Grahan review: Emotionally resonant tale from 1984 that is as captivating as it is intense

The scary thing about evil is its banality. We can all be driven to the worst crimes imaginable if the motivation and emotional drivers are right. The absurdity of seemingly ordinary people experiencing a bloodlust for inexplicable reasons is terrifying.

Ranjan Chandel's intense web-series, Grahan, captures this phenomenon in detail and layers it with emotional drama and intrigue, which makes it resonate even more with viewers. With powerful performances from Zoya Hussain, Pavan Malhotra, Anshuman Pushkar and Sahidar Rahaman, the drama only grows in power with every episode.

The story begins in Patna, Bihar, where SP Amrita Singh (Zoya) has had more than her share of political tangles and is shunted to an SIT (special investigation team) set up to probe the 1984 riots in the steel city Bokaro.

The SIT is not without its politics. With elections on the horizon, the chief minister wants to use the SIT to rake up the unsavoury past of opposition leader Chunnu Singh (Teekam Joshi) in Bokaro. A known colluder in the anti-Sikh riots, Chunnu Singh is now gunning for the CM's post.

As Amrita and her team dig deeper, however, she unearths events from the past that are tied to her own life. Her father, Gursevak (Pavan Malhotra), pops up as one of the names involved in the rioting. The dichotomy of a loving father, a pious Sikh, showing up as an anti-Sikh rioter confuses and shocks Amrita. This battle with herself, and knowing the truth, drives the story to fascinating conclusions.

Based on Satya Vyas's novel Chauraasi (Eighty-four), the series is a wonderful example of using contemporary history to create dramatic and resonating investigative dramas. Stemming from the focal point of Amrita Singh, the story spirals into larger themes without losing the connection with its primary cause — the bond between father and daughter. At its heart, it remains a drama of a daughter trying to learn more about her father's past. That the past is chequered with violence, politics and a volatile connection with history is only incidental.

Chandel and his team of writers (Anu Singh Chaudhary, Shailendra Jha, Navjot Gulati, Prateek Payodhi) have crafted the story in layers, allowing one to blend into another seamlessly. Every time you peel one layer off, there is a new angle leading into a new story emerging. There are no jarring notes or evident loopholes. The span of eight episodes allows for each crucial character to reveal itself. The arc for Gursevak/Rishi Ranjan is a fascinating one and tests the audience's judgement.

A word for Shan Mohammed's work on the editing table, which ensures that the constant jumps between past and present do not feel forced or frivolous. The past acts as both explanation and example for the events in the present.

Amit Trivedi's wonderful score enhances this experience. "Chori Chori', with Varun Grover's wonderfully lilting lyrics and Trivedi's beautiful harmony, is fabulous. It is representative of the high production values of the web-series, which combine commercial elements with an intense, socially relevant story.

Despite the tense connection with India's political past and the tumultuous year 1984, the story has a very human perspective towards the event. Chandel paints the true picture of a pogrom. It is never an overflow of passion or anger. It is the opportunistic use of the anger and resentment of ordinary men, used calculatingly by those in power. As Gurnaam, a repentant rioter, says, "We are all angry about something. When the rumours start, we start running through the streets like wild dogs armed with anger."

Through the dialogues between these characters, the web-series explores the guilt, process and trauma of their actions and transcends the definition of an ordinary investigation drama.

This rise is also driven by some powerful and rooted performances. Pavan Malhotra, as always, is effective as Gursevak, a man hiding from his own past. His expressions of regret, shock and guilt are effective. The actor has been here before with Salim Langde Pe Mat Ro! (1989), but this is a more mature and controlled performance.

Yet, he is not the centre of the story. It is Zoya Hussain's Amrita Singh who steals the show. The actress is composed, in control and hits the right emotional notes consistently through the web-series.

Another outstanding performer is Anshuman Pushkar, who has grown with every appearance of his. As the young Rishi Ranjan, he shows enough poise, command and presence to compel your attention.

This cast is supported well by a bevy of wonderful performances by others. Teekam Joshi is compelling as the calculating politician Chunnu Singh who has climbed his riotous way to the top. Sahidar Rahaman, as the straight-arrow officer Vikas Mandal, is impressive and delivers some key portions well. Wamiqa Gabbi's performance adds much-needed lightness to this tale.

Political and systemic violence has been a repetitive occurrence in India. Till today, riots and systemic violence sanctioned by those in power is a familiar act. Grahan reminds us that while the system and power changes hands, the formula for oppression remains the same. When one officer in the series confesses, "I was just following orders," it recalls Hannah Arendt's description of Nazi SS officer Adolf Eichmann who masterminded the Holocaust in Germany. In her path-breaking thesis, Arendt observed, "The deeds were monstrous, but the doer was quite ordinary, commonplace, and neither demonic nor monstrous." She called it 'the banality of evil'.

This is the warning repeated by Ranjan Chandel's Grahan. Evil is not an abstract, external, foreign thing. It is real, within, omnipresent. All it requires is a trigger and an unscrupulous man with a willing system at his control. The only thing that can go against them are a few good people with the courage to dissent.

Grahan was released on Disney+ Hotstar on 24 June 2021.