Movies
Jaideep Ahlawat’s birthday special: Six breakthrough audio & web shows and films
Mumbai: As we celebrate the birthday of Jaideep Ahlawat, a distinguished actor renowned for his exceptional acting prowess and brilliant screen presence, here’s a specially curated list of audio, web series and films that you can listen to or watch featuring the versatile actor. In recent years, Jaideep Ahlawat has carved a niche in the entertainment industry, having garnered awards and recognition for his exceptional performances. Join us as we countdown the top OTT shows and films featuring this powerhouse performer, guaranteed to make your streaming experience truly unforgettable!
Marvel’s Wastelanders: Hawkeye
Platform: Audible
Thirty years ago, the villains of the world rose up and killed all the heroes. Well, all the heroes that mattered. The sole survivor of the Avengers, Hawkeye voiced by Jaideep Ahlawat is now a sideshow freak, re-living the worst day of his life for paying audiences. He’s surly, broken, and losing his sight, but there’s still that fire in him to be a hero, to avenge his friends. Hawkeye gets an unexpected visitor, his estranged 17-year-old daughter Ash (Prajakta Koli) on her quest for vengeance after losing her best friend. She insists on following him on his secret mission: killing every last person responsible for the deaths of those he loved the most. Tune into this gripping Hindi Audible Original podcast series to experience Jaideep Ahlawat’s stellar performance as Hawkeye!
Platform: Audible
Baby Doll is a thrilling podcast series, starring Jaideep Ahlawat and Richa Chadha. Richa Chadha portrays Baby, a wounded and disgraced sex worker, on a mission to seek vengeance against the formidable underworld figure, Balwant Rana, played by Jaideep Ahlawat, for the brutal demise of her friend. As Baby seeks revenge, things get chaotic in this tough story set in the countryside. The characters face challenges, and winning is rarely an easy feat for the vulnerable. This intriguing revenge drama resonates with women who bravely stand up for themselves despite facing adversity, making it a must-listen.
Platform: Amazon Prime
Discover the dark underbelly of Indian society to the corridors of power in this intense drama series as Hathi Ram Chaudhary, played by Jaideep Ahlawat unravels a complex web of crime surrounding an assassination attempt on a prominent journalist. Little does he know, the case is a twisted puzzle where appearances are deceiving. The series dives deep into society’s flaws, revealing corruption, caste biases, and moral uncertainty, reflecting on systemic injustices and the delicate line between right and wrong in a society on the brink.
Platform: Amazon Prime
Set in the hinterland of India in Wasseypur, this Anurag Kashyap directorial spans decades and intricately weaves the turbulent lives and shocking fates of two influential families in a relentless battle for dominance in the coal-rich slums of Eastern India. Inspired by the true stories of local gangs, brace yourselves for a blood-soaked saga with raining bullets, crumbling alliances, and the thirst for power becomes a game of survival!
Platform: Netflix
Written and directed by Sujoy Ghosh, dive into the enigmatic world of ‘Jaane Jaan’, where Kareena Kapoor Khan takes the lead as a single mother entwined in a murder mystery, alongside Jaideep Ahlawat and Vijay Varma. As the suspense unfolds, a genius math teacher (Jaideep), her neighbour, steps in to assist, while an unwavering cop unravels the case. Jaideep Ahlawat’s exceptional portrayal of a teacher in ‘Jaane Jaan’ sets the stage for a unique kind of hero, earning him widespread acclaim from critics.
Platform: Netflix
Directed by Avinash Arun, ‘Three of Us’ features Shefali Shah as Shailaja Desai, who is diagnosed with dementia. Swanand Kirkire plays her husband, and Jaideep Ahlawat takes on the role of her childhood sweetheart. The storyline unfolds as Shailaja, accompanied by her husband, revisits her hometown, unearthing buried memories and rekindling a former love, creating a poignant journey through her past. Indulge in a nostalgic journey as this film takes you back to the sweetness and simplicity of first love, offering viewers a heartwarming experience.
Hindi
GUEST COLUMN: Why film libraries & IPs are the new engines of growth
Unlocking value through catalogue strength and IP synergy
MUMBAI:In a media landscape defined by fragmentation, platform proliferation, and ever-evolving audience behavior, the economics of filmmaking are undergoing a fundamental shift. No longer confined to box office performance, a film’s true value is now measured across an extended lifecycle that spans digital platforms, syndication networks, and global markets. As content consumption becomes increasingly non-linear and algorithm-driven, film libraries and intellectual properties (IPs) are emerging as strategic assets, capable of delivering sustained, long-term returns. For Mohan Gopinath, head – bollywood business at Shemaroo Entertainment Ltd., this transformation signals a decisive move from hit-driven models to portfolio-led value creation. In this piece, Gopinath explores how legacy content, when intelligently repurposed and distributed, can unlock recurring revenue streams, why the interplay between catalogue and original IP is critical, and how media companies can build resilient, future-ready entertainment businesses.
