What Is the Story About?
Mai on Netflix centres on a grieving mother, Sheel Chaudhary (Sakshi Tanwar), who realises that there’s more than meets the eye in her daughter’s (Wamiqa Gabbi) death. The more she digs, the deeper she gets embroiled in a mess not of her making. What follows is a revenge spree that takes Sheel head-on into the eye of the storm.
Mai is produced by Clean Slate Filmz, created by Atul Mongia, directed by Mongia and Anshai Lal; and written by Mongia, Amita Vyas and Tamal Sen.
Performances?
Sakshi Tanwar, as Sheel, is easily the centrepiece of the show, as far as performances go. Her cool, calm and collected demeanour, that often gives way to barely-visible fear in the face of terrifying danger, is portrayed superbly by the seasoned actress. Anant Vidhaat is good as the ambitious, untrustworthy henchman, Prashant. Vaibhav Raj Gupta is equally good as his gay lover and partner in crime, Shankar. He’s a far cry from his elder son role in Gullak. Prakash Narayanan is good as the ruthless, unhinged Mohandas. Raima Sen is saddled with an underwritten role, but she pulls it off commendably. Ankur Ratan, as SPF officer Farooque Siddiqui, is average. Vivek Mushran, as Sheel’s husband Yash, doesn’t have much to do in the storyline. The rest of the cast is average.
Analysis
Mai is a classic case of a story that looks exhilarating on paper, but turns out to be a damp squib when executed. The logline on paper reads, “Upon accidentally killing a mafia leader, a middle-aged woman is unwittingly swept into the underworld, where her cult slowly gains renown.” But watch the show in its entirety, and it is blatantly obvious that in execution, the events that lead up to her ‘cult gaining renown’ are scarcely believable.
Imagine a woman who is so docile that she doesn’t utter a squeak when her husband gives up her son to his childless brother. She is so meek that she doesn’t have the word ‘no’ in her lexicon. She is so clueless that she doesn’t even notice when her daughter is in an affair with a married man since months. But the same woman transforms into a lean, mean killing machine when tragedy strikes.
She uncovers notorious mafia secrets, easily infiltrates the den of the most brutal villains, scales walls, stages several stunning murders, and what not. And it’s not even that she has a secret past where she was an undercover agent or some such fantastical reality. No; she’s your regular middle-aged wife and mother, who’s barely stepped out from the limited confines of her regular, middle-class life. This is what makes the plot of Mai far-fetched, contrived and too good to be believable. And it really rankles.
Apart from this glaring loophole, Mai also suffers from laughably amateurish writing. Terms such as ‘Mozambique’ style of killing, ‘angadiya’ network, crypto-keys, and the like are bandied about with creative impunity, and with no head or tail to go with them. The medical scam at the centre of the storm is barely mentioned and never shed light on. Instead, the plot chooses to linger on inconsequential stuff such as a woman who’s served jail time for killing her abusive husband; a widow who chats in German with Sheel’s lonely husband; a police officer in a dysfunctional marriage, and his wife’s fake suicide attempt; another, officer who’s scared to get out into the field; and so many more. These are subplots that the writers of Mai could have easily done without. Instead, an engaging peek into the workings of the criminals would have made the storyline more intriguing.
All of the above serve to make Mai a half-baked and not-so-satisfying watch. While you’re pulled into Sheel’s world and root for her, the story leaves you unmoved and unimpressed. Wamiqa Gabbi’s Supriya is the most uninteresting character of recent times. Her Supriya doesn’t nary an iota of sympathy at any point in the story. If Mai deserves a watch, it’s only for Sakshi Tanwar’s measured performance, nothing more.
Music and Other Departments?
Sagar Desai has created an appropriately melancholic background score for Mai. The music goes well with the story and its dramatic turns. Ravi Kiran Aayagari’s camerawork is lovely to watch, especially the night-time aerial shots. Manas Mittal’s editing is crisp and efficient. Meenal Agarwal’s production design is impeccable, studded with excellent attention to detail.
Highlights?
Sakshi Tanwar’s performance
Drawbacks?
Too many inconsequential subplots
Poor writing
Underwritten characters
Far-fetched plot
Did I Enjoy It?
I found it average
Will You Recommend It?
Watch only for Sakshi Tanwar’s performance
Mai Web Series Review by Binged Bureau