Variety is the spice on the OTT platforms and there is no dearth of content from all possible genres. However, lately the digital space is increasingly exploring plots and stories around the political spectrum, some of which seem inspired by real-life political figures and incidents too.

Most recently, shows such as Maharani, which loosely resembles the real-life political drama of Bihar in 1990s, is garnering much praise from the audience and critics alike. Actor Huma S Qureshi, who plays the titular role in the series, tells us, “Maharani is a political show for sure, but also a very hopeful show. It’s not something that leaves you without hope... It’s almost like a fantasy that everybody harbours that if, ‘I’d be the chief minister or Prime Minister, I’d do this and that’. It’s a common man’s dream.”

Qureshi cites an example of Anil Kapoor-starrer Nayak (2001). “It plays into that fantasy. But when done in a realistic political setting, most people connect with that,” she adds.

Even Ramya Krishnan-starrer Queen, which chronicles the life of Shakti Seshadri — a character that bears an uncanny resemblance to late Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa — has been loved by audiences.

There are multiple reasons that make political dramas an audience favourite, feels Gautam Talwar, chief content officer of the OTT platform that screens Queen. “Firstly, these larger than life personalities who’re tasked with running the government, tend to garner heightened attention and curiosity from viewers. Secondly, their personal lives — be it what motivated them to join politics, their childhood, their lives as young adults, among others, make for compelling storytelling, and the common man loves to know the back story about the leaders,” he explains.

Among other web shows based on political themes is the Telugu web series Chadarangam, which revolves around the life of Sr NTR, Modi - Journey Of A Common Man based on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s life, and City Of Dreams, that explores themes of crime, politics and family conflicts. There’s also a biopic series planned on the life of actor-turned-politician, Sumalatha.

Talwar says that as a storyteller, what interests him the most about political genre is the fact that they’re able to recreate certain parts of history with a nuanced POV, that makes for an interesting watch. “What really appeals is the journey of these characters from very humble, modest beginnings, to them achieving the epitome of power in their respective field,” he adds.

Amit Sial, who stars in Maharani, opines that the shows based on, or inspired by, political figures give the audience a deep sense of satisfaction, as well as a hope. Talking about the show, he shares, “It’s a well etched out script, so I mostly relied on what was written. Subhash Kapoor (creator of the show) is an ex political journalist, so he has deep knowledge and good understanding of the subject. I think the audiences really like complex, political stories, and politics is the in thing right now.”

Actor Rajeev Siddhartha, who stars in Aashram, that has a plotline exposing godmen-politican nexus, feels that such stories can be explored in a bigger way on OTT platforms. “Web space allows to add more complexities, more layers and more information about the incident and characters. I feel that even the audiences like that. In the coming time, we’ll see more of these,” he concludes.