This Week In Streaming: April 4, 2019

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Delhi Crime (2019)
Streaming on: Netflix

In our run-of-the-mill Indian crime series, subtlety isn’t just a lost art - it is just lost! Amidst shrieking anchors, bad picturisation and loud background effects (watch an episode of Crime Patrol for reference), Delhi Crime, with its subtle yet powerful performances, excellent dialogues and spectacular filmography comes as a fresh breath of (very chilly) air.

This seven-episode series uncovers how the Delhi Police managed to nab the six accused in the 2012 Nirbhaya rape case within a week of the crime. Every possible detail of the crime is conveyed to the viewer only in terms of the dialogue - there is no visual of the horrifying crime itself, and that is the absolute genius of this series. These dialogues, along with Shefali Shah’s beautifully expressive eyes are disquieting enough. The visuals that shock are the ones of the battered yet determined victim and the confession of the hardened culprit (ostensibly based on an interview in the 2015 documentary, India’s Daughter). It is true that there are some dramatisations and creative liberties - for example, one of the accused died in jail months after the rape and not within a week - but it would be prudent to just gloss over them. I really liked the manner in which the entire series was produced - there was not a setting that looked odd, not a light that looked too bright, and more importantly, not an expletive that was used in vain.

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The actors deserve as much praise for their brilliant performances as the cinematography team for their camerawork. Shefali Shah, queen of meaningful television in the early 1990s is in her element as DCP Vartika Chaturvedi, and plays the role of a tough cop ridden with guilt with aplomb. She is ably supported by Rajesh Tailang as the straitlaced inspector Bhupendra Singh (who was personally, my favourite character), Vinod Sharawat as the undecipherable SHO Vinod Tiwari, Adil Husain as Delhi police chief Kumar Vijay and of course, Rasika Duggal as Neeti Singh, the talented police trainee who looks up to DCP Chaturvedi. It was amusing to see Gopal Dutt in this series and I was initially sceptical about his performance as a serious police officer, but he pulled off the part quite convincingly.

The common thread amongst all the principal characters, other than the Delhi Police, are women. For DCP Chaturvedi, it is her daughter who wants to get out of the “unsafe” city, for Inspector Singh it is his unmarried daughter and for Neeti it is the standard conflict between her personal and professional life. There are even glimpses of the police chief’s daughter and the SHO’s wife, and mentions of the spouses of other officers. Quite a nice touch, if you ask me, maintaining the woman narrative throughout the series.

This series doesn’t intend to be sermonizing or glorifying. It merely details the unsung brilliance of the Delhi Police while handling this particular case. If what all Delhi Crime shows is even 50 per cent true, then hats off to the Delhi Police.

Verdict - Watch the series for the police, for Nirbhaya and for Delhi, our enigmatic capital city.


Great News (2017)

Streaming on: Netflix

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Disclaimer - I absolutely LOVE Tina Fey. If I had known who Tina Fey was when I was in my teens, I’m pretty sure I would’ve sent in an audition for SNL all the way from India, just in the hope of meeting her. If there ever was a Team Fey vs a Team....well, anything, I’d be Team Fey, all the way!

There are some standard elements in all her shows that I absolutely love - the bumbling female protagonist, the chirpy music (by hubby Jeff Richmond, the lucky,lucky guy), a OTT music video ( Kimmy Schmidt fans will remember the very hummable Pinot Noir :-p) the fast dialogues and an ensemble cast that includes special appearances by Rachel Dratch! Also, although almost all of Ms Fey’s protagonists are goofy, bumbling, socially awkward know-it-alls, I like that they are also strong, intelligent women with their own vulnerabilities, disappointments and sadness. The best part is that all of Ms Fey’s protagonists get a happy ending, man or no man. SO when I stumbled upon Great News (2017) and saw that is was a Ms Fey production, I started bingeing!

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Great News is the story of Katie Wendelson (Briga Healen), a budding cable TV news producer who finds her life all tangled up when her doting mother Carol (a fantastic Andrea Martin) joins her network as an intern. While the show maintains a certain degree of hilarity throughout, it is not in the league of 30 Rock or even Parks & Rec, maybe because of the slow pace and relatively poor performances in the first two episodes. It is from the third episode that the show finds its footing, and takes off. Each member of the ensemble cast that includes singer Nicole Ritchie as the posh, trendy newscaster Portia Scott-Griffith, Brit actor Adam Campbell as Katie’s boss Greg and John Michael Higgins as the ‘geriartic’ insecure anchor Chuck Pierce contribute to the show, and don’t let it slip. Even the creator of the show, Tracy Wigfield, stars in the show as the eccentric weather reporter Beth Vierk, and guest appearances by Scott Reid, Christina Pickles and Tina Fey herself pepper the show with big LOL moments. The most endearing part of the show is its core - the bond between an overprotective mother and her independent daughter.

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Yes, there are traces of 30 Rock and sometimes the characters get too similar - Chuck Pierce and Jenna Maroney are basically fraternal twins- but in my opinion, a total remodelling is way better than releasing a new season of an old show.

The ‘great news’ is that the two seasons that are on Netflix India are good for plenty of laughs, especially if (like me) you’re into shows like The Office and 30 Rock. The bad news is that the show has been cancelled, and I wonder why - it deserved at the least another two seasons. But considering Ms Fey’s shows generally dip after the initial seasons, I’m somewhat okay with this show being cancelled after two seasons.

Verdict - Great News is entertaining and is worth a watch. Just don’t judge by the first two episodes. Trust me.


Sidenote:

Kalank trailer, YouTube

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Things I learnt from the trailer:

1.  India in 1945 was cleaner, colour coordinated and better-dressed than India today.
2. Three things always work for films in India - aarti ki thaali, train sequences and out-of-period item songs.
3. There were no aunties in 1945. Had Roop (Alia Bhatt) in her simple avatar said “ Meri shaadi ho chuki hai” to an aunty in 2019, she would have to face a volley of questions, ranging from “ Arre tumhara chooda kahaan hai?” “ Sindoor kyun nahi lagaaya?” to “Kamsekam mangalsutra toh pehen leti”. Lucky gal.
4. Also, what was the budget for Ram Leela in the mohalla of Kalank? I mean, they have waterproof paint, a working mechanical Jatayu, choreographed dhol walas and graceful dancers? Man, how have we come from that to a thin man shooting a fire arrow at a 100 foot Ravan amidst a crowd of people? The shame! *mock faints*

Will reserve further opinions till the release of the film!