Jasmeet K. Reen’s Darlings, streaming on Netflix, has used the dark comedy genre to tell the story of domestic abuse, which is a reality for many women. Yet, the Alia Bhatt-Vijay Varma-starrer manages to bring on the laughs, without shying away from the horror of the violence. Here are five lesser-known dark comedy films in Hindi you can stream on OTT as a followup to Darlings.
Kadak (2019)
Rajat Kapoor’s 2019 film Kadak revolves around a Diwali party at the residence of Sunil and Maalti (Ranvir Shorey and Mansi Multani, respectively), but they have to hide a body from the guests to save themselves from going to jail. Kadak features an ensemble cast of Ranvir Shorey, Kalki Koechlin, Rajat Kapoor, Mansi Multani, Tara Sharma, Shruti Seth and Cyrus Sahukar. Themes of infidelity, jealousy and cheating are the mainstay of this film that depicts the story of a single night.
Watch it on: Sony Liv
Blackmail (2018)
Blackmail is helmed by Delhi Belly director Abhinay Deo and features Irrfan Khan, Kirti Kulhari, Arunoday Singh and Divya Dutta. The film follows the life of Dev (Irrfan), who decides to blackmail his wife’s wealthy lover but reveals his plan to one of his colleagues under the influence of alcohol. This triggers a vicious cycle of blackmailing and results in kidnappings and murders. There is a subplot involving a detective (played by Gajraj Rao), who also gets involved in the process of blackmailing.
Watch it on: Amazon Prime Video
Kaalakaandi (2017)
Directed by Akshat Verma, who previously wrote Delhi Belly, Kaalakaandi revolves around Rileen (Saif Ali Khan) who finds out that he is in the last stage of stomach cancer. Rileen decides to try things such as smoking weed and taking psychedelic drugs to enjoy what is left of his life, but it lands him in all sorts of trouble. There are two other parallel tracks that get connected towards the end. Verma explores themes such as crime, drug use, gender and death and turns Kaalakaandi into a laugh riot. The film also stars Akshay Oberoi, Deepak Dobriyal, Isha Talwar, Vijay Raaz and Sobhita Dhulipala.
Watch it on: Disney+Hotstar
Brij Mohan Amar Rahe (2017)
Faking one’s own death to give the police the slip following the murder of a debt collector forms the crux of Nikhil Bhat’s 2017 film Brij Mohan Amar Rahe. Themes of murder, infidelity and corruption in the law enforcement system are dealt with in a comic way. Arjun Mathur of Made in Heaven fame plays Brij Mohan in this dark comedy. The cast includes Nidhi Singh, Sunny Hinduja, Vijayant Kohli, Yogendra Tikku, Sheetal Thakur and Manav Vij.
Watch it on: Netflix
Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye! (2008)
Dibakar Banerjee’s Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye! chronicles the life and career of a thief, Lovinder ‘Lucky’ Singh (played by Abhay Deol), who uses unique methods to steal from well-to-do neighbourhoods in metro cities around the country. The wanted thief eventually gets caught by the police and introspects his life choices. Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye! is inspired by the mischievous real-life thief, Devinder Singh aka Bunty, who was titled ‘super-chor’ by the media. The film also stars Neetu Chandra, Manu Rishi, Richa Chadda, Archana Puran Singh and Paresh Rawal.
Watch it on: Netflix
