Three consecutive weeks on Netflix’s Global Top 10 Non-English Films chart is the kind of run that normally announces a blockbuster. For Taapsee Pannu’s Gandhari, it has reopened a different conversation: why the actor still sees herself as the “dark horse” of Hindi cinema.
A global run with little pre-release fanfare
According to the film’s team, Gandhari has now held its place on Netflix’s Global Top 10 Non-English Films chart for three straight weeks, reaching viewers across multiple countries. The role has also drawn notice for Taapsee’s action work; the team says she performed her own stunts after extensive preparation for the physically demanding sequences.
The run is the latest chapter in a career built around performance-led roles. Pink, Thappad and now Gandhari share a pattern, Taapsee says: modest pre-release anticipation, stronger recognition once audiences actually watch the film.
Why “dark horse” fits
Taapsee was candid about the gap between her films’ eventual reach and their early buzz. “I call myself the dark horse because no one really believes that I can do it,” she said. She noted that Gandhari was never counted among the year’s top five most anticipated releases.
The pattern is not new. She said it has followed her through Pink, Thappad and her other films, and she contrasted her position with that of the industry’s biggest female stars, whose releases are treated as worth the audience’s time by default.
“I have always been the dark horse because eventually I deliver.”
The repeated need to prove herself can sting, she admitted, but she also called it an achievement. For audiences who have followed her work, the comments are a reminder of how Hindi cinema’s anticipation economy tends to reward a small set of names. Taapsee’s counterargument is simple: Gandhari found its global place without belonging to that set.
What the streaming run signals
The three-week global chart run is a data point in a wider story about how Hindi films travel on streaming platforms. Some titles arrive with heavy marketing and taper quickly; others build audiences over weeks through word of mouth.
- Gandhari has held Netflix’s Global Top 10 Non-English Films spot for three consecutive weeks, per the film’s team.
- Taapsee says her films, including Pink and Thappad, rarely arrive as the year’s most anticipated titles.
- The actor’s view: a film does not need to be among the most anticipated releases to connect with audiences.
The outlook
For the industry, Taapsee’s framing draws a useful line between anticipation and delivery. They are separate currencies, and Gandhari is currently earning the second. Whether the next Taapsee release is marketed with more upfront faith, or whether she keeps winning once the film is out, is now the open question. Her own answer is already on the record.
Source: Moneycontrol
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