Movies like Darbaan (2020)
The best movies like Darbaan (2020) are Dhobi Ghat (2010), Nil Battey Sannata (2016) and Udaan (2010). If Darbaan hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedLike Stars on Earth (2007)8.0/10 from 1,447 votes
- NewestHomebound (2025)Released 2025
- In HindiDhobi Ghat (2010)Also in Hindi
Dhobi Ghat (2010)
Arun is a reclusive and lonely modern art painter. Shai is an American banker who is on a visit to Mumbai. Munna is a washerboy also living near Arun and Yasmin. The movie is about these four characters from different class of society and how the lives of four characters are intertwined.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNil Battey Sannata (2016)
Behind the magnificent Taj Mahal lies a cluster of dingy homes where Chanda (35), a domestic help, lives with her 14-year-old daughter Appu. Chanda aspires and dreams that her daughter will study and embrace a better fate. When Appu tells her she wants to quit school and become a maid like her, Chanda takes a strong decision: she will herself go back to school, and even join the class of her daughter.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisUdaan (2010)
Upon returning to his industrial hometown, a young man must decide whether to follow his own dreams or acquiesce to his father's plans for his future.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPaa (2009)
Auro suffers from a progeria like syndrome. Mentally he is 13 but physically he looks 5 times older. In spite of his condition, Auro is a very happy boy. He lives with his mother Vidya, who is a gynaecologist. Amol is young, progressive politician. He is a man with a mission. Auro is Amol's son. Paa is a 'rare' story about a father-son, son-father relationship.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLike Stars on Earth (2007)
Ishaan Awasthi is an eight-year-old whose world is filled with wonders that no one else seems to appreciate. Colours, fish, dogs, and kites don't seem important to the adults, who are much more interested in things like homework, marks, and neatness. Ishaan cannot seem to get anything right in class; he is then sent to boarding school, where his life changes forever.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisSwades (2004)
A successful Indian scientist returns home to his village to take his nanny back to America with him, and in the process rediscovers his roots.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisChaman Bahaar (2020)
An ambitious young man, in a small town in Central India, sets up a paan shop to a floundering start. His fortunes start to change dramatically when a family shifts in the house across the road. Hordes of boys start following the teenage girl from the family and set up an "adda" at Billu's shop. His business flourishes tremendously but Billu is now more unhappy than ever, as he has fallen for the girl himself!
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Masaan (2015)
Four lives intersect along the Ganges: a low caste boy in hopeless love, a daughter ridden with guilt of a sexual encounter ending in a tragedy, a hapless father with fading morality, and a spirited child yearning for a family, long to escape the moral constructs of a small-town.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisToofaan (2021)
An inspiring story about an orphan boy from the streets of Dongri, who grows up to become a local goon of his area and how his life changes after he meets the young and compassionate Ananya, who guides him towards the right path and makes him realize his true calling i.e boxing.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Shabaash Mithu (2022)
From child prodigy to trailblazing captain, Indian women's cricket icon Mithali Raj navigates highs and lows of professional career. A story of a young girl's determination and stance against discrimination, about her spirit, passion, courage, and her dreams.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Srikanth (2024)
In a world with odds stacked against him in every step of the way, Srikanth defies norms, blazing a trail from rural India to becoming the first visually impaired student at MIT. As he builds Bollant Industries, his success brings challenges for which he would not only chase personal dreams but safeguard a shared future for the ones just like him. This is the tale of an entrepreneur's triumph and sacrifice, both which he welcomed with open arms and a smile.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Hichki (2018)
After finally landing a teaching job, a kindhearted woman with Tourette Syndrome faces a flawed system to provide an education to her forgotten students.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMulk (2018)
The youngest son of a Muslim family settled in Benaras gets involved in terrorist activities, leading to a bomb blast massacre. His actions have an adverse effect on the family who are left to defend themselves as people who are innocent and not anti-nationals.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSaand Ki Aankh (2019)
