Netflix is an American company that offers streaming content to its users. It has more than 20 million subscribers worldwide. They produce documentaries, comedies, dramas, animation, and movies.It also offers many television series and movies in different languages such as Arabic, Hindi, and Urdu. In Pakistan, many people watch these movies and shows on Netflix, and they are called Netflix Originals.
Here’s the list of top Urdu films you need to watch on Netflix.
Must-watch Urdu Films on Netflix
“Dangal”, Directed by Aamir Khan (2017)
This movie is number one on the top Urdu films on Netflix. It is about the life of wrestler Mahavir Singh Phogat. His wife and daughters are killed when the building is attacked during an India-Pakistan war. He goes from village to village and finds a young girl who can wrestle.
Aamir Khan was nominated for Best Actor for his role as Mahavir Singh Phogat.
This film is set against the backdrop of the 1971 War, and the character of Mahavir is based on the real-life wrestling coach who made the little girl Akhter so popular.
Read More: Pakistani Film Cinema in Revival or in Downturn
“Khoobsurat”, Directed by Asif Kapadia (2016)
Khoobsurat is an Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy film directed by Asif Kapadia. It was released on 12 May 2016. The film stars Aamir Khan and Kareena Kapoor in leading roles. It is a remake of the 2006 Bengali film Tappada, and the third installment of the Woh Lamhe film series. Khoobsurat premiered at the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival on September 9, 2015. The film was released on 13 January 2016 in India and received positive reviews from critics.
Kapadia said he is working on the sequel of Khoobsurat in 2019.
The first poster of the film showed two women sitting opposite each other in a garden, with a male figure in the background. The film received mixed negative reviews from critics and was declared a Blockbuster at the box office. It is the second highest-grossing Bollywood film of 2016 and has been declared a super hit.It also became the most-streamed film in India on Netflix in 2016.
“Band Baaja Baaraat”, Directed by Zoya Akhtar (2019)
The movie Band Baaja Baaraat is an adaptation of the story of the Pakistani actress Sajjadah Ahmed. It is one of the top Urdu films on Netflix.
Zoya Akhtar directed this film, starring Imran Abbas Naqvi, Firdous Jamal, Mikaal Zulfiqar, and Sana Alvi. The movie was released on Netflix in 2019. Sajjadah Ahmed was born in Pakistan on 1 August 1982. She was a Pakistani television actress and model. Sajjadah’s most popular work is her TV series Kuch Toh Log Kahenge, and the romantic comedy film Band Baaja Baaraat. Her most admirable role was her character as Jyoti in the soap opera Kuch Toh Log Kahenge.
Sajjadah was the first Pakistani woman to win two Filmfare Awards for Best Actress for the films Aaina and Jab We Met. She won the Filmfare Award for Best Performance in a Leading Role in 2010, for the film Jab We Met. She married Sohaib Athar, actor Naseeruddin Shah’s son from his first marriage. Sajjadah died in a car crash on 25 September 2018.
Abida Parveen and Sufi Qamar composed the song “Main Tera Deewana” while Sahir Ludhianvi wrote the lyrics of the song. Band Baaja Baaraat, directed by Zoya Akhtar, is based on the true story of the Pakistani actress, Sajjadah Ahmed.
Sajjadah Ahmed was a popular Pakistani actress and model. She acted in numerous dramas and also starred in several films. She is also well known for her roles in the romantic comedy film Band Baaja Baaraat and the drama serial Woh Rehne Waali Mehlon Ki.
Read More: 15 Upcoming Pakistani Films That Audiences are Anxiously Waiting for
“Secret Superstar”, Directed by Gurinder Chadha (2015)
This movie on Netflix was made by British filmmaker Gurinder Chadha. Her most remarkable films include Bend It Like Beckham (2002), Mrs India (2005), and Bajirao Mastani (2014). The main actor in the movie is Fawad Khan. Fawad is known for his role in the 2014 film PK, where he played a mentally challenged man.
This movie is a comedy-drama that follows a young boy named Juggy (Fawad Khan) as he attends a music camp. Juggy struggles with his musical talent, and finds himself becoming more successful than his older brother, whose voice has been discovered by a recording company.
In addition, there are many other talented musicians in the movie who perform at a concert in London. They include the lead female singer, Ayesha Dharker. She had already appeared in a previous film, Bend it Like Beckham.
Fawad Khan plays the role of Juggy, who is an aspiring singer. He struggles with performing in front of people, which leads to him feeling inadequate and embarrassed. His biggest fear is that his brother will discover how bad he is at singing. However, Juggy’s mother is worried about this too, as she does not want to see Juggy become like his older brother, who has been given a contract with a recording company.
