Khakee: The Bengal Chapter
Introduction
There was a recent article curated by The Hollywood Reporter India that stated a growing sentiment amongst OTT platforms to have content fuelling their algorithm. In the article, the typical three act structure would be replaced by a more urgent narrative with clutch moments or deaths integrated at specific points wherein viewers would turn off the show. The same structure is quite evident in the new Hindi Netflix show Khakee – The Bengal Chapter that typically has a cold open sequence to begin with. In that sequence, there is an accident that transpires before acquainting the viewers of a potential mole in a police department until two characters are pitted against each other. And while most of the narrative transpires as a flashback, this cold open sequence was typically designed to draw your attention and grip you in the narrative from the opening act. Thankfully, the makers are successful this time around (although I must also add that there is a risk of killing the creativity if all makers were to employ this method). Furthurmore, the considerable buildup notwithstanding, there is a genuine grip in the proceedings that laces the narrative here, while making Khakee- The Bengal Chapter worth a solid watch!
Story & Screenplay
Written by Neeraj Pandey, Debatma Mandal and Samrat Chakraborty, the second installment in the Khakee series (after Khakee – The Bihar Chapter), and a standalone sequel in its own right, Khakee – The Bengal Chapter unfolds as a political thriller after a top-cop Arjun (Jeet) is assigned a case to track down the killers of an IPS officer Saptarshi (Parambrata Chatterjee). The task of Arjun is simple – hunt down the culprits or infuse a sense of tense between the stakeholders who would fight amongst themselves, that would particularly get the job done for Arjun. But the underlying layer of the story is an exposition of the deeper political angle that is at play in the narrative, that threatens to destabilize Arjun’s job and make it even harder. One of the interesting aspects of the drama remained the setting itself – the city of joy (or Bhoy as a character would call it), Kolkata. And the aspect that makes is interesting is the era of the early 2000s set against the backdrop of a city that has retained its old world charm. This timeline and the setting, automatically adds texture to the storytelling while inducing a meaty flavour from it wherein the city (and places around it) plays an important character.
The key theme of the drama remained its power dynamics that defined the fabric of the storytelling here. So when you are introduced to a ruthless gangster Bagha (Saswata Chatterjee), the embodiment of the character remains fearless and tactful, giving you an impression of the sole person who calls the shots. In a scene, you see a younger version of Bagha mercilessly stabbing a character to death, just because the character had his evil eyes on his mother. You do understand his ruthless stance even while presuming to be the kingpin – until he isn’t. You do see a set of characters of different levels of the power chain, that in-turn play important parts. At a higher level is Barun Roy (an incredible Prosenjit Chatterjee), who is a scheming politician, often disguised as a game-changer at various instances. In a scene, you also see him slapping the CM Shirshendu (Subhasish Mukherjee) while showing him his place, almost to indicate a character who is calling the shots. On the other hand, you are acquainted with the terror twins Sagor (Ritwik Bhowmik) and Ranjit (Aadil Zafar Khan), who may seem inferior to Bagha at the start, but secret behold an ambition to take the ‘throne’.
Sagor and Ranjit particularly remain engrossing characters that reminded me of Guddu and Bablu from Mirzapur. One is typically the hot-headed one who doubles up as a loose cannon, and the other is calm and calculated. Interestingly, the start of the character dynamics begins from these two characters and the ambitions that they behold, triggering a chain of events that bring Arjun into the equation. The politics of the landscape is defined from the characters at the top, who control the visceral incidents on the grassroot level. In many ways, the drama unfolds like a bout of chess, with each pawn tactfully making a move, and with every wrong move, the pawn risks a chance of elimination (or so the Netflix algorithm wishes to be designed). As a result, the stakes in the drama are always levelled up with even the most unexpected deaths shaping up the narrative at crucial points. And interestingly, each death also shifts the power dynamics in the region.
Another underlying theme of the drama is that of ambition, that drives a few of the characters and the narrative ahead. Arjun is a no-nonsense cop that thrives on the ambition of eliminating crime in Bengal completely. There is a streak of righteousness that drives his narrative here, even while going an extra mile to arrest or eliminate the bad guys here. Likewise, a potential conflict does rise between Sagor and Ranjit that stems from a bout of ambition that converts itself into a streak of insecurity. And so the juggling dynamics between the duo (which is triggered by Arjun through some mind games), forms the basis on the second act. And this forms the crux of the second act.
The drama is many ways can also be viewed as a cat and a mouse game between a different set of characters. For instance, for Arjun, it remains a cat and mouse game between him and the criminals, or even him and the characters of the red tape. For Sagor and Ranjit, this very game is more internal and also personal on many levels. In a scene, you see Sagor absolutely going on a killing spree in a game of cat and mouse with the members of the ‘opposite’ gang. This, even as Ranjit wishes to muscle his way to the top after between subjected to a string of discrimination. There is an inherent game of politics in play that cohesively ties each character to the plot, while relying on some unexpected expositions in the form of deaths that cater to your attention span. And in that regards, the proceedings are gripping.
