Producer Saurabh Tewari had promised us that Ghulaam would not be anything conventional and the first episode lives upto his statement. At a time, when TV bahus are fighting tantriks and everyone is glued to mega wars between scheming humans and Naagins, Ghulaam shows that reality can be scary as well. While there is no denying that the show is kind of OTT, if we go by the first episode, it does manage to convey that pure violence can make for an engrossing watch. Women are the victims here. It is not an uncommon theme in many soaps but the brutality here is raw and rustic.
What’s it about…
Set in a fictional bad land called Berehampur in North India, which is located in a region surrounded by Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Haryana, it is a crime drama. The place is a hot bed for criminal activity of every sort and so bad is its reputation, that no family wants to get its daughter married to any man of that area. It is ruled by a Choudhary (Pradeep Duhan) and his son, Veer (Vikkas Manaktala), who is a wrestling enthusiast. Since debauchery of every form is routine, his son gets girls ‘picked up’ to be his wives in his harem. Once kidnapped, they are trapped to life of fear and subservience. If the father-son duo is not loathsome enough, there is his mother, who’s as psychotic as villains can be. However, the star of the show is Rangeela (Param Singh), the right hand man of Veer, who is fearless, cunning and loyal. A devotee of Lord Shiva, he is their most accomplished gunman.
What’s hot…
The first episode was truly power-packed. While we saw little of Param Singh, there was a fab cameo from Indraneil Sengupta as an NSG commando, who enters the den to rescue his fiancee Rashmi, who has been kidnapped for Veer. The portion where his team enters the fortress to rescue Rashmi was shot like a film. It reminds us of flicks like Commando, Force and other action thrillers. Shot in Rajasthan, the fictionalised bad-land has been recreated nicely around Kishangarh near Ajmer. The arid land and harsh landscape suit the mood of the story. The cast is in fine form and a special mention for Zahida, who played Veer’s mom. She made us very queasy. Coming to the leading man, Param Singh he is shown as this tattooed chillum-snorting devotee of Lord Shiva who is a slave cum trained assassin. Besides his heroic entry to Shivaay’s Har Har Har, we did not see much of him. However, we got a glimpse of the intense eyes in the second episode’s promo.
What’s not
The show is clearly not for those looking for feel good or escapist drama. It will take some time to digest the violence. Moreover, people might start comparing the setting and vibe of the characters with some famous ones in Bollywood films. That can be a double-edged sword. People might just draw parallels to stories told in flicks like NH10 and Gangs of Wasseypur. Also, there is a chance of Ghulaam being criticised for over-exaggeration.
Verdict: If you are not a fan of saas bahu sagas and want something different Ghulaam might be for you. In an era, where TV jodis make fans gaga with their cute romance, the first episode of Ghulaam proves violence can be engrossing as well.