Following the exciting story of the world's oldest sharpshooters Chandro and Prakashi Tomar, the drama marks the directorial debut of acclaimed scriptwriter Tushar Hiranandani. The film stars Bhumi Pednekar and Taapsee Pannu.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Parched (2015)
In the arid landscape of Rajasthan, four women navigate their way through personal and cultural difficulties.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWaqt (2005)
A chronic illness leaves Ishwar with only a few months to live. His son Aditya is extremely reckless. To make him realise his responsibilities, Ishwar throws his son out of the house.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisProvoked (2007)
Provoked is the true story of Kiranjit Ahluwalia, a Punjabi woman who moved to London after her marriage with Deepak Ahluwalia. Her husband seemed caring at first but then began to beat her up. He started drinking a lot and sleeping around with other women. he also subjected her to spousal rape. After ten years and having two children with him, out of fear, she sets him on fire.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Dor (2006)
Two woman, from different backgrounds and living miles apart, are linked by tragedy. Their new-found friendship is tested as one holds the fate of the other's husband in her hands.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Anand (1971)
Dr. Bhaskar Bannerjee struggles with his patients' suffering and the darkness and poverty he confronts daily. He treats cancer patient Anand who upon learning of his impending death determines to use the time he has left to the absolute fullest.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe White Tiger (2021)
An ambitious Indian driver uses his wit and cunning to escape from poverty and rise to the top. An epic journey based on the New York Times bestseller.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTanvi the Great (2025)
Autistic young Tanvi Raina learns of her deceased Indian Army father's dream to salute the flag at Siachen Glacier. Despite barriers facing those neurodivergent in military service, she resolves to complete his mission.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
The Sky Is Pink (2019)
After succumbing to her terminal illness, a teenager posthumously narrates her parents’ tenacious relationship.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDolly Kitty and Those Twinkling Stars (2020)
A disillusioned Delhi wife (Dolly), and her new-in-town cousin (Kitty), navigate damning secrets, dreams and their thorny dynamic on their respective roads to freedom.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Thanmathra (2005)
A man leading a happy life with his loving wife and two children suddenly starts getting forgetful and lost. Then, he is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease leaving his family devastated.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Skin (2009)
Based on the true story of a black girl who was born to two white Afrikaner parents in South Africa during the apartheid era.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Truth About Emanuel (2013)
A troubled young woman becomes obsessed with her mysterious new neighbor, who bears a striking resemblance to the girl's dead mother.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEleanor the Great (2025)
94-year-old Eleanor Morgenstein tries to rebuild her life after the death of her best friend. As a result, she moves back to New York City after living in Florida for decades.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHomebound (2025)
Two childhood friends from a small North Indian village chase a police job that promises them the dignity they’ve long been denied. But as they inch closer to their dream, mounting desperation threatens the bond that holds them together.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe River (1984)
Tom and Mae Garvey are a Tennessee farming couple battling violent floods to save their land. In addition to natural disasters, the Garveys fight to stop a selfish land developer and a local corporation from foreclosing on their farm. While Mae stays at home to care for their children and tend to the crops, Tom finds work as a scab at a steel mill to preserve his family's property.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBobby Jones: Stroke of Genius (2004)
The story of golf icon and legend, Bobby Jones, who retired from competition at the tender age of 28.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Darbaan?
The closest matches to Darbaan are Dhobi Ghat (2010), Nil Battey Sannata (2016) and Udaan (2010). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Darbaan?
People who watched Darbaan most often go on to Dhobi Ghat (2010), Nil Battey Sannata (2016) and Udaan (2010).
What is the highest-rated movie like Darbaan?
Like Stars on Earth (2007), rated 8.0/10 by 1,447 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Darbaan?
Homebound (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Hindi movies like Darbaan?
Yes: Dhobi Ghat (2010), Nil Battey Sannata (2016) and Udaan (2010).
How are movies similar to Darbaan chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Darbaan, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.