What Is the Story About?
Set in West Bengal, Khakee: The Bengal Chapter follows IPS officer Arjun Maitra as he takes on a powerful nexus of gangsters and corrupt politicians. He is determined to bring justice and faces off against ruthless crime lord Shankar Barua Bagha, whose influence extends deep into the system. As Arjun fights corruption, political power plays, and betrayals, the battle turns personal, leading to intense confrontations and life-threatening challenges. With crime gripping the city and justice at stake, Arjun outsmarts his enemies in a high-stakes war between law and lawlessness.
Performances?
The biggest achievement of the series was apparent even before it was released. It is the casting. It isinsane, to say the least. The series brings some of the most popular actors of the Bengali film industry and it was a wise decision.
The series is actually very realistic and the actors have nailed their parts. With so much experience,you expect great things from actors like Jeet, Shaswata Chaterjee, Prosenjit Chatterjee, Parambrata Chaterjee and more.
The binary between Jeet and Parambrata is beautifully explored. The actors show their respective characteristics not only through their dialoguesbut also through their mere presence on the screen.
Prosenjit Chatterjee, however, deserves a lot of praise. He plays a corrupt and dangerous politician and what a portrayal it is. It will remind you of Saurabh Shukla in Raid and how they created an atmosphere of fear.
Analysis
Honest cop vs corrupt system,which is controlled by cruel politicians. That is not new for Indian audiences. We have seen this; our previous generation has seen this and it still continues to be made and remade. Perhaps it shows the grim reality of our society and the show runners made very good use of this sentiment.
But that is also the problem. This formula has remained almost unchanged for so many decades. It simply doesn’t bring you anything new. Yes, the setting of Kolkata is beautiful and the authenticity of Bengal has been shown well.
But what after this?
Characters are going rogue, there is a mole in the department, the policeman will break laws to follow his intuition and blah blah blah.
That’s all.
The female characters are not ornamental but they don’t have anything important to contribute.
Yes,you can draw parallels from the politics of Bengal but the screenplay needed to be a lot better.
The first two episodes are very slow but then it starts to wind up too soon by the end of the seventh episode.
Overall,the series is not comparable to its spiritual predecessor,Khakee: The Bihar Chapter. The rawness and relatability of the series are somehow lost and the series doesn’t manage to stand out.
Music and Other Departments?
The music very important in the series and it is done very well. However there is no track that comes close to something like “Aaiye na Hamra Bihar Mein”
The character arcs seem rushed for a lot of characters and that is very apparent when you think about them once the series gets over.
The setting has been done excellently. The Kolkata setting with typical Bengali references is executed with a lot of perfection and there is hardly any complaint against it.
Highlights?
Setting
Casting
Music
Drawbacks?
Screenplay
Cliches
Inconsistent pacing
Did I Enjoy It?
Kind of
Will You Recommend It?
Only if you are mad about political dramas.
Khakee The Bengal Chapter Series Review by Binged Bureau