Scam 1992 Series Review

In early 1990’s India’s financial system was unregulated. This gave stock brokers an opportunity to bend the rules of stock markets. Due to lack of system controls these activities of stockbrokers went unnoticed, thus leading to financial market scams. One of these scams is the popular Financial Securities Scam or The Harshad Mehta Scam. 

The show Scam 1992 A Harshad Mehta Story based on the book “The Scam: Who Won Who Lost, Who Got Away” by Sucheta Dalal and Debashis Basu explores the life of Harshad Mehta as a stockbroker. The show is a rags to riches story of Harshad Mehta which chronicles his rise, roar, slip and fall. It shows how Harshad rigged the financial system through collusion with private sector banks and financial institutions. 

Harshad Mehta (Pratik Gandhi) an ordinary salesman from Mumbai starts work as a jobber at the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) (also popularly known as Dalal Street) due to lack of market experience. He along with his brother Ashwin (Hemant Kher) and his trusted aide Bhushan (Chirag Vohra) setup their own consulting firm through which they carry out speculative trading on the BSE to counter the bear cartel of Satish Kaushik (Manu Mundra). Harshad slowly and steadily becomes an undisputed and reigning king on the bourse. He is referred to by the name of “Big Bull”. He now has his eyes set on the government securities market which is a difficult market to enter, given Citibank’s domination.   

Will Harshad rule the government securities market in a similar manner to the stock markets? What are the challenges and difficulties awaiting Harshad on his path to glory? Will Harshad’s greed for success cause problems for his family? For all this and more watch the series. 

This 10-part series of 500 minutes is insightful, captivating and intriguing. Direction by Hansal Mehta is slow to start, but gradually gathers pace and becomes riveting. Screenplay is good. Dialogues are well-written and clapworthy like “Risk Hai Toh Ishq Hai” among others. 

Now coming to the cast and their performances. Pratik Gandhi as Harshad is superb and captivating, though he hardly resembles the real Harshad. The ensemble cast of Shreya Dhanwantary, Ananth Mahadevan, KK Raina, Hemant Kher, Anjali Barot, Rajat Kapoor among others add depth to the series with their great performances. 

One of the best series on the OTT platform this year which is not to be missed. In the end it is left for the viewer to decide on Harshad as a criminal or a victim. 

****.5 stars

Now streaming on SonyLIV. 

Raat Akeli Hai Movie Review

Raat Akeli Hai is about the murder of a man in mysterious circumstances and the investigation surrounding the murder. 

When Raghuveer Singh, the rich patriarch of a landowning family in Kanpur is found dead in his bedroom, Inspector Jatil Yadav (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) a smart cop is sent to the crime scene for investigating the case. During the investigation Jatil realises that all family members have their own hidden secrets and skeletons, which may have prompted one of them to kill the patriarch. The case has complications but Jatil decides to get to the bottom of the case.  

Jatil does encounter challenges during the course of investigation, but will he be able to overcome or does he too become a victim of the political mafia? Will Jatil survive? 

Movie is a gripping suspense thriller. Direction by debutante Honey Trehan is impressive. The director is surrounded by impeccably talented artists. He displays a command over the tone and the visual texture in the movie. Dialogues, screenplay and story by Smita Singh are fantastic. 

Nawazuddin Siddiqui after Sacred Games is back with a spectacular performance. This reflects his maturity and growth as an actor. Radhika Apte is top-notch. Nishant Dahiya stands his own as Vikram Singh (the nephew of Raghuveer Singh) among other great actors. Other supporting actors are equally good. 

An engaging thriller with a great social message. 

****

Dil Bechara Movie Review

Dil Bechara which in reality means a helpless heart, is an adaptation of John Green's popular novel "The Fault In Our Stars". 

Set in Jamshedpur Kizie Basu (Sanjana Sanghi) a young college going student is a thyroid cancer patient fighting for life and is on oxygen support. She comes across Immanuel Rajkumar Junior Manny (Sushant Singh Rajput), who changes her life forever. Both Kizie and Manny develop a bond and liking for each other. Their sweet and cute chemistry grows on you. Kizie has a wish of meeting her favourite musician Abhimanyu Vaid. Will Manny be able to fulfill her wish? What does life have in store for both Kizie and Manny?

Movie is heartwarming and emotional. It leaves the viewer with a good message. Direction by Mukesh Chhabra in his debut movie is wonderful. Some movie scenes are heartbreaking and will bring tears to your eyes.  Choreography by Farah Khan in the title song is superb. 

Sushant Singh Rajput shines with a stellar performance in, what turned out to be his last fillm. He is intense, sensitive, lively and vulnerable. Sanjana Sanghi makes a promising debut. The supporting cast of Saswata Chatterjee and Swastika Mukherjee are superb. Manny's best friend played by Sahil Vaid is also very good.

