Bejoy Nambiar has crafted a well-scripted and dramatic tale of revenge that is as intriguing as it is action-packed.
Taish review: A compelling revenge drama
Cinestaan Rating
Release Date: 29 Oct 2020
Shriram Iyengar | Mumbai, 30 Oct 2020 22:46 IST
Shot as a film and released as a web-series, Bejoy Nambiar's Taish is the best of both worlds. Stylish, action-packed, layered and dramatic, the series has enough elements to keep you engrossed till the end. With good performances by Jim Sarbh, Pulkit Samrat, Harshvardhan Rane and Kriti Kharbanda, the series buttresses Nambiar's reputation as a stylist in more ways than one.
Taish revolves around a blood feud between two families on either side of the law that breaks out due to an unforeseen event. The mercurial Sunny (Samrat) is attending the wedding of the brother (Ankur Rathee) of his best friend Rohan Kalra (Sarbh) in Southall, United Kingdom. Rohan is a repressed, talented doctor who is chafing under his domineering father's shadow. The Kalras are in the midst of a grand celebration a la Karan Johar.
The wedding ceremony takes place on the turf of two feuding gangster brothers Kuljinder (Abhimanyu Singh) and Pali (Rane). Kuljinder's marriage to Pali's love, Jahaan (Sanjeeda Sheikh), causes battle lines to be drawn. Yet, blood runs thicker than water, and when Kuljinder ends up on the wrong side of Sunny's fists, Pali decides it is time to take control and exact vengeance.
Nambiar's series is not as simple as this summary, which does not, and cannot delve into the themes of personal trauma, conflict, jealousy and vengeance that are prevalent in the film. Anger remains the key emotion and is invoked for different reasons and in different ways by each character.
The story builds very well, and the viewer is caught up in the race to the finish with multiple lives imploding along the way. Nambiar and his writing team, Kartik R Iyer and Anjali Nair, create a menagerie that is flawed, complex and intriguing. The collision of these characters and their storylines is believable and quite effective. The screenplay moves between the past and present without losing tension. There are moments when the pace slows down but the background score by Gaurav Godkhindi compensates for this. The editing by Priyank Prem Kumar and the impressive camera work of Harshvir Oberai add to the experience.
Sarbh stands tall as a man caught between his best friend's loyalty and destructive anger. Despite being very miscast as a British Punjabi, the actor plays a surgeon who has a spark of rage very well. He is complemented by Samrat, who puts up one of his better performances. The actor is sincere and captivating as the volatile Sunny. Both actors manage to convey anger well, but Sarbh stands out in the moments of quiet desperation, which is more compelling.
Rane delivers a good performance as the deadly Pali. His rage, ambition and complexity make for a combustible cocktail.
The flaw in the story, perhaps, lies in its unimpressive use of women. With the talented Kharbanda and Saloni Batra at hand, the story hardly puts their characters to full use. Jahaan fades away to the background as a damsel in distress after a few fiery scenes. Batra's Sanober emerges as a strong power centre, but her rivalry with and suspicion of Pali are not explored enough. There is also the conflicting relationship between Kharbanda's Arfa and Rohan, which feels too manicured. The women feel like collateral damage in a story about male anger.
With all its cinematic qualities, there are moments where the series drops in pace. Regardless, it builds up to an impressive climax, which is value for money.