10 best Bollywood biopics on Netflix, Disney + Hotstar, ZEE5 and SonyLIV to watch right now

Bollywood has a long history with biopics, and the success of films based on real people and events proves that this mantra works quite well. In fact, there are a lot of interesting biopics to come out in the next few months, like Ranveer Singhs 83, Ajay Devgns Maidaan, Vidya Balans Shakuntala Devi and Janhvi Kapoors Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl to name a few. While there is still some time before these movies hit theaters or OTT platforms, you can, in the meantime, choose from the worthy Bollywood biopics that are available on Netflix, Disney + Hotstar, ZEE5 and SonyLIV.

10 best Bollywood biopics on Netflix, Disney + Hotstar, ZEE5 and SonyLIV

1. SANJU NETFLIX

Sanjay Dutt has lived a fairly controversial life. And actor Ranbir Kapoor, under the direction of Rajkumar Hirani, breathed life into his biopic titled, well, Sanju; the film has become one of the most profitable Indian films of all time. At the time of the film’s release, the directors shared a video presenting the transformation of Ranbirs, both physical and with the help of prosthetics and makeup, for the role: Ranbir Kapoor looked so convincing that at after a while he started to look more like Sanjay Dutt and less like him. The film presents an overall cast including Paresh Rawal (as Sunil Dutt), Manisha Koirala (Nargis Dutt), Vicky Kaushal (as Kamlesh Kanhaiyalal Kapasi), Dia Mirza (as Manyata Dutt), Sonam Kapoor (as Ruby), Anushka Sharma , Jim Sarbh and Boman Irani among others.

2. NEERJA DISNEY + HOTSTAR

The film is based on the life of Neerja Bhanot, the brave stewardess who was posthumously honored with the Ashok Chakra, for sacrificing her life while saving passengers on a flight that has was hijacked by terrorists in 1986. Sonam Kapoor Ahuja’s performance earned him special mention at 64e National film awards. The film also won a national award for best feature film. Directed by Ram Madhvani, the film also presents Shabana Azmi, Jim Sarbh, Yogendra Tiku, Ali Baldiwala, Vikrant Singta and Abrar Zahoor among others.

3. MS DHONI: THE UNKNOWN HISTORY DISNEY + HOTSTAR

Directed by Neeraj Pandey, this sports biopic highlights the journey of MS Dhoni, from the time he was a ticket collector to becoming one of the most famous cricketers of his time. The film, which also features Disha Patani, Kiara Advani and Anupam Kher, has become one of the most profitable Bollywood films of 2016. Sushant Singh Rajput, who entered the shoes of Captain Cool of the Indian National Cricket Team, was highly appreciated for his performance. According to former cricketer Kiran More, who also trained Sushant for the role, the actor practiced regularly for nine months and even mastered Dhonis helicopter shooting.

4. BHAAG MILKHA BHAAG DISNEY + HOTSTAR

Directed by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, the film is a sports biopic that tells the story of former sprinter Milkha Singh, his beginnings in the army and how he fought all odds to become The Flying Sikh. The film features Farhan Akhtar as Milkha Singh; and when the actor and former athlete first met for the film, the latter challenged the actor to a race. Milkha Singh even presented the shoes he wore at the Olympic Games in Rome in Farhan at the time of filming (according to IMDb). The film also stars Sonam Kapoor, Divya Dutta, Pavan Malhotra, Prakash Raj, Rebecca Breeds and Yograj Singh.

5. THE ACCIDENTAL PRIME MINISTER ZEE5

With Anupam Kher and Akshaye Khanna in important roles, this biopic is based on the controversial 2014 book by Sanjaya Baru titled Prime Minister accidentally: manufacturing and dismantling of Manmohan Singh. Sanjaya Baru is an Indian policy analyst who acted as media advisor to former Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh during his tenure from 2004 to 2014. Directed by Vijay Ratnakar Gutte, the film has sparked much controversy at the time of his release and was reportedly accused of distorting the internal politics of the Congress party.

6. MANJHI: THE NETFLIX MOUNTAIN MAN

Directed by Ketan Mehta, this biopic revolves around Dashrath Manjhi, an ordinary man who goes on an extraordinary mission with a hammer and a chisel being his choice of weapons. The film is an ode to his decades (22 years to be precise) of grueling work and determination to carve out a road that would continue to link his village to the nearest town. Nawazuddin Siddiqui plays the role of Dashrath Manjhi, also known as Mountain Man, and Radhika Apte plays his wife Phaguniya.

7. SHAHID SONYLIV

Based on the life of human rights activist and lawyer Shahid Azmi, Rajkummar Rao and Hansal Mehta won the National Film Awards for Best Actor and Best Director for this gritty film, respectively. Rajkummar Rao plays Shahid Azmi, a troubled lawyer who begins to receive death threats for fighting cases for people wrongly charged under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA). The film also features Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, Tigmanshu Dhulia, Kay Kay Menon, Shalini Vatsa and Prabhleen Sandhu to name a few.

8. SUPER 30 DISNEY + HOTSTAR

Super 30 is a biographical dramatic film starring Hrithik Roshan as Anand Kumar, a genius mathematician from Patna, who is widely known for his educational program called Super 30. As part of this annual program, he selects 30 deserving students of economically weaker sections and trains them to solve the IIT -JEE, the entrance exam to the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology. Directed by Vikas Bahl, the film presents an overall distribution including among others Virendra Saxena, Pankaj Tripathi, Mrunal Thakur, Rajesh Sharma and Aditya Srivastav.

9. SOORMA NETFLIX

Diljit Dosanjh plays an ice hockey player and former captain of the Indian hockey team Sandeep Singh who made a miraculous comeback after surviving an imminent death experience that left him in a wheelchair. Directed by Shaad Ali, the film also presents Taapsee Pannu and Angad Bedi. Interestingly, the song Flicker Singh is a kind of tribute to the man who is known as one of the most dangerous twinkles of his time.

10. THACKERAY NETFLIX

Directed by Abhijit Panse, the film tells the story of Balasaheb Thackeray, from a cartoonist to a powerful political leader who founded Shiv Sena. Nawazuddin Siddiqui is in the titular role alongside Amrita Rao who plays his wife. The film also features Prakash Belawadi, Sanjay Narvekar, Nikhil Mahajan, Rajesh Khera and Vineet Sharma in supporting roles. Thackeray open to mixed reviews, however, Nawazuddin Siddiquis’ performance and body language were unanimously praised by fans and critics alike.

10 best Bollywood biopics on Netflix, Disney + Hotstar, ZEE5 and SonyLIV