As the year draws to its conclusion (we don't know how many more twists it'll serve us still), it is time to reminisce the happenings of the 12 months. But majority of the memories are clouded by Covid-19 pandemic and the resulting lockdown. Entertainment industry, especially Cinemas, took a bad hit and all we have for the major portion of the year are OTT releases than theatrical releases.
Tollywood couldn't hope for a better opening to 2020. The Sankranthi race served us the biggest blockbusters in recent memory and we have witnessed two Rs. 200 Cr. Grossers released on two successive days. Sarileru Neekevvaru starring the peerless superstar Mahesh which also saw the return of the yesteryear lady superstar Vijayashanthi went on to become his biggest hit. Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo - with a tinge of magic from Trivikram, Allu Arjun's all round show, Thaman's soulful music, and a liberal helping from Pooja Hegde's legs - became the biggest Non-Prabhas hit for Tollywood.
Mollywood was at its finest delivering one Pycker India's Best Movie of the Week after another before the lockdown closed the doors. Megastar Mammootty himself took the initiative to place a premium on public health than theatre business and Cinemas wrote to the government to close Cinema halls. OTT releases kept Mollywood in popular imagination like never before. C U Soon is as great innovation gets as it is possible humanly.
Kannada Cinema and Bengali Cinema too delivered a few good OTT releases. But theatrical action is badly missed. Bollywood has never seen such negativity among the public and Sushant Singh's tragic death spelled death knell for a few films. His last movie Dil Bechara, a Disney+ Hotstar release (made free for all) is the biggest OTT hit (critically okayish and commercially... ) of all time.
Keerthy Suresh had a marquee year and became the pan-India heroine of popularity. Her two two OTT releases (Penguin and Miss India) are commercial hits. Tollywood has seen a string of mediocre to great releases on streaming services. Colour Photo remains both a critical blockbuster and fan favorite. Kollywood which remained silent for the most part delivered a bang with Soorarai Pottru and Mookuthi Amman. Nayanthara is the lady superstar and Suriya returned to form quite emphatically.
Here is a list of 10 best Indian movies released on OTTs that deserve a theatrical release.
| S.No | Movie Title | Language |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | C U Soon | Malayalam |
| 2 | Gunjan Saxena (with reservations) | Hindi |
| 3 | Soorarai Pottru (Aakasham Nee Haddhu Raa) | Tamil (Telugu) |
| 4 | Mookuthi Amman (Ammoru Thalli) | Tamil (Telugu) |
| 5 | Colour Photo | Telugu |
| 6 | Anaganaga O Atithi | Telugu |
| 7 | Andhagaaram | Tamil |
| 8 | Dil Bechara | Hindi |
| 9 | Bhanumathi Ramakrishna | Telugu |
| 10 | Tiki Taka | Bengali |
