From Kohrra, Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi to Amar Singh Chamkila, these Punjab-set series and films explore love, identity, fame, and historical trauma against a deeply rooted cultural backdrop. Take a look.
Punjab works well on screen. Maybe it’s the fields, maybe it’s the music, maybe it’s the history that refuses to stay buried. Stories’ love feels louder here. Loss feels heavier. And danger, when it comes, rarely announces itself softly. Over the years, several films and series have included Punjab as more than just a backdrop. The Netflix series Kohrra is also placed in the backdrop of Punjab. On similar lines, here’s a look at 7 movies and series with Punjab as a pivotal element.
1. Kohrra
Starring Barun Sobti and Suvinder Vicky, this Netflix series begins with the murder of an NRI groom in rural Punjab. What follows isn’t just an investigation but a slow peeling back of family secrets, masculinity, and generational silence. It’s heavy, but intentionally so. The second season of the series, Kohrra 2, released on February 11.
2. Udta Punjab
With Shahid Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Diljit Dosanjh, and Kareena Kapoor Khan, this film uses a drug crisis in Punjab as its central tension. It’s a thriller that comes directly from the system itself. The movie is available for watching on Netflix
3. CAT
Randeep Hooda headlines this Netflix crime thriller about a former police informant pulled back into Punjab’s drug underworld. It blends espionage, gang networks, and personal revenge.
4. Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi
Starring Shah Rukh Khan, this film marked Anushka Sharma‘s debut in Bollywood. While the YRF movie might look like a simple love story on the surface, it’s really about identity inside a marriage. Set in Punjab, it captures small-town warmth, loud wedding songs, and the quiet awkwardness between two people trying to understand each other. The film is streaming on Netflix.
5. Amar Singh Chamkila
Directed by Imtiaz Ali and starring Diljit Dosanjh and Parineeti Chopra, this Netflix film dives into the life of Punjab’s controversial folk singer. It unfolds like a rise-and-fall drama with an undercurrent of danger always lurking. The movie is available on Netflix.
6. Jab We Met
Shahid Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor Khan turn this into a travel romance that begins on a train and moves through Punjab’s fields and homes. Punjab feels alive here, not dramatic, just lived-in. The film can be watched on Prime Video.
7. Pinjar
With Urmila Matondkar and Manoj Bajpayee, this partition-era drama is heavy and unflinching. Set in Punjab during one of its darkest chapters, it deals with abduction, identity, and survival. The movie is based on the Punjabi novel of the same name penned by Amrita Pritam.
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