This movie has many characters, including Juggy’s brother, his classmates, his teacher, and many other performers.
“Kabootar”, Directed by Nadeem Beyg (2009)
One of the top Urdu films on Netflix, Kabootar, is about four friends:
Aisha: A middle-class girl who works in a shop and is secretly in love with her brother’s friend, Shahrukh.
Abba: An ordinary man who lives in an ordinary house with his wife and daughter.
Arshad: A rich kid who is in love with Aisha.
Shehzad: A joker and Arshad’s best friend.
Shahrukh is a drug addict who sells his pills to support his drug habit.
He is also a bully and a womanizer.
One day, he takes a pill and goes crazy. He rapes Aisha and then tries to kill her. But Shahrukh is saved by Abba, Shehzad, and Arshad. Meanwhile, the police find out about the rape and arrest Shahrukh. The next day, he is released on bail.
The police try to call him to the court but he doesn’t answer. So they try to contact Shahrukh’s mother. They get a phone number, but when they call the number, no one answers. So they send a search party to the address they have. The search party finds a note left by Shahrukh’s mother.
They go to the house and find Abba, who says that Shahrukh is at a rehab center. They go there and ask the director where Shahrukh is. He tells them that he was released last night.
Shahrukh shows up, and everyone realizes that he has changed. He has become a completely different person. Shahrukh apologizes to everyone, including Aisha. He also apologizes to the rapist, whom he now knows is a drug addict. The film ends with Aisha and Shahrukh getting married.
Kabootar is about friendship and loyalty and how much of a difference one person can make in the life of another person.
Read More: Moor: A Pakistani Film by Jami
“Haider”, Directed by Meghna Gulzar (2014)
Haider is a 2004 Pakistani comedy-drama film on Netflix written and directed by Meghna Gulzar. It tells the story of Zain (played by Shahid Kapoor), an uneducated, unemployed young man who works as a night watchman in a hospital.
The story begins with the protagonist accidentally shooting an old woman.
He is sent to prison where he meets his cellmate Salim (played by Waseem Abbas).
While in prison, Haider begins to think about the life of the old woman whom he killed. He decides to track down her family, and asks the doctor, played by Naseeruddin Shah, to help him.
The doctor agrees to do so and takes Haider to meet the family. In the course of the story, Haider and the doctor come across many other characters, each of whom has a significant effect on the plot.
Udta Punjab”, Directed by Ali Abbas Zafar (2016)
This is an account of the Indian government’s decision to ban the film “Udta Punjab”, directed by Ali Abbas Zafar. This is one of the top Urdu films on Netflix released in 2016.
In the movie, the story focuses on the issue of illicit substance use in the state of Punjab. The state of Punjab is one of India’s most populous states, located in the north of the country. It is also known as the land of the five rivers.
In the film on Netflix, a young man named Iqbal Khan is involved in a drug deal. He wants to earn money to buy a car for his girlfriend, and the buyer turns out to be a police officer. Iqbal is taken into custody.
The film opens with the arrest of a group of college students who are smoking weed in a park. When the police arrive, the students quickly disperse. However, a student named Javed is apprehended.
In the next scene, we see Javed in court. He is charged with selling cannabis to a police officer. Javed denies the charges and says he was selling weed for a friend. The judge, however, does not believe him.
The film shows how illegal drugs enter the community through hashish. One of the characters in the film says that he got into this business because he “was poor and had no future.”
“The Breadwinner”, Directed by Deborah Forte (2013)
Last one on the top Urdu films on Netflix is Breadwinner. The term ‘Breadwinner’ describes a woman who works outside the home and provides for the family financially. It is common for women to find themselves in this situation in many societies where the role of the breadwinner is still considered essential.
In Pakistan, a breadwinner system is so deeply ingrained into society that it is the norm.
For example, if the man of the house is working abroad and the wife cannot find a job, the woman may work to provide for her family. But the term ‘breadwinner’ is a derogatory one, implying that a woman is doing something bad. She has to work to earn money that she should be spending time with her husband and children.
The movie follows the story of two sisters, Nazneen and Yasmeen, who are forced to take over their mother’s responsibilities when their father leaves the country to work in Dubai. They have to decide what is most important in their lives – their mother’s dreams of becoming a doctor, or their own ambitions of being successful in the corporate world.
The movie is based on a true story. A woman named Reema Banday wrote a book about her life after her husband left to work abroad. She used to work in the corporate world but was forced to quit to raise her two children and care for her ailing mother.