Remakes rule in a time when viewers want new stories yet enjoy old-fashioned ones. While all remakes aren’t born equal, and many are of dubious quality, the best not attempt merely to translate the language but go as far as changing entire universes to have a local sense of culture, characters, and context.Streaming titans like Netflix have jumped onto this, funding Hindi translations of hit global shows. And what has emerged? Some downright riveting programming that has that homegrown feel, even if its origin lies elsewhere. The following are five global shows remade in Hindi that can be watched currently on Netflix—each reborn with its Indian identity.
1. Rana Naidu
- Original show: Ray Donovan (USA)
- Category: Crime Drama
Rana Naidu is the man politicians and celebrities call when they’re in a mess. He’s a fixer—the kind who gets paid to fix other people’s messy problems. But when his estranged father comes out of prison, the true mess starts. Unlike its US parent, which was based in Los Angeles, the Hindi adaptation transports us into the Mumbai underworld. The show eschews nothing—nothing-no family dysfunction, no moral grey, no street violence. Rana Daggubati and Venkatesh Daggubati create a raw, explosive father-son relationship. It’s not a copy—it’s a reimagining that packs an even greater punch in the Indian context.
2. Call My Agent: Bollywood
- Based on: Call My Agent! (France)
- Genre: Comedy-Drama
What does happen when you combine Hollywood-type celebrity mayhem with the surrealism of the Indian film business? Call My Agent: Bollywood—a fast-talking, quick-witted, and sometimes frenzied exploration of the lives of talent managers dealing with India’s largest stars.Whereas the French original was filmed in Paris, this one substitutes croissants with cutting chai and serves industry gossip with desi pizzazz. Real-life Bollywood stars such as Jackie Shroff, Dia Mirza, and Farah Khan play themselves, providing a dash of self-referential humour. It’s a love letter to the madness of showbiz—packed with charm, heart, and side-splitting breakdowns.
3. Class
- Based on: Elite (Spain)
- Type: Teen Thriller / Social Drama
Three scholarship students from Delhi’s working-class neighbourhoods enter a posh private school—and what follows is a storm of secrets, sex, betrayal, and class conflict. Class borrows its core premise from the Spanish hit Elite, but it adds layers of Indian socio-political tension. Where Elite highlighted European teen excess, Class infuses the series with gritty real-world concerns such as caste, corruption, and privilege. The show eschews no themes or graphic content, thereby emerging as one of Netflix India’s most audacious teen dramas. The reference? Elite is sleek and stylised, but Class hits closer to home in an Indian environment. It’s brash, pertinent, and a very real animal unto itself.
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4. The Archies
- Inspired by: Archie Comics (USA), or one might say, Riverdale
- Genre: Teen Musical / Coming-of-Age
Zoya Akhtar’s The Archies reinvents the legendary American comic-book characters against the backdrop of 1960s India. Filmed in the fictional town of Riverdale (India), the film tracks Archie Andrews, Betty Cooper, Veronica Lodge, Jughead Jones, and Reggie Mantle as they go through friendship, first love, rebellion, and activism—all through the eyes of a dynamic musical. As opposed to the dark, contemporary Riverdale series in the U.S, which incidentally is an adaptation of the comic titled Archie., The Archies opt for a gentler, nostalgic approach. With its Anglo-Indian retro look, vinyl records, and old-style cafes, the film is less a gritty adaptation and more of a cultural mashup of the comics.
Why These Remakes Work
What is remarkable about these adaptations is the way they localise the core without losing the soul. Rather than simply renaming and relocating, they reinterpret characters and themes to suit India’s social and emotional landscape.Whether it’s courtroom drama, celebrity meltdown, or family wars, these shows have a way of being both familiar and new. They recall that although cultures can vary, good storytelling has no geographical limits—just the perspective in which it’s being narrated. So if you’re browsing through Netflix tonight, give the dubbed ones a miss. Go for a desi remake instead. You might just discover that the Indian adaptation packs a punch.
Writer- Subham Choudhary