Soundtrack by A.R Rahman has some great foot tapping numbers and melodies. Lyrics are penned well by Amitabh Bhattacharya. 

Its an emotional and teary farewell to a budding actor, the late Sushant Singh Rajput. It is possibly his best shot. He will live in our hearts and minds forever.

**** stars

Aarya Web Series Review

Aarya means a noble woman. It also happens to be another name for Goddess Parvati.

Aarya a crime based drama, the Indian version of the popular Spanish series Penoza. The story set in Rajasthan is about Aarya Sareen and her family which includes three children and her husband Tej Sareen (Chandrachur Singh). Tej is running a family business of opium along with his partners which includes his brother-in-law. The family's happiness is short-lived as one fine day Tej is shot dead by an unidentified man. 

Aarya has to take a decision on whether to continue this business which she has stayed away for many years. This will include dealing with drug mafia and incomplete business deals. 

How far will Aarya go to save her family? What difficulties will she face along the way if she decides to continue with the business?

The show is slow at start but then picks up pace. It has suspense with twists & turns. The plot is well-written with detailed characters and smooth storytelling. All characters are important as each of them have a role to play. Direction by Ram Madhvani is fantastic. Dialogues are spot on. 

ACP Khan played by Vikas Kumar is superb.   Other actors who are spectacular include Sikandar Kher as Daulat, Namit Das as Jawahar who also happens to be one of the business partners and Manish Choudhary as Shekhawat. Chandrachur Singh in a cameo is good. Other actors also leave a mark. But it is Sushmita Sen who makes a terrific comeback and is the heart of the show. 

The show has a song inspired by Bhagvad Gita which has been composed well by Vishal Khurana. It uses Shlokas with the analogy between Mahabharat and Aarya's character. 

The series ends in a cliff-hanger meaning it will return for a second season. One is looking forward to it. 

A gripping and slick show now streaming on Hotstar. 

***.5 stars

Thappad Movie Review

Thappad in Indian language means a slap on the face. But does society give man the liberty to slap his wife? 

Amrita (Taapsee Pannu) is a dedicated and doting housewife who is happily married to Vikram (Pavail Gulati). Vikram gets promoted and they are on the verge of moving to London.  The couple have a party to celebrate this achievement. During the party he misdirects his anger on his wife by slapping her in front of the guests.  Amrita is shell-shocked by this incident. 

Does Amrita brush this as a one-off incident, forgive Vikram and move on, or will she reassess her relationship with Vikram?

The movie is about patriarchy and women entitlement. The script is co-written by Anubhav Sinha and Mrunmayee Lagoo.  Story and direction by Anubhav Sinha on a complex issue, is good.  Movie has a great first-half. The second-half is a bit stretched, which can be ignored. 

Taapsee Pannu shines in her portrayal of a housewife. Geetika Vidya Ohlyan as the maid servant is terrific. Kumud Mishra as Amrita's father is fantastic. Ratna Pathak Shah and Tanvi Azmi are in fine form. Pavail Gulati makes a great debut. Maya Sarao as Amrita's conflicted lawyer is fantastic. Diya Mirza as the neighbour is good. 

Occasionally the movie and screenplay, can be uncomfortable. But it is a thought provoking and well-made film. 

**** stars

Good Newwz Movie Review

What happens when there is a mixup of sperm samples due to confusion by doctors?

Varun Batra (Akshay Kumar) and Deepti Batra (Kareena Kapoor Khan) are a happily married couple settled in Mumbai. Due to family pressures Deepti is desperate to have a baby. Both Varun and Deepti decide on consulting  the best fertility specialist in the city. The specialist advises them on undergoing an IVF procedure for having a baby. 

Another married couple Honey Batra (Diljit Dosanjh) and Monika Batra (Kiara Advani) are also desperate for a baby. They, coincidentally also approach the same specialist and are  given the same advice of IVF. 

You can guess what happens next. Trouble arises when both the couples with the same surname are informed of a sperm mix-up by the IVF Centre. 

How will the two families deal with this unusual situation? 

Movie is a comedy of errors. Pace of the film is good, but sometimes narrative does become problematic. Some of the jokes seem frivolous. Screenplay could have been better given the depth and complexity of the situation. Dialogues are well-written. Director Raj Mehta raises some pertinent questions with regards to pregnancy and child birth in his debut film. 

Performances are top notch. Kareena steals the show with a knockout performance. Akshay is spot on with his comic timing. Diljit sinks his teeth into the character and is terrific. Kiara is good too.

Its a refreshing take on child pregnancies which would be loved by all. 

***.5 stars