What Is the Story About?
SonyLIV’s new Indian Original series ‘Scam 2003: The Telgi Story’ is the next installment in the platform’s successful ‘Scam’ franchise. Scam 2003 is the spiritual sequel to SonyLIV’s blockbuster series Scam 1992. The series recounts the machinations of the massive ₹30,000 crore ‘stamp paper scam’, and the rise and fall of its perpetrator, Abdul Karim Telgi.
Scam 2003 is directed by Tushar Hiranandani, written by Kiran Yadnopavit, Kedar Patankar and Karan Vyas from Sanjay Singh’s book ‘Telgi – A Reporter’s Diary’, and produced by Applause Entertainment.
Performances?
Newcomer Gagan Dev Riar is fantastic as Abdul Karim Telgi. The theatre actor gets each nuance of the late scamster right with precise brilliance. His delivery of dialogue is terrific, and body language on-point. His uncanny resemblance to the real-life Abdul Telgi lends even more credence to his role. Brownie points to casting director Mukesh Chhabra for his stunning pick of Riar as Telgi.
The supporting cast in Scam 2003 does its job well, though none stands out much in the brilliance of Gagan Dev Riar. Shashank Ketkar as JK, Hemang Vyas as Kaushal, Nandu Madhav as Inspector Dombe, Vivek Mishra as Madhusudhan Mishra, Bharat Jadhav as Bharade, Sameer Dharmadhikari as Tukaram, are a few notable performances in the series.
Analysis
Scam 2003 recreates all the grip and intrigue of its illustrious predecessor, Scam 1992. The story is meticulously researched, while the script is taut and well-written. The dialogue are again as sparkling as the first edition of the franchise. Though none is as catchy as “Risk hai toh ishk hai” from Scam 1992, the dialogues are nevertheless well-written, with excellent use of puns, simile, alliteration and inventive analogies adding to their creativeness.
The first episode of Scam 2003 is especially fast-paced and gripping. It moves along at a fast clip, establishing characters, motives and premise within the initial 15 minutes itself. The 50-minutes runtime passes by in a flash and we’re well and truly hooked to the story of this largely unknown character, perpetrator of the not-so-unknown scam.
Surprisingly, Scam 2003 loses pace and grip both from the second episode onwards. The sudden drop in both is even more rankling after the fast-paced start of the series in the first episode. In fact, the story gets increasingly tedious in later episodes, as Telgi’s life of crime becomes a roller-coaster of heady highs and crushing lows, setbacks and victories, old partners giving way to new comrade-in-arms, and more, for the smart scamster. By the third episode, Abdul Karim Telgi’s main business of printing counterfeit stamp papers is well and truly established.
The writers’ attention to detail is pretty good. The series recreates the nineties well, from songs of the era playing in the background, to Fiats and Ambassadors on the roads, to pagers giving way to clunky mobiles, and more. There’s a meta moment, with the name-dropping of Harshad Mehta in Episode 1. For those who don’t know, Harshad Mehta’s story first set into motion showrunner Hansal Mehta and SonyLIV’s successful Scam franchise.
Most of the runtime of Scam 2003 is taken up by Telgi’s scheming machinations to get corrupt cops, unscrupulous government officials and greedy politicians under his thumb by greasing their palms heavily, and showering them with expensive gifts. As the scale of Telgi’s counterfeiting operations increases, so does the number and power level of the authorities he must bribe, in order to keep his business running smoothly.
The most disturbing aspect of the series is how deep and well-entrenched runs the rot of corruption in government ‘systems’. Scam 2003 introduces us to the shocking sleaze at every juncture of the official machinery. Nothing is sacrosanct for these vulturous and amoral officials – supposedly the custodians of law and governance. Almost every character we encounter is corrupt, even the ones that appear honest at first. The corruption in the system is so well-entrenched that it is just a matter of course for the next big scam to occur or be uncovered. Scam 2003 bares the unholy nexus between corrupt politicians and unscrupulous government officials, as also the corruption and malpractices prevalent in every sphere of government organizations. It is quite shocking, and not to say, deeply disturbing.
SonyLIV has sprung a surprise on viewers by releasing just five episodes of Scam 2003 now. The remaining five will reportedly release in November. With all the high points of Telgi’s career already covered in this tranche of the series, Scam 2003 Part 2 will most probably, focus largely on the downfall of Abdul Karim Telgi.
Though the inconsistent pace and tedium of Scam 2003 are quite irritating, all is forgiven due to the inherent charm and chutzpah of Gagan Dev Riar as Abdul Karim Telgi. The actor has a mesmerising screen presence, despite the drabness of the plot. His infectious smile, curiously baby-faced countenance, and likeable amiability make it an eminently watchable show.
Music and Other Departments?
Scam 2003 leverages Achint Thakkar’s iconic signature title track from Scam 1992 exceptionally well. The electrifying music sets the right tone for each episode to unfold. Ishaan Chhabra’s background score is average. Stanley Mudda’s cinematography is stark but effective, embellishing the storytelling well. Kunal Walve’s editing is flawless.
Highlights?
Gagan Dev Riar
Gagan Dev Riar
Gagan Dev Riar
Drawbacks?
Tedious sequences
Pace and grip drop second episode onwards
Repetitive
Did I Enjoy It?
Yes, but with reservations
Will You Recommend It?
Yes, but with reservations
Scam 2003 Series Review by Binged Bureau
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