No K-dramas for India? JioHotstar snubs new slate of originals, from Nine Puzzles to Our Movie; frustrated viewers threaten to cancel subscription

Indian Express

25-06-2025

JioHotstar seems to have snubbed an entire slate of new Korean originals dropping on Disney Plus recently. Fans are baffled as one K-drama after another vanished from the platform. Some feature big names, others have hook-worthy plots that are going viral on social media, but Indian viewers are the only ones left out of the loop. With no alternative way to stream these shows unless another platform picks them up, fans are stuck dealing with the fallout of the Disney-Jio deal sealed back in November 2024.
It's a blow not just to K-drama lovers but possibly to the company too, considering country's massive fanbase and its potential to boost viewership. Is it a post-merger licensing glitch? Or a move by Jio to shift focus on other genres? Either way, here's a look at what we're losing out on.
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Park Eun Bin's Hyper Knife, which follows the life of an ousted neurosurgeon in a medical crime thriller, was delayed. While the rest of the world raved about the cast's stellar performances, Indian viewers were left hanging for a week or two, until the platform finally dropped the show. The K-drama, also starring Sol Kyung Gu (as Choi Deok-hee), follows Seok, a neurosurgeon whose obsession with perfection leads to her career downfall. Her license is stripped, and she starts performing back-alley surgeries. Years later, fate brings her face to face with her former mentor again. After Extraordinary Attorney Woo and Castaway Diva, Hyper Knife was Eun Bin's most anticipated comeback, so the disappointment was natural.
Earlier, K-dramas like Unmasked (Trigger) and Park Hyung Sik's Buried Heart landed just fine on the platform, so viewers let Hyper Knife slip by, assuming it was some licensing issuw. But since May, the platform's changes have started becoming hard to miss.
can jiohotstar and disney sort their shit out. why r new k dramas not available on jiohotstar like they used to be on disneyplushotstar
— 💌 (@bluemoonxstar) June 18, 2025
SCREEN reached out to a Jiohotstar representative for comment but did not receive a response at the time of publishing.
The K-drama mystery thriller starring Kim Da Mi and Son Suk ku was released on May 21 and split into two parts, but the show never made it to the streaming platform in India. The storyline revolves around Yoon Yi-na, a skilled profiler and the only witness to her uncle's murder. In the present day, she works alongside Detective Kim Han-saem. It became Disney+'s' most-watched Korean series globally in 2025.
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Starring Namkoong Min and Vincenzo star Jeon Yeo-bin, Our Movie is currently streaming worldwide, except for desi K-drama lovers. Early reviews hailed it as a masterpiece for brilliantly capturing the melodrama that follows a director reeling from his father's lost legacy, trying to make a comeback, and crossing paths with a young hospital patient (Lee Da-eum) battling a rare terminal illness. But contrary to him, she's upbeat and longs to live life to the fullest.
The third title snubbed entirely from the Indian slate is Dark Legacy or Hunter with the Scalpel, a psychological crime thriller starring Park Ju-hyun, Park Yong-woo, and Kang Hoon. The story follows a forensic pathologist whose world is rocked after a shocking discovery about her father. The show premiered on June 16, 2025 (U+TV, U+ Mobile TV, and Disney+ in select regions).
The upcoming release lineup includes The Murky Stream, the streamer's first historical K-drama original, Tempest, The Manipulated, and more. Whether any of these titles actually land here remains to be seen. But the frustration among fans is loud and clear. From Reddit to Twitter, users are calling out the mess. One wrote, 'Can JioHotstar and Disney sort their s*** out? Why are new K-dramas not available like they used to be on Disney+Hotstar?' Another added, 'We thought JioHotstar integrated global Disney content. That's not so. Disney Plus Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines, etc, have different global content including Kdrama.'
A few even threatened they wouldn't renew their subscription, saying it's beyond frustrating: 'K-dramaland is doomed for JioHotstar subs… I'm not renewing if this s*** persists.' Some even pointed out that old shows are quietly being removed too, though that part's still unconfirmed. One more frustrated viewer tagged the platform directly: '@JioHotstar why Korean drama not coming on your platform? Also, when the hell are you provide K-drama in Hindi language? What's going on guys—very bad service. After payment no K-drama in Hindi to watch!'