4 hours Ago By Prabal Sharma
‘Bollywood psychological thrillers ’ has become one of the Indian film industry’s most-watched genres considering the spate and quality of releases in recent years. Titles belonging to it often fall into multiple genres but what unifies them are aspects of psychological fiction. Furthermore, they can often end up becoming social commentaries about the adverse effects of poor mental health .
Although they very much exist in the real world, characters in these films are faced with situations that are vividly removed from actuality, and, if done right, can deliver just the right amount of tension and creeping highs. If you’re planning to delve into a spine-chilling binge session, here's a list of Bollywood psychological thrillers—both movies and shows—that you can start your marathon with. Gupt (1997) One of the best thrillers to come out of Bollywood—with a banger OST to boot— Gupt keeps up with the lives of Sahil, Sheetal and Isha.
Isha (Kajol) and Sahil (Bobby Deol) are in love and hope to marry but a spanner is thrown in the works when he is arrested for murdering his stepfather. Sahil is determined to prove his innocence and escapes from jail with help from Sheetal (who is also in love with him), but Inspector Udham Singh will stop at nothing to capture him. Streaming on Zee5 Karthik Calling Karthik (2010) Initially coming across as an entrant into the romantic genre, this Farhan Akhtar and Deepika Padukone-led film is layered with thrilling complexity.
Karthik Narayan (Akhtar) is an astute yet timid man harbouring severe childhood trauma. His problems with confidence often allow people to walk all over him, worsening his hold on the idea of living. In a curious turn of events, one morning, he receives a call from someone claiming to be Karthik as well.
This mysterious person transforms the skittish Karthik into an assured and successful man who even wins over his crush, Shonali Mukherjee ( Padukone ). However, a drastic revelation awaits as he tries to unearth the identity of the enigmatic caller. Streaming on Netflix and Amazon Prime Video Talaash (2012) Aamir Khan leads this dark plot as Inspector Surjan Singh Shekhawat, who is called into action after a prominent actor meets with a fatal accident.
The police officer finds it hard to focus wholeheartedly on the case owing to his 8-year-old son's recent demise, which has led to differences with his wife, Roshni (Rani Mukherji). Regardless, investigations get underway, and Surjan discovers a money trail associated with the deceased actor and the involvement of other parties, including an escort named Rosie ( Kareena Kapoor Khan ). The puzzle surrounding the accident keeps getting murkier with time until, eventually, Mumbai's underbelly spills out a twist no one saw coming.
Streaming on Netflix and Amazon Prime Video Kahaani (2012) Vidya Bagchi (Vidya Balan), a heavily pregnant software programmer from London, arrives in Kolkata to look for her missing husband. An earnest cop Rana (Parambrata Chattopadhyay) assists her in her quest but her husband seems to have disappeared into thin air—there are no school records, no relatives and no immigration records of him. Streaming on Prime Video Phobia (2016) Having developed severe agoraphobia after being sexually assaulted by a taxi driver, Mehak ( Radhika Apte ) moves into a new apartment to control her condition.
She is a skilful artist, but severe anxiety renders her homebound and paranoid. As solitary life becomes a new routine, Mehak gets acquainted with new neighbours who don't come across as trustworthy. Furthermore, she discovers a diary belonging to the former tenant who mysteriously disappeared and a new dread is born.
As she deals with fresh and vivid visions of intruders and murder, her loved ones must figure out if her trepidations are legitimate or imaginary. Streaming on Amazon Prime Video Bhram (2018) After a near-fatal car accident, bestselling author Alisha Khanna ( Kalki Koechlin ) develops severe PTSD and moves into her sister's place in Shimla to cope. Things go from bad to worse when she starts glimpsing a girl around the property.
Initially brushing it off as hallucinations owing to her condition, Alisha later discovers that a child had died 20 years ago nearby. On the pretext of writing a new book, she delves into the hills’ dangerous mystery, excavating striking evidence against some very powerful people who gradually start perishing. Streaming on ZEE5 Damaged (2018) The disappearance of a renowned painter kicks off a series of investigations that unearth the involvement of a vicious serial killer .
The culprit is revealed to be Lovina (Amruta Khanvilkar), a seductress who romances men and later butchers them. A ruthless and irate cop, Abhay Singh Pariyar (Amit Siyal), gets on the case and uses his skills to narrow in on Lovina. However, the dangerous woman has various aces up her sleeve, which may be too much for the authorities to handle.
