Korean drama has gained immense popularity and love in recent years worldwide. Due to their widespread availability via streaming services which often offer subtitles in multiple languages. It’s due to their potential to create emotional connections with viewers.
10. Life Is Not About Happy Endings
Life is not about happy endings, but about living, loving, and moving on. Twenty-Five Twenty-One”, "Snowdrop" and "Hotel Del Luna" are some of the Korean dramas that show us life as it is.
9. Realistic End
Evil always prevails together with goodness. There is no actual end to wickedness. It's the kind of world we live in, and we decide for ourselves. K-drama "Again My Life" has shown this aspect realistically and beautifully.
8. Historical Drama
People prefer visuals over text. That puts the creators of historical drama in a crucial position to show how things happened, and not any twisted imagination. K-drama land has created many costume drama, which depicts their culture perfectly, like “The Empress Ki (2014) “. But, Indian serial makers can never separate drama with reality as in, "Jodha Akbar" and "Kashibai Bajirao Ballal".
7. Seasons
When a season is successful, fans' expectation and excitement increases hundreds times. But, when the new season hits the floor without any further research or dedication from creators or writers side; it only makes the audience feel cheated, like "Kuch Rang Pyar Ke Aise Bhi". Whereas , K-dramas have maintained their consistency with back-to-back hit seasons, like "Hospital Playlist" The Penthouse" , "Reply 1997, 1994, and 1988" and many more.
6. Plot And Costume
Television series show great diversity to grab viewer's attention, and creators experiment different genera that can hold and entertain the audience. Some have achieved this while others have failed. "Guardian: The Lonely and Great God “, "Hotel Del Luna”, etc. are top K-dramas. Indian serials like "Mahabharata”, "Dhadkan Zindaggi Kii" and” Devon Ke Dev...Mahadev" are some great shows, but there are also some makers who lose originality in the race of creativity, like Ekta Kapoor's Mahabharat.
5. Relationships
K-drama shows complex, chaotic, comfortable relationships beautifully in a very effortless and understandable way. That, every person has good and evil within and, no one can only be good or bad. It's the circumstances that make us. “My Liberation Diary" and "Pinocchio" are dramas worth mentioning. In Indian shows like “Kundali Bhagya” and "Kumkum Bhagya”, there is only distrust , jealousy and Sati Savitri Bahu, making the whole equation negative.
4. Sticks To Their Theme
K-dramas maintain their originality and plot. They don't divert from their story line and thus able to convey their message to the audience. Like, "Taxi driver”, “Tomorrow”, "Tale of nine tailed", "Happiness", "Black" etc. But, an Indian show started from whatever plot, always reaches to indigestible drama. "Sasural Simar ka” and " Qubool Hai" are some examples, but the list is way too long.
3. Realistic
K-drama covers every aspect of society and human emotion, whether its crime, politics, psychological problems, relationships, family, friendship, love or infidelity. And, importantly they research and try to keep their script original and genuine. “It’s ok to not be ok”; "Pinocchio”, "Penthouse” and “My Father Is Strange” are some of great examples here. But, the Indian series show Polygamy; that’s illegal in India. There is more, The Sati Savitri Bahu, who can tolerate anything but always forgives everyone. The costume, the plot the loopholes, all this makes audience cringe.
2. Number Of Episodes
Life is all about changes, and one gets bored after watching the same story and same characters for over years. In this area, K-drama again beat Indian shows. K-dramas have limited number of episodes, which helps them to retain their originality and thus gripping the viewers’ attention. Whereas, most Indian serial follows same Saas Bahu kind of plot.
1. Diversity
In K-drama, there is a vast diversity whether it's culture, story, romance, or revenge. They take the audience with them on a rollercoaster ride, from a sweet and sour Moment at Eighteen to horrifying "The Guest”, and the list goes on. It's not that those Indian shows have not tried, but after a while, they return to their typical "Saas Bahu or Sautan" plot.
