Akka on Netflix

Akka, Netflix's new Hindi crime drama starring Keerthy Suresh and Radhika Apte, began streaming on 30 October 2026. The five-episode first season is produced by YRF Entertainment, the streaming arm of Yash Raj Films, and is written and directed by Dharmaraj Shetty, who makes his debut as a filmmaker with the show.

Release date and platform

Netflix India confirmed the 30 October premiere in its official trailer, and PTI reported the date when the teaser came out on 17 October. Netflix's title page lists the show as a Hindi original with five episodes, each running between about 30 and 46 minutes, and gives it an A rating. Dubbed audio is available in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and English.

Storyline

The series is set in the 1980s in Pernuru, a fictional region in South India that has been built and governed by women for generations. Netflix sums up the premise this way: Bhavani, the matriarch of a kingdom ruled by women, faces her biggest threat yet in Rudra, a ruthless rebel who wants her land and her legacy.

Keerthy Suresh plays Bhavani, the heir to the clan's leadership, and Radhika Apte plays Rudra, the outsider who arrives to challenge it. Reviews describe a sisterhood that controls the local liquor and gold trade and sets strict rules of its own. The story also cuts back to the region's centuries-old history. The first season covers Rudra's push for power and Bhavani's response, and the show is open about violence and bloodshed.

Cast

• Keerthy Suresh as Bhavani. The Hollywood Reporter India called the show her streaming debut.
• Radhika Apte as Rudra
• Tanvi Azmi, in a key role as one of the clan's matriarchs
• Mahesh Manjrekar, Anshuman Pushkar, Poornima Indrajith, Anjali Patil, Vishak Nair and Monica Panwar, among others

Makers

Akka is the third series that YRF Entertainment has made with Netflix India, after The Railway Men and Mandala Murders, according to The Hollywood Reporter India. Aditya Chopra, Yogendra Mogre and Akshaye Widhani are credited as executive producers in the PTI report. The Hollywood Reporter India reported that filming began in November 2023 and described Akka as the banner's biggest streaming project so far.

When the teaser came out, Keerthy Suresh said in Netflix's announcement that Bhavani was one of the most unique characters she had played. Radhika Apte said the complexity of the characters and the tension between their points of view drew her to the role.

Reception

Critics are split. In The Indian Express, Shubhra Gupta praised the show's style and Keerthy Suresh's performance but found the plot thin on substance, calling it "a glossy Gangs of Kantarapura, minus true grit." The Hindu's review found the show's ideas about women and absolute power worth engaging with, though it noted that the series packages them as pulpy, mass-market drama. The Hollywood Reporter India headlined its review "All Decked Up And Nowhere To Go."

The Indian Express review also observes that the season builds to a turning point in its fifth episode and seems to pause there, which suggests more is planned. Netflix has not officially announced a second season.

Where to watch

All five episodes of Akka are now streaming on Netflix.