Worst of 2023 on OTT: From Sidharth Malhotra’s Mission Majnu to Sara Ali Khan’s Gaslight, web original films that failed to impress

In the year 2023, Bollywood released an exciting slate of movies promising an entertaining and engaging watch. While some struck a chord with the audience with their strong script and narratives, others, unfortunately, fell flat and should have been scraped at the scripting stage. As the year comes to an end, here we prepared the list of worst OTT original films that failed to impress.

Gaslight: Sara Ali Khan, Chitrangada Sen and Vikrant Massey starrer series piqued viewers’ interest with its cast and impressive trailer. However, it failed to strike a chord with the audience owing to its weak screenplay, shoddy script and unpredictable climax upon the release. Directed by Pavan Kripalani, the mystery-thriller film was released on 31 March 2023 on the OTT platform Disney+ Hotstar.

Tiku Weds Sheru: Despite having talented Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Avneet Kaur in the lead, the movie failed to impress the audience. The film was called out for its weak storyline and direction. Directed by Sai Kabir, the film is billed as a tale of two eccentric, starry-eyed characters, who want to make it big in Bollywood, however, it failed to even gather attention.

Mission Majnu: The spy thriller film directed by Shantanu Bagchi featuring Sidharth Malhotra and Rashmika Mandanna, the film takes place before and during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. The film opened to mixed reviews, while some called it a ‘gripping saga; others noticed a lack of thrill and suspense element. Backed by Ronnie Scrvwala, the film was released directly on Netflix on 20 January 2023.

Chor Nikal Ke Bhaga: Backed by Amar Kaushik and Dinesh Vijan, the film is at best passable fare owing to its predictable plot and outdated execution. The heist thriller is directed by Ajay Singh, and stars Yami Gautam and Sunny Kaushal in lead roles. The film released on 24 March 2023, directly for streaming, on Netflix.

Blind: Sonam Kapoor starrer Blind was a much-awaited release as the actress was returning to screens after quite some time. Directed by Shome Makhija, the film’s weak screenplay and predictable plot undermined Sonam’s powerful performance. The film premiered on 7 July 2023 on JioCinema

Pippa: The biographical war film based on the life of Captain Balram Singh Mehta of India's 45 Cavalry regiment, featuring Ishaan Khatter and Mrunal Thakur, traces the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, and the Bangladesh Liberation War. Directed by Raja Krishna Menon, the film received majorly negative reviews for half-baked writing and screenplay.

One Friday Night: Featuring Milind Soman and Raveena Tandon, Friday Night is a disengaging thriller-drama with poor writing and execution, the film is at best passable fare. The film had a direct-to-OTT release on Jio Cinema on 28 July 2023.