mid-day's OTT recommendations: Five movies and shows that you can binge-watch

Itrsquos true watching showsmovies takes away a lot of time but the actual time is spent on deciding what to watch I surfed for hours and days before locking on the five titles for this week Despite several big releases including Kangana Ranautrsquos Thalaivii and Sunny Kaushalrsquos Shiddat only a few managed to captivate my mind for its gore simplicity realistic and mindboggling storyline A series inspired by childrenrsquos games a documentary on one of the biggest pop stars a love story turned over on its head a crime narration and a show on the pressures faced by IIT students these have been my picks Whether you agree with my choices or not give it a watch and decide for yourself Here are this weekrsquos midday OTT recommendationsSquid Game NetflixDirector Hwang Donghyuk inspired by South Korean childrenrsquos games from the 70s and 80s created a 9episode series showcasing everything people can do for greed and desperation About 456 people are invited to play a strange childrenrsquos game with high stakes for a tempting amount Knowing that outside the game or within it life will always be on the line several take the plunge Hiding behind masks the gamersquos host gives them an option to quit but the truth of poverty and their debtridden lives bring them back Six games are played at the end of each the loser loses his life and every life is valued at 100 million The series is not for the fainthearted especially when you see brains and guts spilling out from people crushed to their death Plenty of gore and twists in the story will keep you hooked right till the end of the series Itrsquos interesting to see how the story explores human behaviour Usually in bloody movies the atmosphere is somber but mixing it with childrenrsquos games nursery rhymes and colourful sets almost throws you off ndash keyword being almost The show is dubbed in English which gives viewers who donrsquot like following subtitles an added advantage So donrsquot miss this oneBritney vs Spears NetflixYou would think Irsquom obsessed with Britney Spears because this is the second documentary about the pop star on my recommendation list Truth be told watching Samantha Starkrsquos Framing Britney Spears left me tearyeyed and puzzled but touched nonetheless Britney vs Spears directed and narrated by fan Erin Lee Carr is another version of the story that has statements of several people actually involved in her life ndash paparazzoturnedconfidante Adnan Ghalib and friend lsquobusiness manager Sam Lutfi ndash although their relationship with the singer is still uncertain Probably the only story to make sense will be one that comes directly from Britney herself Yes there is sensationalism involved in the documentary and it omits several key points about her conservatorship Despite that the documentary is corroborated with actual documents which is hard to ignore Whether Britney herself will like this version of her story that highlights her most controversial time is something time will tell The onehour special still feels incomplete but adds more chapters to the life of this celebrity who has often topped charts It makes for an interesting watch and will keep you hooked exactly how the makers intended it to be Believing this version of the story or not now thatrsquos a personal choiceKota Factory NetflixI am not an IIT student so Irsquom ignorant of the stress of studying for this exam but that doesnrsquot mean I am clueless about the pressures faced by students Student life is riddled with competition and anxiety and it comes attached to any stream one may choose be it MBBS or BMS or MBA Of course IIT is a tough subject and not everyone can ace it The series and its subsequent sequel revolve around Vaibhav who has come to Kota to prepare for his JEE and NEET Along with his friends he navigates campus life and love while working hard to ace the exam Strongwilled and dedicated he respects his professor Jeetu bhaiya effortlessly played by Jitendra and often seeks his advice be it educational or personal Made in blackandwhite the series is inspiring emotional real and comical at times Itrsquos a perfect blend of complicated young emotions ndash one that every student IIT or not should watchAamis SonyLIVThis 2019 IndianAssamese movie starts off slow with nonactors Lima Das and Arghadeep Baruah A love story between a PhD student and a married pediatrician that soon spirals out of control in the second half The story kicks off with their shared love for eating meat the subject of Baruahrsquos character Sumonrsquos thesis It is much about their love for food as much as it is about their equation bordering on what is taboo Wanting to give the other a piece of themselves to explore their love takes a turn that would cross most sensibilities or what one would term lsquoabnormalrsquo Then again one personrsquos normal is often anotherrsquos abnormal a world that is often explored by filmmaker Bhaskar Hazarika With no prior knowledge of his work this was my first Assamese movie and it only makes me want to explore this unexplored genre more Premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival the project garnered about five nominations in different categories but thatrsquos not the reason to watch this one Watch it if you can fathom the lengths one would go for love and if you can digest the storyline Again this one is not for the faintheartedCrime StoriesIndia Detectives NetflixAfter watching hordes of Crime Patrol and Saavdhan India episodes Netflixrsquos documentary based on Indian cops embroiled in gruesome crime stories doesnrsquot really shock you It in fact enthralls you into a simple narrative The series explored three gruesome murders and one kidnapping that were resolved within days in Bangalore Originally shot in Kannada and English the show explores the life of cops investigating the case and that of the crime entrusted to them While there is plenty of scope to improve in terms of direction and scripting itrsquos a firstofitskind documentary made on Indian detectives What I particularly liked about the series is how it changed the people involved in the investigation Humanising the stories and building a connection will give you a real peek into their lives and their internal conflicts Hoping that another season will rectify the smaller kinks this documentary is a good startAlso read middays OTT recommendations Five movies and shows that you can bingewatch