10 Years of Stories Beyond Borders: How Thoughtful localisation efforts are blurring the boundaries for Indian Stories on Netflix
As Netflix marks 10 years in India, one of the defining strengths of its story telling journey has been its commitment to making Indian stories accessible to audiences across languages and borders without compromising on their authenticity. As more viewers discover films and series beyond their own language, localisation has become a defining part of how Netflix approaches storytelling. Today, dubbing is no longer just about making content accessible in another language. It’s about preserving the emotion, cultural nuances and authenticity of the original performance so a story lands exactly as it was meant to, no matter what language audiences choose to watch it in.
When the acclaimed Tamil drama Made in Korea released on Netflix, it found audiences across India and among the global diaspora, including many who did not speak Tamil. At the film’s post-launch event, director RA Karthik reflected on how the language dubs and subtitles helped the film travel. He shared an anecdote about a friend in the US who watched the dubbed version and called him to ask if Tamil was actually the film’s original language a testament to how seamlessly the story resonated across languages.
For a story so deeply rooted in Tamil culture, audiences felt so immersed in the performances that the language itself disappeared into the background. It reinforced an important idea: when localisation is approached as a creative craft rather than a technical process, stories can travel much further while retaining everything that makes them unique.
Thoughtful localisation also extends beyond language. It is equally about ensuring that the right voices help bring stories to life.
That philosophy came through in the Tamil dub of My Dearest Senorita, where queer actor and activist Malini Jeevarathnam voiced the lead character. Two other queer voice artists were cast for supporting roles, while quality control was overseen by queer politician and media personality Sasha Reddy. The project forms part of Voices of Tomorrow, Netflix’s initiative to create more opportunities for under represented talent within the localisation ecosystem.
When stories are rooted in lived experiences, representation behind the microphone can be just as meaningful as representation on screen. By bringing together voices that reflect the communities being portrayed, localisation becomes another way of preserving authenticity while making stories more accessible to audiences everywhere.
That same commitment continues with Netflix India’s first Telugu Original Series, Super Subbu Localisation was approached as an extension of the creative process, with the original cast lending their own voices to multiple language versions of the series. Mithila Palkar dubbed her character in both Hindi and English, Murali Sharma recorded the Hindi version of his character, while Sundeep Kishan dubbed his own role in Tamil, helping preserve the authenticity of their performances across languages.
Released on 2 July 2026, Super Subbu, directed by Mallik Ram, follows the life of Subbu Sir, a young man who unexpectedly lands the role of a sex education officer in the fictional village of Maakipur. The series is available in its original Telugu, along with dubbed versions in Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, English (India), Spanish (Latin America), Brazilian Portuguese, Turkish and Polish, making it easier for audiences across India and around the world to experience the story in the language they are most comfortable with Korean and Thai, as well as Subtitles for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (SDH) in English and Hindi.
