This story appears in the October 2020 issue of Television Asia Plus.

Today’s women are more empowered than ever as they take on bigger challenges and roles in society. To celebrate the many facets of women, India’s largest global OTT platform ZEE5 Global has these five content offerings that put the ladies front and centre. 

Archana Anand, the Chief Business Officer of Zee5 Global said, “As a global platform, ZEE5 brings its audiences a collection of stories from across the globe and across languages that are meaningful and relatable. Be it the bold and thought-provoking storyline of Churails, or something relatable as Kaali, we’re bringing in newer, richer narratives through our shows like Code M, Kaali, and Kadambini, which have strong women characters as lead protagonists, and that makes me proud.” 

Churails

A ZEE5 Exclusive Zindagi Original series, Churails stars Sarwat Gillani, Mehar Bano, Nirma Bucha, and Yasra Rizvi. The series focuses on the lives of four women: Sara, a lawyer that gave up her career to become the “perfect wife,”; Jugnu, a wedding planner; Zubaida, a boxer seeking independence and love, and Batool, an ex-con who was sentenced to 20 years in prison for murder. The ladies’ lives become intertwined when Sara discovers her husband cheating on her, after which the four decide to set up an agency to catch cheating husbands in action. They covertly run the agency under the guise of a retail burka store called “Halal Designs”, and call themselves Churails. When one of them goes missing, their investigation leads them to something much bigger than themselves, dominated by Karachi’s most powerful.

Kaali 2

A Telugu dubbed ZEE5 Original series starring Paoli Dam, Vidya Malavade, Abishek Banerjee, and Chandan Roy Sanyal. The show tells the story of Kaali, who goes to great lengths and risks her own life to save the life of her only child, Sunny. This time, she gets sucked into the world of crime and the stakes are higher than ever. The single mother agrees to help an international drug cartel claim their consignment right under the nose of the Kolkata Police. But is this really the end of her woes or just the beginning of something more sinister?

Mentalhood

A ZEE5 Original drama series starring Karisma Kapoor, Sanjay Suri, Dino Morea, Sandhya Mridul, Shilpa Shukla, Tillotama Shome, and Shruti Seth. The series revolves around the different natures of mothers and showcases how they maneuver their way through unreasonable expectations as they try their best to raise their children. The series explores the multitasking nature of different types of mothers and their ways of leading the best upbringing of their children.

Kadambini

This biopic tells the story of India’s first practicing female doctor, Kadambini Ganguly set in the forward-thinking pre-independence era of Calcutta. Ushashi Ray, the female lead from Bokul Kotha, plays Kadambini in the show. The story brings out the struggles of women during the East India Company’s rule when women’s rights and education seemed like a far cry. Amid this, Kadambini manages to challenge the archaic societal norms and set an example in a male-dominated society. Along her journey, she finds a friend and supporter in social reformer Dwarkanath Ganguly, who believed in uplifting the society and women from all walks of life. 

Khirer Putul

Based on the children’s fantasy novel written by Abanindranath Tagore in 1896, Khirer Putul is a  simple and touching tale on the sugar doll, the fate of Duo Rani, and an extraordinary monkey. The king of Deepnagar had two queens: Suo Rani who received seven palaces, 700 female slaves, the best ornaments from the seven kingdoms, seven gardens, and seven chariots; and Duo Rani, who received a broken home, a deaf and dumb maid, torn clothes, and a dirty bed. The drama showcases the stellar performance of Sudipta Roy who portrays Duo Rani.