Hi Friends,
Paatal Lok was launched on Amazon Prime Video in India on 15th May 2020 and the very first day I binge-watched the whole series and really could not sleep after watching the same. The crime drama is worthy of your time for the superb acting performance of Jaideep Ahlawat as Hathiram Chaudhary who plays a Delhi Police Inspector and assigned the task of an investigation into the assassination attempt of a News Journalist named Sanjeev Mehra played by Neeraj Kabi. Just like his other characters in several web series Neeraj will have an extramarital affair with another reporter played by Niharika Lyra Dutt as Sara Matthews and the various equations between them till the end of the ninth episode. Ishwak Singh played the role of Sub-Inspector Imran Ansari beautifully and totally supports Hathiram in all his endeavors despite some of the comments marked by his colleagues from time to time on his religion.
The web series goes into finding the flashback stories of all the four accused persons and how they became what they are and how they are joined together to do this assassination attempt. The web series is really real and raw in terms of the story outlined and showcased. I don't think any other web series has shown so much cruelty and real-life truth that is happening to the oppressed in various communities in various states of India on the name of caste, creed, and religion. I am still not able to take this out of my mind as to how politicians and people in power play with the lives of everyone around them. The dual-edged sword of media is showcased really well as they play with the sentiments of the accused and the victims from time to time for their benefits. Abhishek Banerjee has played the role of Hathoda Tyagi one of the main criminals and didn't have much to do other than showcasing some anger with his eyes. The others are forgettable and only their stories are being showcased using some other character artists.
Gul Panag plays the wife of Hathiram and mother of Siddharth Chaudhary played by Bodhisattva Sharma but couldn't do any justice to her role. She doesn't seem convincing as a Haryanvi wife of Hathi Ram. Swastika Mukherjee plays the role of Sanjeev Mehra's wife Dolly and does her part well as she suffers from anxiety and depression. The web series has 9 episodes at an average length of 45 minutes each and took me around 6 hours to watch the same. I was too tired by episode 8 but carried on as I didn't want to watch it the next day and slept at 1am in the night.
I don't think this is a mythological web series like ASUR as here the topic is just referred in 2-3 scenes and dialogues just to represent the events and attaching them to astrology and devils. It's just referred to do justice to the chosen name of the web series though I agree that Planet Earth is the place where heaven, hell and all other in-between places exist. The flashback stories of the criminals are really powerful and it is difficult to see those sequences. The web series has touched various topics behind all these crimes - the fight for land led to the rape, the fight for respect led to the murder, the fight for voice led to the backstabbing, the fight for love led to a place where you will be jailed for life.
The web series is produced by Clean State Films whose owner is a famous Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma and directed by Avinash Arun and Prosit Roy. The story is written by Sudip Sharma, Sagar Haveli, Hardik Mehta, and Gunjit Chopra. They have showcased the three states especially UP, Punjab, and Delhi where it all happens. Overall this web series requires courage to see the same but can be seen just for the acting of Jaideep and Ishwak and their camaraderie as they try to find the past of the criminals and above all the man behind this overall scheme of things. The chase from one end to another - one background to another - one state to another is really what will keep you glued to your seats in this Police-based crime thriller with various angles added and removed in the overall schemes of things. RATING 4/5
Namaste!!!
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