Keep your shortlist together and see where it’s streaming
2017 · Hindi · 1h 53m · Drama · CBFC A
Keep your shortlist together and see where it’s streaming
Filmi Score
Very good
9 reviews
78
5 exceptional4 very good
What the critics say
Critics agree Swara Bhaskar's performance anchors this authentic, empathetic story of a marginalised woman's fight for dignity, though many flag a loose, uneven screenplay and a climax that leans convenient or fairy-tale.
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Summary
Anaarkali of Aarah (2017, Hindi) has a Filmi Score of 78 from 9 critic reviews, is rated 18+ by Filmi (CBFC: A), and streams on Hulu in the US.
Hailing from Aarah in Bihar, Anarkali is an item girl, famous for her vocals, suggestive dance moves and innuendo laden lyrics. She enjoys her stardom and revels in the lusty glances. The singer acknowledges that she is no saint and even makes peace with the hatred she evokes among civilised society but what she refuses to tolerate is being exploited in public by an influential politician.
Where to watchAvailability by JustWatch · some watch links pay filmi.ai a small commission; it never changes what we show or how we score.
Hailing from Aarah in Bihar, Anarkali is an item girl, famous for her vocals, suggestive dance moves and innuendo laden lyrics. She enjoys her stardom and revels in the lusty glances. The singer acknowledges that she is no saint and even makes peace with the hatred she evokes among civilised society but what she refuses to tolerate is being exploited in public by an influential politician.
Where to watch
Availability by JustWatch · some watch links pay filmi.ai a small commission; it never changes what we show or how we score.
Someshwar calls the film a gem, admiring the cast's performances and the heroine's refusal to be a victim, with only a minor quibble that the plot… Read it there →
The critic, wary of female-victimhood dramas generally, finds this one thoroughly engaging thanks to its layered empathy, authentic Bihar… Read it there →
Ramnath praises Bhaskar's performance and the film's empathetic, moralised take on a folk singer's assault, but notes indulgent length and a… Read it there →
Banerjee calls the film bold and endearing, praising Bhaskar's authenticity in a rarely-told story about marginalised performers, with a minor… Read it there →
Ghosh calls the film an important step forward on consent, led by an electrifying Bhaskar performance, but says the screenplay is wobbly, with a… Read it there →
Derived by Filmi
65
How this number was made. We read every review and derive a 0–100 reading from each — including where the critic printed a number, which stays first on its row, because it’s theirs. The Filmi Score is the mean of 9 readings; 4 of those rows also carry the critic’s own rating, shown beside ours. Rubric v2.1, computed 26 Oct 2026. Any critic can ask us to remove a derived reading.
PublishedStated in videoDerived by FilmiNo score
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Anaarkali of Aarah: quick answers
Box office, where to watch and what critics said — from the same data as the page.
Where can I watch Anaarkali of Aarah?
Anaarkali of Aarah is streaming on OTT: JioHotstar (India) and Hulu (the US). Availability comes from JustWatch and is checked every Friday.
What did critics say about Anaarkali of Aarah?
Anaarkali of Aarah has a Filmi Score of 78 (Very good), the mean of 9 readings of critic reviews, one per review. Readings run from 65 (The Quint) to 85 (Rediff). Every review and how it was scored is listed below.
What readers say
The Audience Score appears once three readers’ reviews have been read under the rubric — built from what people write, never from the rating numbers.
