Star Cast: Vaani Kapoor, Vaibhav Raj Gupta, Surveen Chawla
Web Series Review: MANDALA MURDERS is a gripping, ambitious thriller that explores unchartered territory
Director: Gopi Puthran, Manan Rawat
Synopsis:
MANDALA MURDERS is the story of an officer in a strange town. Vikram Singh (Vaibhav Raj Gupta) is on his way to his hometown, Charandaspur along with his father, Vishwanath (Manu Rishi Chadha). In the train, their co-passenger is Abhishek Sahay (Aakash Dahiya). Abhishek has arrived in Charandaspur for a mission, that is, to gather evidence about a deal taking place between local gangster siblings, Suraj Yadav (Rahul Bhagga) and Vijay Yadav (Siddhanth Kapoor) and an associate of local politician, Ananya Bharadwaj (Surveen Chawla). Yadav’s men spot Abhishek clicking pictures and chase him. He somehow escapes but the next day, his dead body is found in the river, minus his torso. Due to the brutality involved, the CIB is involved. Rea Thomas (Vaani Kapoor), dealing with a past trauma, insists to her boss, CIB Deputy Director Naveen Desai (Kiran Karmarkar) that she should be assigned the case. She reaches Charandaspur and realizes the mystery is far deeper than it seemed at first. The political angle is connected with the murder and hence, Ananya is a suspect. Vikram, who’s on a personal mission in his hometown, also gets sucked into the madness. And more importantly, the murder of Abhishek and of the others that follow has a direct connection with a secret cult society. What happens next forms the rest of the series.
Mandala Murders Story Review:
MANDALA MURDERS is based on the book ‘The Butcher Of Benares’ by Mahendra Jakhar. The adapted story is fascinating and a bit novel. Gabe Gabriel, Matt Graham, Gopi Puthran and Anurag Goswami’s screenplay (additional screenplay by Avinash Dwivedi and Chirag Garg) is edgy and keeps viewers intrigued. But it is also very complex. Gabe Gabriel, Matt Graham, Avinash Dwivedi and Chirag Garg’s dialogues are normal, though a few one-liners are over-the-top.
Gopi Puthran and Manan Rawat’s direction is great. The show is one-of-a-kind and the closest parallel one can draw is with ASUR. The intro episode itself sucks you into the mysterious world of Charandaspur. Besides the murders, Rea’s investigation angle and the track of Vikram also add to the madness. But the sub-plot of Ayastians is what stands out as its mysterious and a bit terrifying as well, especially their shocking mission. There are several surprises and twists and turns which also keep the interest going. The finale is quite gripping.
On the flipside, the show gets extremely confusing and complex. From the first episode itself, several characters get introduced in quick succession and it might be difficult to keep a track of who is who and who is related to whom and how. Hence, it is mandatory to binge-watch the show or to avoid keeping big gaps between two episodes; otherwise, you might lose track. Netflix should make an exception for MANDALA MURDERS and incorporate recaps in the beginning of every episode. The other issue is that several developments are difficult to digest. So many murders take place, with the first murder being the most shocking and gruesome of all. Ideally, it would have grabbed national headlines and added to the pressure. But nothing of that sort happens. It is also amusing that the killer, wearing such unusual clothes, roams around the city several times for murder purposes, but no one gets a hint of it. It’s only in the last episode that Rea realizes that CCTV cameras also exist in the city and finally takes that route to track the murderer. Lastly, a few characters don’t get enough due and are even forgotten for a long time in the course of the show.
Mandala Murders Performances:
Vaani Kapoor is quite great in action scenes. Two scenes of hers stand out – the action at the bridge and when she saves the kid from the ambulance; the scene that follows the latter is also where Vaani shows her acting prowess. However, the performance is not consistent and in some scenes, her act leaves a lot to be desired. Vaibhav Raj Gupta is a bit off in some scenes but overall, manages to put up a fine act. Surveen Chawla, as always, delivers an exceptional performance. Manu Rishi Chadha and Raghubir Yadav (Kaivalya Shastri) do very well in supporting roles. Jameel Khan (Jimmy Khan) gets to play a cool character and does justice to it. The same applies for Sharat Sonu (Pramod; local cop and Vikram’s friend). Aakash Dahiya, Rahul Bhagga and Siddhanth Kapoor leave a huge mark. Vinod Suryavanshi (Birju) has limited screen time and yet, registers his presence. Yogendra Vikram Singh (Vyankat Pandey) and Rahul Singh (Jairaj; Ananya’s husband) get to play interesting characters but are let down by the writing; also, their tracks are not neatly summed up. Monica Chaudhary (Kavita) is quite memorable. Edward Sonnenblick (Robert MacCauley)’s character is added for the heck of it. Kiran Karmarkar, Utkarsha Naik (Leela Yadav), Leena Malodi (Maithili), Anang Desai (Giyasuddin), Saad Baba (Mallik), Kapil Arya (Pradyut), Piloo Vidyarthi (Kalini; Shastri’s wife), Ipshita Chakraborty Singh (Vasudha; Vikram’s mother) and Sunny Hinduja (Anant) are fair. Shriya Pilgaonkar (Rukmini) and Aaditi Pohankar (Moksha) deliver rocking cameo performances.
Mandala Murders music and other technical aspects:
MANDALA MURDERS is a song-less show. Sanchit Balhara and Ankit Balhara’s background score adds to the mystery element. Shaz Mohammed’s cinematography is top-notch. Vikram Dahiya’s action is not gory, though the show is in the violent zone. Amit Ray and Subrata Chakraborty’s production design is superior. Kirti Kolwankar and Maria Tharakan’s costumes are realistic. yFX’s VFX is overall satisfactory but it is poor in the Ladakh sequence. Mitesh Soni and Meghna Manchanda Sen’s editing is decent.
Mandala Murders Review Conclusion:
On the whole, MANDALA MURDERS is a gripping, ambitious thriller that dares to explore uncharted narrative territory with its eerie setting, layered plotlines and an intriguing cult subplot that adds a disturbing yet fascinating edge. However, the show isn’t without its drawbacks. The complexity of the storyline and a barrage of characters can feel overwhelming, and certain logical lapses may test viewers’ suspension of disbelief.
Rating – 3 stars
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