‘Law & Order: SVU’ Fans Have a Ruthless New Replacement Surging Through Netflix’s Global Charts You Need To Watch

For 27 seasons (and counting), Mariska Hargitay has gripped viewers in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Through heartbreaking stories to unexpected twists, the long-running series has been a hit with viewers, and has created a genre of storytelling all in itself. But while Law & Order: SVU has no intention of slowing down anytime soon, other series have been popping up that might fill the same gap. Most recently, the Indian Netflix original series Delhi Crime, which released its third season earlier this month on November 13, 2025, has been climbing the charts. Currently, the international series is #10 in the Netflix streaming charts globally. Much like Law & Order: SVU, the series follows leading female police officers as they solve gruesome crimes and shine a light on society’s biggest secrets.

What Is ‘Delhi Crime’ About?

Shefali Shah and Denzil Smith in Delhi Crime.Image via Netflix

Based on spine-chilling true stories, Delhi Crime follows real high-profile crime cases handled by the Delhi Police from the perspective of the officers on the ground, including DCP Vartika Chaturvedi (Shefali Shah). In Season 1, the series follows the investigation surrounding the 2012 gang-rape case that received global attention at the time. Throughout the season, as officers scramble to identify and track down the suspects with their limited resources, public and political scrutiny mounts, and makes for a case that’s both harrowing and incredibly high-stakes for the officers.

In Season 2, the anthology series followed the 2016 investigation into the Chaddi Baniyan gang, a criminal group that would notoriously carry out their crimes while wearing only undergarments (“chaddi” means underwear, while “baniyan” means undershirt). In the newly released Season 3, Vartika and her team investigate a case of human trafficking. Based on the 2012 case of Baby Falak, a two-year-old baby girl who was admitted to a hospital in New Delhi with signs of abuse, the series shows how one occurrence led the Delhi police exposing and dismantling a widespread human trafficking network.

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‘Delhi Crime’ Is One of Netflix’s Most Underrated Gems

Shefali Shah in Delhi Crime.Image via Netflix

Delhi Crime, which was first released in 2019, is one of Netflix’s most underrated gems. Over the years, the series has gripped fans in each of its investigations, earning an impressive 85% score on Rotten Tomatoes among critics, and an 89% score among the public. In the reviews, the series has been praised for its nuanced depiction of these horrifying events and for its real and grounded performances by the lead actors. In addition to Shah, Delhi Crime also stars Rasika Dugal, Rajesh Tailang, Anurag Arora, and Gopal Datt, among others. The series was created by Richie Mehta (Poacher). Praise for the series also continued with awards as well. In 2020, the series won its first International Emmy for Best Drama Series. In 2023, Shah was then nominated in the Best Performance by an Actress category.

With all that said, it’s clear that while Delhi Crime has remained under the radar over the past few years, it seems global audiences have finally started taking note. With real, gruesome crimes as their going off point, the series tells stories about the criminal underbelly of India, while still feeling grounded, real, and entertaining to viewers. With Season 3 recently released, and following the Delhi police officers in a whole new investigation, viewers should catch up and tune in now more than ever.

Release Date

March 22, 2019

Network

Netflix

Writers

Richie Mehta

• Shefali Shah

  Vartika Chaturvedi

• Avijit Dutt

  Gururaj Dixit