| # | Film | Language | Where to watch |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wake Up Sid (2009) | Hindi | Netflix |
| 2 | Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na (2008) | Hindi | — |
| 3 | Premam (2015) | Malayalam | JioHotstar |
| 4 | 96 (2018) | Tamil | — |
| 5 | C/o Kancharapalem (2018) | Telugu | — |
| 6 | Kumbalangi Nights (2019) | Malayalam | Prime Video |
| 7 | Udaan (2010) | Hindi | Netflix |
These are the Indian films I put on when I want to remember what growing up actually feels like—restless, unfair, and full of people who shape you. They move between Hindi, Malayalam, Telugu and Tamil, but the ache of becoming yourself sounds the same in every language.
I made this list for anyone who has ever faked knowing the plan, loved a friend too quietly, or replayed one memory from school long after the bell rang. These are not just coming-of-age films; they are the ones that actually get the small, specific, unglamorous moments of becoming.
Wake Up Sid (2009)
Wake Up Sid is Ayan Mukerji’s 2009 Hindi film about Sid, a rich, unambitious Mumbai boy who gets a rude but tender push into adulthood when he is forced to stand on his own. It belongs on this list because it never treats not having a plan as a crime; it treats it as a phase that ends only when Sid starts caring about someone other than himself. Watching it feels like sitting in a sunlit apartment with a friend who is figuring it out one chore at a time. The friendship at its center is the real engine, and it gives the film its gentle, unhurried pulse. It is streaming on Netflix.
Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na (2008)
Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na is a 2008 Hindi film set in and around a Mumbai college, where a group of friends lives in a bubble of jokes, secrets and late-night phone calls. The reason it belongs here is its touch: it understands that the best relationships often start as a friendship so comfortable that romance feels like a risk. Watching it is like flipping through a college album—funny, a little dramatic, and glowing with the warmth of people who know you before you know yourself. Its music and mood make it easy to revisit.
Premam (2015)
Premam, a 2015 Malayalam film, follows its hero through three distinct stages of love and life, each with its own texture and heartbeat. It belongs on this list because those stages are so lived-in that they feel less like plot and more like memory—the awkwardness, the ache, the unexpected second chances. Watching it is like hearing a friend tell you his romantic history over coffee, with all the pauses and private smiles left in. It is streaming on JioHotstar.
96 (2018)
96 is a 2018 Tamil film built around a school reunion, where two former classmates meet after a long gap and find that some feelings never learned to leave. It belongs here because it captures how first love can settle inside you quietly for years, not as a demand but as a presence. Watching it feels like holding your breath through a conversation where every silence matters. It is restrained and sad in the most beautiful way.
C/o Kancharapalem (2018)
C/o Kancharapalem is a 2018 Telugu film set in a small coastal town, weaving four love stories across different ages and circumstances. It earns its place on this list because it treats ordinary people and their quiet longings with complete respect, never reaching for easy sentiment. Watching it is like walking through a town that feels real enough to smell, then slowly realizing everything is connected. The ending rewards your patience without cheating it.
Kumbalangi Nights (2019)
Kumbalangi Nights is a 2019 Malayalam film about four brothers in a small house on the edge of Kerala’s backwaters, and the women who enter their lives. It belongs on this list because its family feels actual—full of petty squabbles, quiet failures and slow, hard-won healing rather than easy speeches. Watching it is like being invited into a home where nobody is performing for you. It is streaming on Prime Video.
Udaan (2010)
Udaan is Vikramaditya Motwane’s 2010 Hindi film about a teenage boy sent back to a controlling father, and the small acts of defiance that keep his dream alive. It belongs on this list because it takes the cruelty of that household seriously while still believing in the boy’s right to a life of his own. Watching it is bruising, claustrophobic and, eventually, cathartic. The final exhale is earned and unforgettable. It is streaming on Netflix.
That is my list, but growing up is never just one list. Tell me which Indian coming-of-age film you return to—and which one first made you feel seen.
Film images from TMDB. This product uses the TMDB API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDB.
