Explicit movie banned in its own country is now streaming on Netflix

One of the most explicit Indian films ever, Gandu, is now streaming on Netflix for fans who have yet to see the critically revered drama.

Gandu is a 2010 Indian art drama centered on the titular character, a teenage rapper who is mocked incessantly by his peers. Gandu is implied not actually to be his name; it’s an Indian slang term that roughly translates to a**hole.

The film is now available to stream on Netflix in the UK and Australia, but it’s still hard to watch elsewhere. In fact, the film was at one point banned in its native India, not being screened for the public until two years after it was released.

That’s because Gandu is a divisive film that features several scenes of explicit, uncensored sexual content. It also infamously features a depiction of oral sex between the film’s star and actor Rii Sen, who was in a relationship with the film’s director, Qaushiz Qukherjee (credited here as Q) at the time of filming.

Despite the controversy over its intense sexual content, Gandu remains a well-reviewed film. In a 2011 review, Variety called the film a “high-energy example of a rarefied genre,” lamenting that the film would likely not find an audience as its “dystopic/disaffected-youth story eventually segues into sequences of hardcore porn.”

The film also has an admirable 68% score on Rotten Tomatoes. Reviews praise the film for how it displays Indian culture and its rebellious nature, as well as praising its black-and-white visuals.

Gandu is not currently on Netflix outside of the UK, Australia or New Zealand, but US and Canadian viewers can find it streaming for free on Tubi.

For more, you can check out our guides to the best new TV shows and best new movies to stream this month or dive into all the latest documentaries and true crime available.