Overview
Class is an Indian Hindi-language teen drama television series released on Netflix on 3 February 2023. The show is an official adaptation of the Spanish series Elite (2018), reimagined in an Indian context. It is created and directed by Ashim Ahluwalia and produced under the banner of BBC Studios India for Netflix.
Key facts
| Title | Class |
|---|---|
| Genre | Teen drama, mystery, thriller |
| Original language | Hindi |
| Based on | Elite (Spanish series by Carlos Montero and Darío Madrona) |
| Director | Ashim Ahluwalia |
| Production | BBC Studios India |
| Streaming platform | Netflix |
| Release date | 3 February 2023 |
| Number of seasons | 1 |
| Number of episodes | 8 |
| Setting | Delhi, India |
Background
The series is set in the fictional Hampton International, an elite private school in Delhi attended primarily by the children of India's wealthy upper class. The narrative is triggered when three students from a low-income neighbourhood are admitted to the school after their own institution is destroyed in a fire. Their entry into Hampton becomes the catalyst for a story that examines class divisions, communal tensions, caste, sexuality, and privilege in contemporary urban India.
Netflix announced the project as part of its slate of Indian originals adapting globally successful titles. While retaining the murder-mystery framework of Elite, the Indian version was rewritten to address specifically Indian social fault lines, including Hindu–Muslim relations, the wealth gap between South Delhi and working-class settlements, and tensions around caste and religion.
Cast
- Anjali Sivaraman as Saba Manzoor
- Gurfateh Pirzada as Veer Ahuja
- Piyush Khati as Dheeraj Valmiki
- Chayan Chopra as Balli Sehrawat
- Madhyama Segal as Yashika Mehta
- Ayesha Kanga as Suhani Ahuja
- Cwaayal Singh as Faruq Manzoor
- Chintan Rachchh as Sharan
- Naina Bhan as Koel Kalra
- Moses Koul as Dhruv Sanghvi
- Zeyn Shaw as Sahil "Sax" Ahuja
- Kavya Bhutani Trehan as Neeraj
Production
Filming took place largely in and around Delhi, with locations chosen to underline the contrast between the gated affluence of the elite and the city's lower-income localities. Ashim Ahluwalia, known for independent films such as Miss Lovely (2012) and Daddy (2017), helmed the project and shaped its visual style. The show features a primarily young, debutant-heavy cast, in keeping with its teen-drama format.
Reception
The series received broadly positive reviews from Indian critics, who noted its willingness to engage with subjects rarely explored in mainstream Hindi entertainment, including caste discrimination, queer identity, and Islamophobia. Critics praised the performances of the lead newcomers and the directorial treatment, while some commentary noted the formulaic structure inherited from the source material. The show found a strong audience among younger viewers and trended on Netflix India in the weeks after its release.
Themes
- Class disparity and economic inequality in urban India
- Caste-based discrimination, particularly against Dalit characters
- Communal prejudice against Muslims
- Sexuality, identity, and queerness among Indian youth
- Substance use, mental health, and adolescent pressure in elite schooling
Significance
Class is among the more prominent Indian streaming adaptations of a non-English foreign property and is often cited in discussions of how Indian platforms have localised global formats. By placing issues such as caste and communalism at the centre of a glossy teen thriller, the show contributed to ongoing debates about the social terrain that Indian streaming content can address, in contrast to traditional television and theatrical cinema.
Related topics
- Netflix India
- Indian web series
- Hindi television
- Ashim Ahluwalia
- BBC Studios India
- Elite (Spanish TV series)
- Teen drama
References
- Netflix India official series page for Class.
- Press releases and interviews issued at the time of the series' launch in February 2023.
- Reviews published in major Indian publications following the release.