Feb 06, 2026 10:30am IST
Arjun Bijlani on Netflix debut: ‘Indian Television Actors Deserved Global Platforms Long Ago’ (EXCLUSIVE)
Two days back, Netflix India rolled out its slate for 2026. Indian TV fans were delighted to see popular actors like Arjun Bijlani, Helly Shah, Shaheer Sheikh, Jennifer Winget and others in the line-up. Arjun Bijlani is a part of "Chumbak". The series is written by Aatish Kapadia and produced by Jamnadas (JD) Majethia. Variety India spoke to Arjun Bijlani about his debut on Netflix. Calling his Netflix debut an “out-of-the-world feeling”, he adds, “I manifested this. My son, Ayaan, he’s a huge ‘Stranger Things’ fan, would ask me, ‘Papa, why don’t you do a Netflix show?’”
He further said, “I told him that I would definitely do a project some day. 'Chumbak' happened last year but I had to keep it under wraps. I am thrilled with the response to the teaser.”
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The series also stars Helly Shah, who has done a few shows on TV. Some of the popular ones are "Swaragini" (2015), "Devanshi" (2016) and "Ishq Mein Marjawan 2" (2021). Describing her as a lovely girl, Arjun added, “We had a great comfort level on the sets. I would say that the set of 'Chumbak' was like therapy. Aatish Kapadia is a genius writer and director. He handled the ensemble cast so well. Aatish knew how to make us comfortable and extracted the best work from us.”
Over the years, we have seen how the world has gone crazy over Korean dramas. Their actors and actresses have huge global fan bases. Indian TV stars too enjoy popularity in many regions despite their shows not being available on global platforms for the longest time. “This should have happened a long time ago. Indian shows have always worked on TV even abroad. Give us a chance, we too can surprise you. I have been working on TV for 21 years. I feel this was long due. I wanted to move onto something bigger and Netflix is a great platform,” he states.
We had also heard how Ekta Kapoor has entered into a partnership with Netflix to promote Indian content globally. Arjun Bijlani has worked with her on many shows, the biggest one being “Naagin” (2015). Does he feel her entry into Netflix paved the way for more Indian TV producers and actors? “Well, I don’t know. Maybe in some ways, I would not like to speculate on this. I can say that I am in a good space right now,” he signs off.
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