Unsure what to stream? Not just you, everyone is

That feeling when you're skipping from one show to another, telling yourself, “I’ll finally start something new tonight.” And 20–30 minutes later, you’re still scrolling. Next day the cycle repeats itself.

That draining feeling has a name - choice fatigue - the exhaustion and dread that kicks in when you’re trying to decide what to watch next on a streaming platform. This fatigue is so real that streaming platforms have researched it and even rolled out features to fix it. Spoiler: it’s not really helping!

It's an exhausting chore to find a show that consumes you!

Viewers say they often find themselves abandoning a series after 5–10 minutes, looking for something better. “It's indeed a task to find a series that grabs my attention and is worthy of my time,” says Sanjay, an IPS officer.

“Sometimes I spend 15–20 minutes trying to choose a show that I might turn off after 5 minutes. Once I find something that hooks me, I finish it, whether or not I can binge it.”Viewers say that while streaming platforms have some amazing shows, those shows are buried under thumbnails and autoplay trailers. The hunt itself becomes exhausting. Sometimes, all it takes is one bad show to kill the mood for the whole week. “I’m a big fan of Korean dramas,” says Imaan, a crew member of a web series.

“But I often I scroll and watch a series for 5-10 minutes and realise I don’t want to watch this series today.

Now I pre-screen shows through Instagram reels. If I like a clip, I search for that show. At least there’s some filter to save my time.”

FOMO works!

And of course, there’s FOMO. She says,"Adolescence kept showing up on my timeline.Everyone was praising it. And honestly, it lived up to it."What’s everyone watching? What’s everyone talking about? Which shows keep coming up on timelines - those are definitely what viewers go after. Adriana D'Souza,, who works in hospitality agrees, “I watched Adolescence because I couldn't take it anymore. I wanted to understand why everyone is praising it. So, FOMO works. When everyone is going gaga about a show, you want to find out what it is. FOMO definitely works for me. I keep weekends for sampling. Or when I have nothing better to do, I watch 5–10 minutes of a show to sample it. If I like it then I go back to it during my couch time.

”Platforms are well aware of this habit of viewers. That’s why they’ve created features like Play Something and pushed Top Picks, Trending Now, and Oscar-season collections to the homepage. But it rarely works. Because good storytelling isn't about being pushed. It’s about being pulled in, says Manjusha Singh, an artist. “A good show is a good show.” She says that she rarely finishes anything. “I’m always looking for something that grabs me in the first five minutes.

Not something I have to warm up to. I don't have that patience for a web series.”

'Rewatching because I can't waste my entertainment window'

Another viewer, Sudhir Bakshi, who works for a cinema chain, says to not miss the one-hour window he gets, he mostly re-watches. “Honestly, choosing a series or a film to watch on OTT feels like a chore. It's an exhausting chore to find a show that truly consumes you! And I don't want to scroll my phone or social media when I’ve time to catch a series or a film.

So, my solution is rewatching old series. When White Lotus released, I watched the previous seasons in between the weekly drops just to make sure my evenings were sorted.

I did the same with Succession, Friends, Brooklyn, Modern Family and so many."

How to do it right

Well, those who’ve aced this game of choice fatigue say that the trick is to not decide what to watch after sitting in front of your TV. They indeed treat it like a chore, and the trick is to prep in advance.

Know what you want to watch before switching on your device.Director Ram Madhvani says, “How do I decide what to watch? Well, I track recommendations from international newspapers like The New York Times to understand what’s trending and what’s interesting. Then I make a note of it in the Notes app on my phone. I also recommend interesting films and shows to friends and family.”Kriti Kharbanda says, “I watch everything. In fact, in a script what works and what doesn't work I get to understand by watching both good and bad shows.

It's like my film school and I'd recommend it to everyone.”Megha Marthak, who is in her 20s and works in restoration, says, “With so many options across streaming platforms and an endless list of films and shows, choosing what to watch can be daunting. But I don’t browse aimlessly - I keep a small list of films and shows recommended by friends, critics, or festivals. Depending on how I’m feeling, I’ll pick something. For me, it’s not about watching everything - it’s about choosing well and enjoying it.

”

Facts
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Netflix’s research showed that subscribers sometimes don’t want to search through its library of shows and films to find something new to watch. So it rolled out a feature - Play Something - that starts playing a television show or movie.

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Streaming platforms like Amazon Prime and Disney+ have adjusted user interfaces for Top Picks, What’s Trending, and curated rows. They also include design tweaks to showcase Oscar picks, film festival favourites, new releases, and genre-wise classification - all to keep you from leaving the platform.

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