The ‘Sacred Games’ Drama: Netflix CEO’s Shocking Admission Sparks Backlash!
Netflix’s co-CEO Ted Sarandos recently stirred controversy with his reflections on the streaming giant’s choice of Sacred Games as its first Indian original series. The neo-noir crime thriller, based on Vikram Chandra’s 2006 novel and starring Saif Ali Khan and Nawazuddin Siddiqui, has been widely acclaimed and holds a special place in Indian streaming history. However, Sarandos questioned whether starting with such a niche crime drama was the right call for the Indian market.
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Speaking on Nikhil Kamath’s podcast, Sarandos explained, “Our very first Indian original show was Sacred Games. I thought, ‘This is going to be great. People in India love movies. This is a TV show that feels as big as a movie, it has movie stars.’ What’s interesting is that it was very novel, but we were introducing a brand new kind of entertainment in a country the size of India.”
He further admitted, “If I did it all over again, maybe I would have done Sacred Games a couple of years later, and started with more populist shows instead. But we knew that India was going to be a slower journey to get to where we wanted. The addressable market is growing, so it’s exciting.”
These remarks did not sit well with filmmaker Anurag Kashyap, who co-directed Sacred Games alongside Vikramaditya Motwane. Kashyap took to Instagram to call Sarandos “dumb,” writing, “He should have started with Saas Bahu… which he is doing now. I always knew the tech guys are dumb when it comes to storytelling but @tedsarandos is the definition of dumb is what I didn’t know. Good to discover that. This explains everything now.”
Fans of Sacred Games also expressed their disappointment at Sarandos’s comments. One fan wrote, “Sacred Games was a crown jewel of Indian storytelling. I remember I was in Vancouver when it was released. I decided to come back to India inspired by what I saw. Anurag Sir and Vikram Sir have done for storytelling what no contemporary filmmaker could.”
Another fan lamented, “No wonder The Royals get a new season while Kaala Paani is cancelled.” Another user praised the show’s pioneering role, commenting, “Sacred Games introduced Netflix to India. It introduced the idea of web series.”
Sacred Games, which premiered its first season in 2018 and followed up with a second season in 2019, is remembered for its gripping narrative and star-studded cast including Radhika Apte, Pankaj Tripathi, Kalki Koechlin, Surveen Chawla, and Ranvir Shorey. Despite mixed reviews for the second season, the show remains a milestone in Indian digital entertainment.
Netflix continues to expand its Indian content slate, increasingly focusing on populist themes that resonate
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