By Akshay Acharya Series: ‘Duranga’ (Streaming on ZEE5).The duration is nine episodes (30-32 minutes each).
Directors: Pradeep Sarkar and Aijaz Khan.The cast includes Gulshan Devaiah Drashti Dhami Abhijit Khandkekar Zakir Hussain, and Amit Sadh.
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When Gulshan Devaiah is asked to play an assignment you can certain that he will do an amazing task with it.The work he has done in the just released Duranga is another addition to the list of.
The streaming series is directed by Pradeep Sarkar who has previously directed films such as ‘Parineeta’ or ‘Mardaani’.Also, Aijaz Khan who previously directed the drama film “Hamid”.
The show is the official version of the Korean show “Flower of Evil’.It follows a string of murders and uncovers the history of the lead character actor, Gulshan.
Resurrection of serial killers or an imposter killer who is on the loose with similar tactics to the original killer or perhaps the descendants of the killer who killed him? “Duranga” explores these possibilities when Mumbai Crime Branch Officer Ira Jaykar Patel (played by Drashti Dhami) investigates the case.
While there are some instances in which the show is engaging for the viewers, it appears as boring for the majority of portions.
Charudutt Acharya’s writing style is inconsistency as it fails to keep the attention of the viewers for a long period of time.The series is a non-linear story with the story moving between the past events to the present.
The dialogues sound stale often of times, throughout the course of the entire series.When you have two minds working on an entire series that’s like this, what’s least you can expect for the show is to be entertaining throughout its duration.
The performances of the cast however they are the savior for the series.As we mentioned previously, Gulshan does an impressive job as the leading character.
He is well supported by his fellow cast members.Drashti as the tough cop and loving wife is a stunning performance.
Sequences in which she is the leader of the team have been executed very well, and it is evident the seamless synergy between the actor and director(s).
Another great actor in the show is Abhijit Khandkekar who is the crime reporter Vikas Sarode.
The viewers should keep an eye out for scenes in which he shifts between extremes of the power dynamic of the character.The way he speaks, his facial expressions reveal how deeply he has gone into the character.
On the technical side the series manages to be a good job.The rural and urban locations have been well taken into consideration of by the design team of the production.It’s essential that the art direction department to be one step above other departments since the main persona is an artist with an art studio and the art team isn’t a disappointment.
What isn’t so great is the dubbing and sound design.
The dubbing is off in a few instances.The background score is quite mediocre, which is warning sign for the genre of thriller.
Cinematography doesn’t offer anything new and is based on classic scenes only to get weighed down by the poor editing.
“Duranga” is a series that viewers can enjoy whenever they’ve got lots of time to watch and they won’t be missing out on any of the episodes if they decide not to view it.
aa/sks
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