Gyaarah Gyaarah Review: A Promising Premise Elevated By Raghav Juyal’s Spunk, Diminished By Melodrama

Gyaarah Gyaarah releases on August 9.

Imagine a police officer who, instead of beating the protestors with lathis, defies the orders of his seniors and joins them in their fight for justice. Imagine a police officer who, despite being a subordinate, calls out the seniors in his department, accuses them of being corrupt and holds power to account (and throws some hilarious zingers while he is at it).

Yug Arya (played by Raghav Juyal) is immensely watchable in the eight-episode-long (!!!) investigative drama which is too melodramatic and soap-opera-esque to be taken seriously. Juyal's comic timing, coupled with his deadpan expression and candour is what makes the show watchable, even if the melodrama takes much of the seriousness away.

Gyaarah Gyaarah: Plot

An eleven-year-old Aditi Tiwari is abducted at a Dusshera mela in November 2001. She is murdered in cold blood; her body recovered from the sea. Investigating the case is Inspector Athwal (Dhariya Karwa), whose overbearing senior berates him for not being able to close the investigation on time. Reluctantly, Athwal agrees to frame a medical student Raghav Nautyal for the murder, even though the student himself is murdered in cold blood (which is made to look like a suicide).

Fast forward to 2016 when the Statute of Limitations act will set the Aditi Tiwari murder case egally invalid. Hitting the streets to protest is Aditi Tiwari’s mother, who is at her melodramatic best. Kritika Kamra is Vamika, the head of the police department. She is a righteous policewoman who wants Yug to strictly follow the protocol. As a performer, Kamra is strong but the role itself doesn’t give her room to show her range as an actor.

Gyaarah Gyaarah: Writing And Direction

At 11:11 in the night, a time portal opens up between 2001 and 2016. It allows Inspector Athwal (now deceased) to communicate with Yug. A parallel investigation opens up as Inspector Athwal uses the hints and information he uncovered while investigating the case in 2001 to help Yug solve the murder in 2016. The premise of two detectives communicating with each other through a time loop is intriguing.

While the series does build intrigue, it offers little to keep one’s interest from wavering. You’d want to know what happens next but you’d also want to get there quickly. The pacing of the show is glacial and the fact that it is 8 episodes long (40-50 minutes each episode) doesn’t help the cause. Despite the melodramatic bits playing spoilsport, one must appreciate the fresh take on whodunits, even if much of this premise isn’t explored to its full potential.

Gyaarah Gyaarah: Performances

Raghav Juyal brings just the right balance of humour and grit in his role as Yug. Juyal, who was last seen in Kill, tiptoes the same line between comic and intense scenes, and aces it in both the film and the show. If cracking a joke in the most intense situations and making it land was an Olympic sport, Juyal would win all medals, hands down.

Kritika Kamra brings to life a policewoman whose parents are forcing her to get married on calls in between the murder investigation earnestly. As far as the writing goes, the plot twist of a time portal connecting two different years works well, it is mostly overpowered by the slow pace of the show and long moments of inaction (which might just make you zone out).

Gyaarah Gyaarah: What Works, What Doesn’t

Amid the static interference, glitching audio and crosstalk, the 11:11 angel number connection becomes repetitive super soon. What started off as a Stranger Things-style investigation of a murder quickly becomes a Murder in Mahim-type melodramatic reveal. A series of murders come to light. We get to know the murderer, the motive—the usual tricks. But at the end of the exhaustive eight-episode watch, you end up feeling underwhelmed and ask yourself—haven’t I watched this before?

Crime-drama-thriller-mystery genre is done to death in the OTT space, to the point that there is absolutely no appetite left for it–much like Bollywood overdoing sports biopics and remakes While Gyaarah Gyaarah does have a promise, the show ends up wasting its potential with the predictable reveals and frankly, little innovation. Watch this show only for Juyal’s candour and wit.

Star rating: 3 / 5

Gyaarah Gyaarah is streaming now on ZEE5.