, no doubt there. Grahan delves into the distorted nature of society and politics. The brilliant performances keep you hooked as well. But it picks up pace only in the later episodes. 

12. Maharani 

The political drama starring Huma Qureshi was yet another ambitious project that felt massively underwritten. Maharani takes a dive into the messy Indian politics but couldn’t manage to go much deeper. 

13. The Married Women

The Married Women tries to narrate the story of a woman discovering her sexuality and individuality until it’s killed by melodrama. 

 14. Aranyak 

A fairly new show, Aryanak rides on the acting prowess of its leads – Raveena Tandon and Parambrata Chatterjee. The slow-burn mystery is familiar story packaged differently. 

15. Decoupled

If you have been on social media lately, you would know why this series made it to the bottom of this list. R. Madhavan’s exceptional performance couldn’t divert our attention from the problematic script. 

16. Tandav 

Tandav, a political-drama massively failed by the lousy script. Even with a stellar cast, involving Saif Ali Khan, Dimple Kapadia, Mohd. Zeeshan Ayyub and Sunil Grover, the show was under-whelming to watch.