The entire drama is designed to be a video-game wherein some characters always stand to gain ‘karma-points’ at the cost of elimination of a few other characters. This is particularly true when each character is eliminated at a specific level of the video-game, until the complex drama starts to become a little more straight-forward towards the end. The tie-up from the first scene itself is a worthy sub-plot that allows you to indulge in a guessing game, although the ending of it remains a little too cliched. And this is the problem with the overall structure too – the simpler the plot gets, the more convenient it gets. So in the final act when only two stakeholders remain, you know exactly where the drama is headed in terms of its predictability (based on moral grounds). But an added shortcoming is in the form of how things are rushed at the end, as opposed to allowing some layers to be explored at the end. This seemed like an arrhythmic service to the Netflix algorithm that has a flaw of forcing the writers to end the show within its stipulated 7-episode format. I could easily spot a sub-plot being removed from the final draft to cater to this service. And so, the ending for me was a little too flat and convenient apart from being rushed. But overall, the screenplay does provide ample twists and turns to bind the narrative together, thereby ending up being gripping.
Dialogues, Music & Direction
The dialogues lend a considerable sense of authenticity with respect to the area where the drama is set in. I could feel a subtly erupting fragrance of Bengal through its lines. This, while I also did feel that the lines did get a little too verbose at a few junctures for my liking. There were no implied rules here wherein every little detail was highlighted through the lines. This may well be another drawback based on the directives from Netflix, given how Netflix executives assume that most people watch content only in the background while multi-tasking. Well, it is the new normal I guess..
The BGM adds explicitly to the urgency of the drama by nicely highlighting the levels of tension that are interspersed in multiple scenes. The cinematography is a little underpar here because the frames don’t necessarily add depth to the proceedings. And much of the issue is due to the lack of colour correction that is quite synonymous to the recent films of Neeraj Pandey. The appeasing factor with respect to the colouring is just not there, that threatens to reduce the show to some episodes of Crime Patrol (and thankfully, the writing ensures that it isn’t). The editing is a little choppy particularly during the action set-pieces that are pedestrian and often met with abrupt cuts. Directors Debatma Mandal and Tushar Kanti Ray are exceptional talents, and they score tremendously well with the world building and characterization. There is a sense of urgency in their craft (in a good way) that consistently manages to keep the drama afloat and eventful. The staging of scenes and the emotions erupting from them are wonderfully well handled, even as the directors maintain a strong grip on the proceedings. The direction remains pretty solid here, through and through.
Performances
The performances are excellent by the members of the cast in what seems like a grand reunion of some of the stalwarts of the Bengali Film Industry. Pooja Sarkar, Amika Shail and Rahul Dev Bose are wonderful actors, and their sheer screen presence makes them shine despite a limited screen time. Madhurima Ghosh as Koyel is understated and manages to leave a mark. Shraddha Das as Saumya, Nyra Banerjee as Rekha and Pooja Chopra as Khushi are sincere and earnest while making for pleasant outings on the show. Joy Sengupta as Bhaskar is a wonderful actor himself, and the layers of the power dynamics mixed with subtle bouts of corruption that he brings to his character was commendable. Parambrata Chatterjee as IPS Saptarshi is righteous and understated, and he definitely does a solid job here despite a limited screen time. Subhashish Mukherjee as CM Shirshendu is first rate, as is Tenzin Bodh as Cheena.
Sweta Mishra as Deepa is pretty earnest here even while managing to emote really well particularly during the latter moments of her character. Shruti Das as Manjula is wonderfully understated while also getting her chance to briefly explore the vulnerabilities of her character. She was a delight to witness here. Mimoh Chakraborty as Himel is competant and does a good job although he could perhaps also work a little more on his dialogue delivery that was a little flat (only in a few instances) as opposed to having a bit more bite to it. Aakanksha Singh as Aratrika is excellent here with a solid screen presence that makes you take notice of her every single time. And her understated approach also adds layers to her character while also excelling in combat sequences. Chitrangda Singh as Nibedita is pretty good too in a character that remains underwritten. She is assertive and her energy definitely adds to the urgency of the plot, and at times even successfully riling up emotions in terms of the morality of her character.
Saswata Chatterjee as Bagha is ruthless with having a scheming streak as a base, that makes for a wonderful performance. There is this subtle streak of madness coupled with a sense of authority that is tagged to his character, something that he expertly exploits. Prosenjit Chatterjee as Barun has a layered character with a cunning trait of being vile and scheming, that adds to the unpredictability of his character. And the minimalistic approach that he brings to his performance is commendable. Jeet as IPS Arjun is in top form here in a character that offers him the liberty to go all out with his approach. He mixes caution with aggression while leaving a lasting impact with his character here, despite having a one-tone in terms of the writing.
But my man of the match, or should I say men of the match are Ritwik Bhowmik as Sagor and Aadil Zafar Khan as Ranjit. There is this eccentric energy that engulfs the two characters, even while each of these characters perceive it differently. Sagor remains calm and collected, while being brutal with his actions and thoughts, while Ranjit remains the more boisterous one with a dozen expressions to showcase his madness. Both these fine young actors bring their A-game to the fore, so much so that I would wish another spin-off series based on these amazing characters. Both Aadil and Ritwik are phenomenal talents, accounting for the underlying layer of emotions with respect to their characters, and ending up as being memorable here! This was always tough given how frequently their dynamics change over the show, but to bring such coherence with the stipulated set of emotions was no mean feat! Casting Directors are you listening?
Conclusion
Despite tapering off at the finishing line, Khakee – The Bengal Chapter is a gripping political thriller with solid performances that makes for quite an absorbing watch. Available on Netflix.
