The Netflix series Sacred Games, an adaptation of Vikram Chandra’s novel of the same name, begins with a bang in episode one, takes you into a journey muddied with joy, anger, sadness, despair, sex, hatred, love, lust, pity, betrayal, pride, fear, and ambition, and ends with a cliffhanger that leaves you craving for more!
The first season of the Netflix series consists of 8 episodes and each offers a discovery of not just the characters in the story and the storyline, but also of the mastery of all the cast and crew members involved in creating this work of art.
The series begins with an anonymous phone call by underworld gangster Ganesh Gaitonde, played by Nawazuddin Siddiqui, to honest inspector Sartaj Singh, portrayed by Saif Ali Khan. Sartaj had lost out on promotions, his wife, and respect of colleagues due to his honesty and had not solved one major case in ages. The crime lord was missing for several years and was presumed to be dead. Hence, a call from him sets him into frenzy, and begins the chase which continues till the very end. Gaitonde informs Sartaj that something will happen in 27 days and all of Mumbai will be destroyed.
As we, the audience, gets hooked onto the interviewing storyline, we are taken via flashbacks through the life of Gaitonde, from a Brahmin boy to being an internationally wanted don. The ‘present’ involves a storyline about Sartaj trying to prevent the supposed calamity, avoiding the impediments posed by his superiors, colleagues, and politicians, maintain his integrity, and eventually make a name for himself. There are references to Babri Masjid demolition, the Shahbano Case, Bofors, Emergency, and the 1992 Mumbai riots, etc., and how these incidents played a role in shaping the lives of Gaitonde and the general population.
Both the leads deliver masterful performances. Saif plays a restrained, anxiety-ridden, hapless honest cop and delivers a really masterful performance. It can be said to be one of his best performances since Omkara. Siddiqui goes one step above and keeps us gripped as a powerful gangster who would stop at no length to become the “God” of all men.
The supporting cast consisting of Radhika Apte, Luke Kenny, Rajshri Deshpande, Jatin Sarna, Aamir Bashir, Jitendra Joshi, Neeraj Kabi, Kubbra Sait, Elnaaz Norouzi, Shalini Vatsa, and Nayanika Sehgal, all deliver stellar performances. Apte particularly shines out as a no-nonsense RAW officer who is also fighting with the sexist system in addition to fighting crime. The city of Mumbai is another cast member that looms large across the 8 episodes and vividly shows its ugly and beautiful sides.
The directors, Anurag Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane have shot the series like a film but used specific visual methods and angles so that it can be telecast on the web. They have wonderfully turned the adapted screenplay and writing of screenwriters Smita Singh, Varun Grover, and Vasant Nath into a magical experience on screen.
Alokananda Dasgupta’s original musical score is resonating and very effective, the editing is lively, the lighting and camerawork do more than capture just the landscape and the performances, and the production values can compete with the best!
Episodes in the middle especially the third one may lag a bit, but we stay hooked on. Don’t miss the series for any reason whatsoever. We now wait for the second season.
Sacred Games – Rating
4 out of 5