For all these years, we thought that a film is successful if it performs well in theatres. There are opening weekend numbers, box office milestones, and distribution footprints that gave a good picture of how the movie has done commercially and also tell us about its cultural impact. However, there are multiple platforms today, always-on content ecosystem, which has caused a shift. Today, the theatrical performance is not the culmination of a film’s journey but merely the beginning of a much longer and more dynamic lifecycle.
Film libraries today are emerging as high-value, constantly evolving assets that deliver sustained returns well beyond initial release cycles. This becomes a point of great advantage for legacy content owners with diverse catalogues, to shape long-term business outcomes.
According to FICCI-EY, the media and entertainment industry of India achieved a valuation of Rs 2.78 trillion in 2025 which is expected to reach Rs 3.3 trillion by 2028 through a compound annual growth rate of approximately 7 per cent and digital media will bring in more than Rs 1 trillion to become the biggest sector which generates about 36 per cent of overall market revenues.
This shift is the expansion of distribution endpoints. We know how satellite television was once the primary secondary window but today, it coexists with YouTube, OTT platforms, Connected TV, and FAST channels. Each of these platforms caters to distinct audience demographics and consumption behaviors, helping content owners to obtain more value from the same asset across multiple formats.
For instance, films that had great reruns, now find continuous engagement across digital platforms. On YouTube, classic Hindi cinema continues to attract significant viewership, reaching audiences across generations and geographies with remarkable consistency. At Shemaroo Entertainment, this is reflected in our film library shaped over decades as part of a long association with Indian entertainment. From classics such as Amar Akbar Anthony to much-loved entertainers like Jab We Met, Welcome, Dhamaal, Phir Hera Pheri, Dhol, Golmaal, and Bhagam Bhag, many of these titles continue finding new audiences while retaining their place in popular memory. Their enduring appeal reflects how culturally resonant stories can continue creating value over time. Similarly, FAST channels have created curated, always-on environments where catalogue content can continue to thrive through star-led and genre-based programming.
This multi-platform approach has very well transformed films into long-tail IP assets which are capable of generating recurring revenue across advertising, subscription, and syndication models.
The evolution of audience behavior is equally important. Nowadays, it’s more important to find what’s more relative than what’s recent as viewers are more influenced by mood, memories, and algorithmic suggestions than by release schedules. Even if a movie was released decades ago, it can trend alongside a newly released movie, if surfaced in the right context. Thoughtful packaging, whether through festival-based playlists, actor-driven collections, or genre clusters, allows catalogue content to remain dynamic and continuously discoverable. Shemaroo Entertainment has built extensive film libraries over decades and its focus has mostly been on recontextualizing content for the consumption of newer environments. This process doesn’t just include digitization and restoration, but also re-packaging of films as per platforms.
Syndication itself has evolved into a key growth driver. In perspective, when looking at the domestic market, curated content packages continue to find strong demand across broadcast and digital platforms. Meanwhile, in the international market, especially in markets like Middle East, North America and Southeast Asia, the appetite for Indian content is opening up new monetization avenues. Here, the ability to package and position catalogue content effectively becomes as important as the content itself.
Importantly, the need to re-package catalogue content does not diminish the role of new content. In fact, originals and fresh IP are essential to sustaining the long-term value of a film library because they act as discovery engines that bring audiences into the ecosystem, while catalogue content drives depth, retention, and repeat engagement.
This interplay between the “new” and the “known” is what defines a robust content strategy today. While new films generate spikes in consumption, catalogue titles offer familiarity and comfort. These are factors that are increasingly valuable in an era of content abundance and decision fatigue. This is also shaping our strategy, drawing value from both a deep catalogue assets and a growing focus on original IPs to strengthen long-term audience engagement and build more predictable revenue streams.
There is growing recognition that long-term value in entertainment will be shaped not only by how intelligently existing content continues to live, travel and find relevance, but also by how consistently new stories are created to renew that ecosystem. In that sense, film libraries and original IP are not parallel bets, but reinforcing engines of growth. For media companies, the opportunity lies in making these two forces work together, because that is increasingly where more resilient and predictable businesses are being shaped.
Note: The views expressed in this article are solely the author’s and do not necessarily reflect our own.
