Netflix’s Mandala Murders, despite benefiting from tremendous pre-release hype, has tanked in terms of both critical and audience reception. This Vaani Kapoor starrer has received largely scathing reviews from viewers, with some even calling it worse than The Royals.
The overall reception of Mandala Murders so far makes us wonder: what is going on with Netflix India? Over the past few years, Netflix has delivered some truly compelling, exhilarating, and breathtaking shows globally since 2019, such as titles like You, The Witcher, Squid Game, Sex Education, Bridgerton, Arcane, The Sandman, and many more.
But for some unknown reason, the world’s biggest streamer still hasn’t been able to crack the Indian OTT market.
Apart from a handful of hits like Sacred Games, Delhi Crime, Kota Factory, and a few others, most of what Netflix offers Indian viewers are shows that appear to be grand spectacles from the outside but are hollow or messy on the inside.
The reception of Mandala Murders shows why Netflix continues to struggle with truly capturing the Indian original content market, despite significant investment. While the show’s ambition is evident, its critical reception points to broader systemic issues within Netflix India’s content strategy.
The first and foremost issue with Mandala Murders is its leading lady: Vaani Kapoor. Compared to her supporting cast, brimmed with serious and sensational OTT talents like Surveen Chawla, Vaibhav Raj Gupta, Shriya Pilgaonkar, Jameel Khan, and others, Kapoor feels miscast and completely out of place. It doesn’t matter how good the supporting cast is if the protagonist of the show feels weak.
Netflix India has a history of casting popular mainstream actors, but this often doesn’t guarantee a strong, nuanced performance, especially in the long-form storytelling format of a web series. The focus on star power frequently overshadows the need for robust character development and compelling dialogue, which are crucial for audience engagement in the OTT space. Mandala Murders suffers from exactly this issue.
On top of that, the series tries to juggle way too many themes, like political commentary, mythology, social issues, even elements of the occult, science, and fantasy, but ends up going nowhere. By the time it reaches its finale, it completely loses its way and becomes an unrecoverable mess.
While experimentation is good, trying to explore every popular genre at once without organically integrating them leads to a confusing and muddled viewing experience.
In fact, Mandala Murders reminds us of so many Indian Netflix originals from the last 3–4 years that appeared grand and highly ambitious but fell short, or failed completely, when it came to execution.
For Netflix to truly crack the diverse and fiercely competitive Indian OTT market, it must move beyond superficial spectacle. The path forward demands a renewed focus on authentic storytelling, robust character development, and a willingness to embrace narratives that are genuinely rooted in the Indian ethos, rather than merely reflecting a global template.
Only then can it build on its early successes and establish a more enduring connection with its vast, discerning Indian viewership. Stay tuned for more updates.
We’re hiring!
We are hiring two full-time junior to mid-level writers with the option to work remotely. You need to work a 5-hour shift and be available to write. Interested candidates should email their sample articles to [email protected]. Applications without a sample article will not be considered.
