Cast: Adah Sharma, Sunil Grover, Ranvir Shorey, Girish Kulkarni, Mukul Chadda, Radha Bhatt, Ashish Vidyarthi, Ashwin Kaushal, Shonali Nagrani & Annapurna Soni
Advertisement
Creator: Vikas Bahl
Advertisement
Streaming On: ZEE5
Language: Hindi
Runtime: 8 episodes with a runtime of 30-40 minutes each
Like true cinematic sequels (for example, the Krrish franchise) or web seasons (Undekhi, Maharani) that take the previous story ahead, this show also takes its plot forward. At base, this is a murder mystery set in a housing society in Mumbai that is colorful in its assorted residents and tenants and yet full of characters that have hypocritical and double standards. There is too much packed in this mystery, wherein one of the flat-owners, a rich lecher, Kapoor (Ashwin Kaushal), who is separated from his wife, Naina (Shonali Nagrani), is discovered dead due to poisoning.
The police are on the trail of the murderer, and many characters behave suspiciously as a complex narrative builds up. However, among the many assorted dramatis personae, there are several undercurrents and twists as evidence comes up, only to be questioned for their veracity and even dismissed. The season sees a hot, rather devil-may-care bar dancer named Rosie (Adah Sharma) enter as a new member, and the finger of suspicion also points to her as Kapoor has bequeathed the Rs. 14 crore apartment to her.
Writers Surya Menen and Jasmeet Singh Bhatia come in late (as in this season) and cannot cope expertly with the rather convoluted and, more importantly, garbled scenario of the past season and the murder. Season 1 concluded with the (unexplained here) abduction of Sonu (Sunil Grover), the prime suspect due to his preoccupation with chemicals and his whimsical, over-casual, and irreverent nature.
Now, Sonu returns to both the residential society and his prime position as a suspect. But after this, we see a breathlessly assorted look at many characters and their idiosyncrasies and duplicities. The dysfunctional relationship between the Ahuja couple (Mukul Chadda and Radha Bhatt) seems overdone in its blatant sequences, especially in the acrimony she shows, apart from her affair with the investigating cop, Inspector S. Digendra (Ranvir Shorey).
And speaking of cops, the two officers who seemingly head the police station (with stereotyped acolytes as havaldars) do not seem to have any other case on hand or even routine matters. Hours and days are spent only investigating the suspects and their motives and evidence, and much is made about a stink pervading the police station that no one can trace but is connected to the same murder. Hugely unconvincingly, the two are after every possible suspect, visiting and revisiting the society and the bar that Kapoor would frequent and repeatedly going after many of the characters involved, only to come out helpless and outwitted!
While all these are supposed to be deliberate tactics to enhance the content of a whodunit, the writers end up packing in too many aspects into this mélange of a narrative, and by the fourth of eight episodes, you are left wishing there is only one more to go. Side issues, like the troubles of the Ahujas, the stretched saga of the eye gouged out from Kapoor’s corpse in the morgue, the almost triple rather than double standards (!) of the society’s secretary, Iyer (Ashish Vidyarthi), and the sub-inspector Tambe (Girish Kulkarni) and his superior frequently drinking on duty in their vehicle add to the tiresomeness quotient.
The climax, when it comes, is grossly unsatisfactory and simplistic and is shoddily written with a view only to complete the story. We never know what happens to the likes of Mr. Iyer, the nosey servant Kaminibai (Annapurna Soni), who is the lone very interesting character in the never-ending saga, or even the Ahujas. Sonu, too, is left in the lurch in many ways, just like logic and the engrossing quotient in the script. Ennui steps in as the convolutions never seem to end.
Advertisement
As mentioned, the sole truly interesting and attention-getting character here is the inquisitive and manipulative Kamini Bai, and Annapurna Soni is brilliant in this role. She dominates effortlessly among the other characters. Sunil Grover has the playing-to-the-gallery kind of quirky role, but he is all right. Sometimes over-self-conscious in his expressions. Adah Sharma is her usual, ardent self, complete with big eyes, disarming smiles, and a bindaas attitude.
I loved Ranvir Shorey’s glassy looks and poker expressions, while Girish Kulkarni, as sub-inspector Chetan Tambe, makes a mark with his intense yet not-very-bright character. A thumbs-up also to Ashish Vidyarthi as the slimy old man, Salonie Patel as Aanchal, who pines for Sonu, and the two earlier-mentioned actors who play the Ahujas, especially Mukul Chadha. A pat also for the actor who is so effortlessly natural as the society watchman.
Advertisement
Director Navin Gujral tries his best to cram comedy and crime but cannot captivate his audience either with humor or an investigative angle. If at all he succeeds as a director, it is in extracting good to great performances from his cast and demonstrating how moral rot can be a truth behind the veneers in so many ‘respectable’ housing societies.
The director fails to cash in even on some meaty developments in the plot, which are hurriedly done to demonstrate another angle in the investigations. He also does not succeed in depicting to the full the insincere relationships that pervade this rather overcooked saga. Rapid editing of seemingly promising sequences is a frequent matter of woe, as the aim seems to be a breathless narration of too much matter that leaves little time to think or digest, one example being the clashes between Rosie and Naina.
Advertisement
The ridiculous sequence of Sonu being taken to the police station only wearing a towel or the outlandish robe/ kimono / whatever that Mr. Ahuja is later made to wear are two more excesses apart from scenes that are quite long and yet irrelevant to the final denouement. The balloon swells, and the solution is a pinprick that leaves the viewer unrequited.
Overall, this is a perfect example of a show meant to capture people who are not fastidious about what entertainment should be available in their homes. It does not tick the major boxes for a whodunit—like grip, a study of human psychology, intelligent stimulation to the viewer to flip-flop between who they think ‘did it.’ Everything is clouded by the excessive length, needless footage of irrelevant matter, and attempts to create fun largely through one-liners that are genuinely funny only once or twice per episode.
Follow Us: Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Youtube | Google News
Advertisement
