UNDEKHI: Review

Directed by: Ashish Shukla 

Cast: Harsh Chhaya, Dibyendu Bhattacharya, Abhishek Chauhan, Surya Sharma, Anchal Singh, Ayn Zoya, Sayandeep Sengupta, Ankur Rathee, Apeksha Porwal, Uttam Halder, Shivangi Singh, Bikramjeet Kanwarpal, and others. 

Streaming on SonyLiv (Rated 18+)

If “gripping” had a face that would be these series, a dark, dirty face of crime, deceit and politics. How an influential political clout and impotent puppets in the law can help criminals get away with murder, quite literally. 

Set in picturesque Manali (breathtakingly gorgeous cinematography by Murzi Pagdiwala), the backdrop is of a big fat Indian wedding in an high end resort enveloped by the chilling snow and sensuous mountains on all sides. Things get out of Hand when the groom’s father in an inebriated state shoots a performing dancer in the head, the murder is recorded by the wedding videographer. Soon the murderer’s loyal henchmen are on a wild dog hunt to bump off the videographer and the victim’s sister who are on the runaway in the dense forests of Manali. 

I almost dozed off at the end of the first episode which looked more like a wedding shoot cum murder docu drama, but the way it picks up from episode two there’s no downer thereafter. You get hooked to your couch watching the fast paced crime thriller, the director has invested considerable creativity in conceptualising a near brilliant thriller on screen. Trust me we rarely see such well made crime dramas in Hindi. Editing by Rajesh Panday is another upper selling point, no disjointed sequences, the flow is smooth and easy. 

Entertainment is the key word here, and there’s plenty of it. With murders as its basic centre point there’s the occasional humour induced dialogue that pops up and lightens the tense proceedings. The makers have smartly used the chilling environment of snow capped Manali to add that mystery and intrigue to the storyline. No doubt there are plenty of loopholes as well but then viewers are so accustomed to such drawbacks by now. 

Harsh Chhaya as the obnoxious Papaji the incorrigible villain is first rate, his absolute command over intoxicated dialogue delivery, body language and overall approach is impressive. So is Surya Sharma as Rinku Paaji, outstanding. Another decent act is Bhattacharya as the DCP, underplayed with brilliant layers of sugary Bengali accent (very natural). Anchal Singh looks as sexy and beautiful as the scenic beauty of Manali. 

If you are overdosed by the espionage dramas or wannabe thrillers that look like CID/crime patrol imitations, then Undekhi is a fragrant breather for you, Iss Web Series Ko Undekha mat karna. 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️