Streaming on MX Player Andhadhun (2018) Akash (Ayushmann Khurrana) is a blind pianist whose life turns chaotic when he unwittingly becomes embroiled in a murder. Invited to perform at a wealthy man’s home, he stumbles upon a crime scene involving the man’s wife, Simi (Tabu), and her lover, Inspector Manohar (Manav Vij). Despite initially feigning ignorance due to his blindness, it’s revealed that Akash is only pretending to be blind.
This deception plunges him deeper into danger as he navigates the deadly cat-and-mouse game with Simi and Manohar while balancing his blossoming relationship with Sophie (Radhika Apte). Streaming on Google Play Abhay (2019) This dark and crime-riddled show is three seasons deep and follows SP Abhay Pratap Singh (Kumal Khemu), who goes to extreme lengths to solve various cases across his cesspool of a city. Abhay's ability to think and analyse as a criminal sets him apart from the rest.
However, his prowess also pits him against some of the vilest delinquents out there while dealing with his own demons along the way. The narrative aims to dissect every layer of a criminal 's mind, challenging the viewers’ psyche and morality in the process. Streaming on ZEE5 Game Over (2019) As the anniversary of her sexual assault nears, Swapna's ( Taapsee Pannu ) nyctophobia—extreme fear of the dark—starts to overpower her sanity.
She is a talented game designer but finds herself crippled by her mind's limitations. After a dangerous mishap, Swapna becomes wheelchair-bound and news about a serial killer targeting young women around her area starts doing the rounds. Unfortunately, the murderer targets her next and she, in her crippled state, must overcome her trauma in hopes of surviving.
Game Over was shot in Tamil and Telugu, and later dubbed in Hindi. Streaming on Netflix Asur (2020) Mythology meets murder in this gritty thriller set in the holy city of Varanasi . It chronicles the grinds of Nikhil Nair (Barun Sobti), a forensic expert-turned-teacher, who returns to his job at the CBI as a twisted serial killer wreaks havoc across the city.
He teams up with Dhananjay Rajpoot (Arshad Warsi), his former mentor, to get to the bottom of this murky case, but the duo finds themselves stuck in an endless loop as the killer outsmarts them at every step. Streaming on Voot Select Breathe: Into the Shadows (2020) A dangerous masked man kidnaps the 6-year-old daughter of Dr Avinash Sabharwal ( Abhishek Bachchan ), a well-known psychiatrist, and demands a curious ransom for her freedom: Avinash must murder a few people in order to get the girl back. Desperate to see his child again, the doctor gives in.
As he confirms his first kill, Inspector Kabir Savant (Amit Sadh) takes charge of the investigation. Avinash slyly joins the probe as a psychiatric expert , using his skills to mislead the authorities. However, the eventual revelation of the original kidnapper’s identity flips the entire plot on its head.
Streaming on Amazon Prime Video The Girl on the Train (2021) An adaptation of Paula Hawkins’ 2015 novel of the same name, The Girl on the Train sees a washed-up lawyer Mira Kapoor ( Parineeti Chopra ) battling amnesia post a car crash and going through a divorce . Her tribulations turn her into an alcoholic, and every day, she travels the same train route to gawk at a woman living the perfect life with her husband—a life Mira could have had. Her obsession soon turns into jealousy as she starts stalking the lady.
After a bout of amnesia, she discovers that her fantasy woman has been murdered, and she is the prime suspect. Streaming on Netflix Rudra: The Edge of Darkness (2022) An official remake of the British series Luther , Rudra: The Edge of Darkness travels into the grimy streets of Mumbai and delivers an insight into psychopathic minds that infest them. Meanwhile, on the other end of the spectrum is DCP Rudraveer Pratap Singh ( Ajay Devgan ), a ruthless and stellar cop who stops at nothing when it comes to fulfilling his duty.
Rudra's fatal flaw, however, is his tendency to get consumed by the darkness of the crimes he solves, blurring the boundaries between right and wrong. Streaming on Disney+ Hotstar Jaane Jaan (2023) Kareena Kapoor Khan made her OTT debut with this Sujoy Ghosh directorial based on the Japanese novel The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino. She plays Maya D’Souza, a single mother living in Kalimpong who faces a tumultuous situation when her abusive ex-husband shows up unexpectedly.
The plot thickens when Maya tries to cover up her former spouse’s murder with the help of her neighbour Naren (Jaideep Ahlawat) as a Mumbai cop (Vijay Varma) comes looking for him. Also read: 11 movies and TV shows to watch this week on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ Hotstar and more 10 of the most compulsively watchable true crime documentaries on Netflix right now 9 nail-biting thriller shows and movies to watch on Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ Hotstar, Apple TV and Netflix.
