Screen Time: Guns, Gangsters, and a Sweet Treat
Bullets fly over Bombay, a lovelorn mechanic courts violence, an ordinary man turns scamster, a small-town boy fulfills his musical dreams, and a Friday night plan goes horribly wrong. The fall fun continues.
Bambai Meri Jaan (Hindi)
Amazon Prime Video
For all those who love gangster dramas, this one is an engaging watch though it only truly take off in the third episode. Based on former investigative journalist Hussain Zaidi’s 2012 book, Dongri to Dubai: Six Decades of the Mumbai Mafia, about Dawood Ibrahim and his crime syndicate, the 10-part series traces the ascent of mob boss Dara Kadri and his D-Company. The series is a fictional version of Zaidi's book, so the names are changed. Given his penchant for criminal behavior, Kadri (Avinash Tiwary), the ambitious son of upright police officer Ismail Kadri (Kay Kay Menon), is constantly at loggerheads with his father. When Kadri’s close pal is killed by a family member, he is forced to sacrifice his principles to protect his family. Overtly, the series is about the organized crime scene in Bombay in the ’70s and ’80s, but it’s also about the Kadri family blown apart by greed and vengeance. My only quibble: the language throughout is a little too crass for my liking as is the unnecessary violent depictions of rape and stabbings that can repel the viewer. Watch it mainly for Kay Kay Menon’s stoic act as the tortured Kadri who wants to protect his family but can only watch helplessly from the sidelines as it self-destructs.
Scam 2003 (Hindi; Gujarati)
SonyLIV
Another riveting story based on a book—Sanjay Singh's Telgi Scam: Ek Reporter Ki Diary—this one is about the notorious scamster Abdul Karim Telgi, who was involved in the 2003 stamp paper counterfeiting scandal worth INR 30,000 crore. The story begins with Telgi (a superb Gagan Dev Riar) selling vegetables on the train. He uses his charm to engage people, getting them to buy what he’s selling. People, in fact, think they need what he’s selling. He catches the eye of a hotel owner based in Bombay and promptly takes off to try his luck in the city of dreams. Desperate to get his family out of their impoverished state, Telgi initially works hard and earns his dues but soon greed takes over. He begins by faking documents for people looking to move to the Middle East for work. And then his ambition gets bigger. Moving on to counterfeiting stamp papers he sells fakes to everyone, from banks and insurance companies to brokerage firms. Eventually his crimes get the better of him. Those who enjoyed Hansal Mehta’s Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story, especially the first installment, will relish this one as well.
Guns and Gulaabs (Hindi)
Netflix
After The Family Man and Farzi, Raj and DK are back with another mad caper. In the fictional town of Gualabganj, two gangs—one led by Gaanchi (the late Satish Kaushik) and the other by his protégé—are fighting to own the local opium business. Caught in the crossfire is Tipu (Rajkumar Rao), the son of Gaanchi’s righthand man, Babu Tiger. A simple mechanic who doesn’t want to be known as his father’s son, Tipu is besotted by the local school teacher, Lekha. But in a moment of rage, he kills two goons with a spanner. All hell breaks loose—and to add to his troubles, a new narcotics officer (Dulquer Salman), with secrets of his own, takes charge. Though the series lags in parts, quirky characters like Four Cut Atmaram (he kills his victims with four fatal cuts to the body), played with elan by Gulshan Devaiah—and some brilliant cameos by Varun Badola and Bengali actor Rajatava Dutta—make it an immensely watchable show. The final episode is just too much fun!
Friday Night Plan (Hindi)
Netflix
Tired of all the blood and gore? This easy breezy teen comedy is just the palette cleanser you need. Sidharth (Babil Khan) is the typical older brother—responsible, studious, and a habitual good boy. His younger brother, Aditya (the talented Amrith Jayan), is the opposite and he wants to be part of the cool gang. When Sid scores the winning goal at a school football match, he becomes an overnight star. To celebrate the win and bring in the weekend, the brothers are invited to a party—a Friday Night Plan. The only problem is that the brothers have promised their mother (Juhi Chawla)— away on a business trip—that they will stay out of trouble. Predictably that plan goes sideways. The brothers get into all kinds of trouble and will need to band together to get out of their mess, all before mummy dearest gets back home. The tone of this series is saccharine. Babil lights up the screen with his endearing persona—and though he’s the spitting image of his illustrious father, the late Irrfan, he owns his performance with a touch of innocence and sweetness. Jayan, who has a bright future, gives a standout performance.
AP Dhillon: First of a Kind (English; Punjabi)
Amazon Prime Video
AP Dhillon has been a bit of an enigma for his fans and followers. The Indian Canadian hitmaker (born Amritpal Singh Dhillon) and record producer who came to Vancouver as an international student from Gurdaspur, Punjab, is one of the most stunning musical success stories of recent times. Notoriously media shy, the rapper mostly connected with his fans through his music and rarely spoke about his personal life. This four-part documentary traces his origins from his earliest days working odd jobs, including at an electronics store, saving up money to build a studio in his garage, and then finally getting together with his dream team—songwriters and singers Shinda Kahlon and Gurinder Gill—to create viral hits such as “Brown Munde,” “Arrogant,” “Excuse,” and others. Their signature mix of conversational Majha Punjabi, English, and autotune became instant hits on YouTube. The singer—who was told that his music was s**t and wouldn't work—is laughing all the way to the bank, as they say.
Baisakhi Roy is a culture writer and journalist based in Ontario, Canada. Her work has appeared in The Globe and Mail, Huffington Post Canada, Chatelaine, Broadview and CBC. Formerly a reporter with The Indian Express in India, Roy is an avid Bollywood fan and co-hosts the Hindi language podcast KhabardaarPodcast.com. Email: baisakhi.roy@gmail.com
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