Dahaad Review: It's always disturbing to watch a series that deals with a serial killer targeting women for his own entertainment or depraved desires. It gets queasier if sexism and casteism provide the backdrop for the same. Dahaad is a worthy addition to this list. Dahaad: Ex-IPS Officer Dr Meeran Chadha Borwarkar Praises Sonakshi Sinha and Vijay Varma's Characters During Trailer Launch; Here's What She Has To Say!.

A small town near Jaipur, Rajasthan sees a rise in the case of missing women who end up dead in public toilets. SI Anjali Bhati (Sonakshi Sinha) and her seniors on the case, Devilal Singh (Gulshan Devaiah) and Kailash Parghi (Sohum Shah), band together to find the criminal. On the other side of the town, Anand (Vijay Verma), a married Hindi teacher, chats with women under false names and even pursues random women standing at bus stops. The rest of the story is to find out whether or not there is a connection between the two threads.

Putting faith in Reema Kagti and Zoya Akhtar's stories has often left us satisfied. Yes, they tend to be flawed but the overall experience is incredible - be it Luck By Chance or Zindagi Milegi Na Dobara. Dahaad too checks most of the boxes by being an engaging watch. The writing has finesse as it never over-does any emotion. It's subtle and effective. Every new target makes you both curious and fills you with dread.

The investigation remains grounded as the cops confront societal prejudices as well as their own. It intricately plants casual casteism tropes around us that we tend to overlook. Bhati is from a lower caste, but because she is an SI, her subordinates treat her well.  However, when she is not looking, they light incense sticks to purify the air around them.

What bothers me here is that the series should have had more of these instances to better establish the discrimination. They are usually reserved for rousing dialogues. Parghi is portrayed as a corrupt cop who accepts bribes. However, the entire accusation is merely lip service. He is rarely seen engaging in wrongdoing, so his change of heart has little impact.

Watch the trailer of Dahaad:

Performances are decent. Sonakshi Sinha does well. She has shown flair for such content in Akira and this will be an extension of the same. The only difference is it is much more restrained. Sohum Shah and Gulshan Devaiah do their parts sincerely but needed more character development. Vijay Verma, of course, steals the cake away from others with his killer performance (not literally, which we can't say for SPOILER reasons). While the accents of the cast are shaky at times, the length of the series could have been shorter.

Yay!

- Sincere execution

-not too rushed

-good blend of casteism and sexism

Nay!

-weak performances

-less attention paid to character development

Final Thought

Dahaad should be on your weekend viewing list. While it is not an exceptional addition to the list of thrillers, the show is certainly entertaining and engaging. Dahaad is available on Amazon Prime.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 12, 2023 12:00 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).