Paatal Lok Review: Layered Writing And Stellar Performances Make This Series A Must Watch

Paatal Lok- the latest web series on Amazon Prime. Trust me when I say this, I have been struggling for over an hour to find words on how to begin this review. I had just finished the web-series, after binging on it throughout my day and well, there are so many things going on in my head right now that it is difficult to frame them together. When the promos and the teasers of the series had come out, there was a thought that crossed my mind that this might be closer to Netflix’s Sacred Games. The character of Hathi Ram, an Inspector who finds the chance to prove his mettle after he gets a high profile case to investigate did not look far off from our Sartaj Singh after all. But honestly, this comparison would be unfair. Paatal Lok is closer to reality, and with every aspect crafted with brilliance, this one hits the ball out of the park.

The storyline is simple. Four people are nabbed from the Yumuna Expressway bridge and are murder suspects. The case is transferred to Inspector Hathi Ram Chaudhary Of Outer Yumuna Paar Police Station who sees this as an medium to prove himself to his peers and family. But as he starts to unravel, this turns out to be a maze and nothing is what it looks like.

Hathi Ram feels that the world is divided into Swarg Lok, where the rich and the privileged reside, the Dharti lok where the working class resides and the Paatal Lok, the layer of demons and sinners. He explains how Paatal Lok tries to infiltrate and disrupt Dharti Lok, and when it does, hell breaks loose, literally.  But as we progress through this series, we realize that the three ‘loks’ reside in all of us! And that probably is where the series gets its brilliant touch from. We delve deeper into all the characters and their past and realize that we cannot categorise a single one of them as good or bad. Every character is given a backstory (except probably Dolly played by the amazing Swastika Mukherjee) and that gives this story the depth that it deserved. It also renders you unable to pass any moral judgment.

The story is way too close to home. The portrayal of Delhi or the netherworld of Pradesh has perfection written everywhere. The actors add the cherry on the top, with their perfect accent. The realism of the story would bind you. The writing is layered and shows powerplay in every possible aspect. From the disturbing histories of the ‘criminals’ to the portrayal of a queer person to politics over community, everything finds a way in here and nothing has been left in a sketchy manner. There is nothing sanitized about the portrayal of different people or departments or jobs in here and that adds to the real feel that you get!

The foremost thing that we see in a film or a series is acting, and here, it’s top notch. Everyone in the starcast has done such a brilliant job that you cannot point a single flaw here. Jaideep Ahlawat plays the lead character of Hathi Ram and what a performance he has delivered. From exuding confidence to changing the  body language into droopy shoulder to show failure, he not just delivers through his word but also with his body language. Something similar can be said about the main antagonist- Hathoda Tyagi played by Abhishek Banerjee. What was this man doing as a casting director all these days? The funny guy who made ‘Vicky Plej’ a memorable dialogue in Stree plays a cold dreaded serial killer. He has maybe two or three dialogues in the entire film, but it’s with his body language that he spreads the dread! You think he walks away with the cake, but then you meet Mairembam Ronaldo Singh who portrays the character of Chini. To show such vulnerability and emotion in front of the camera is not an easy job, but he is spontaneous and effortless. Neeraj Kabi plays Sanjeev Mehra, the targeted journalist, and he plays the character with panache as well. But again, it was Swastika Mukherjee, who played his wife Dolly, who deserves much applause. She plays a housewife who suffers from anxiety, and she nails the portrayal. Jagjeet Sandhu as the mad Topa Singh is commendable as is Ishwak Singh who plays Ansari.  Boddhisatva Sharma, who plays Hathi Ram’s son, is worth mentioning too, for his portrayal of the under confident and out-of-place boy who struggles to merge with those around him.

I felt that the entire show probably had just one glitch- it was the chase sequence at the very end of the show at a village fair. This is probably the only few minutes which looked somewhat far-fetched and stretched unnecessarily. It was also borderline unbelievable. This part could have been easily done with.

All in all, this is a must watch show for how it enters your psyche and make you question your moral compass as you would begin to empathise with every character. Its reality is hard-hitting. With the perfectly crafted cliffhangers at the end of each episode, you’ll probably binge it and that will cost you some 6-7 hours. Paatal Lok is definitely one of the best crafted series of the year! 

Rating- 4/5 stars