What Is the Story About?
Based on writer Arnab Ray’s book Sultan of Delhi: Ascension, Disney+Hotstar’s ‘Sultan of Delhi’ follows Arjun who arrives in Delhi post-partition with a sick father and not a coin to spare. As someone who had to measure depths of poverty overnight, he grows up to be an ambitious and greedy man who would stop at nothing to win what he wants.
Performances?
Tahir Raj Bhasin as Arjun Bhatia initially doesn’t sit well in the Milan Luthria template of a greedy gangster like Emraan Hashmi in Once upon a time in Mumbai, but after a while the actor comes across fine enough to engage the viewer. The highlight of the show is the chemistry he shares with the very exuberant Anjum Sharma.
Analysis
Created by Milan Luthria, the brain behind some of the iconic gangster epics like Once Upon a time in Mumbai, Sultan of Delhi is based on the book ‘ Sultan of Delhi: Ascension ‘ by Arnab Ray. The director who has picturised the ‘other mumbai’ has now moved into the ‘other Delhi’ where he presents the tale of a boy who faced the partition horror and ascended the stairs of greed and success, all at once.
Sultan of Delhi starts with the partition horror. We see how Arjun Bhatia arrives from Lahore to Delhi with his mentally ill father. The narrative also sprouts a potential rivalry between the silver spoon nemesis Rajinder and a boy who saw the deepest pits of hell, survived death because of his sheer determination and grows up to be a man who stops nowhere to get what he wants.
17 years later, there’s Arjun who has learnt to live and make his mark by hook or crook, trying to forge friendships and foes while clearing his way up. He meets Bangali who becomes his most loyal friend, Jagan Seth – a businessman & aspiring politician, and also his principal foe Rajinder once again who is now controlled by his Father’s mistress Shankari (played by Anupriya Goenka) and gets embroiled in the dirtiest fights and scandals with the who’s who of Delhi’s underworld.
Sultan of Delhi is based on a book that drives on blood and grittiness. While, this is an adaptation that’s neither gritty nor blood-soaked, there’s an overlay of superficiality that’s hard to ignore in the body language of actors and glimpses of the city. We are rather only shown stock footages of Qutub Minar to say that the story happens in Delhi.
Even if the latter half of the show takes place in Kolkata, the superficiality remains the same. The viewer is told that leftist uprisings are happening and we just need to believe it. The creator’s and writer’s perception of Leftist movement in West Bengal is just limited to some names and few overstuffed Luthria style punch-liners.
Sultan of Delhi, however tries to rise up a bit towards its climax when the only genuine bond in the show, i.e. that of Arjun and Bangali strains. When the most loyal of friends become foes owing to greed and lust for power, the face-off is a thing to revel on. The show does have popular names working in its favour, but only if the material gives them enough scope to flex themselves.
In short, Sultan of Delhi is a very mediocre adaptation of the original novel that has selective moments of slay and shine but doesn’t come across as any novel. An extremely ambitious outing that only reminds us to rehash our memory of Milan Luthria’s Once Upon a Time in Mumbai that portrayed Ambition, greed, power play and underworld far better.
Other Artists?
The scene-stealer performance of the show comes from Anupriya Goenka, an actor who has been a righteous character in literally all of her mainstream outings. She is sensuous, she oozes opportunism and viciousness like no one’s business as Jagan Seth’s mistress, or specifically the one who calls the shots and plays puppetry with men.
Another favourite character is Anjum Sharma’s, he is is witty, charming and shares exceptional bromance chemistry with Tahir Raj Bhasin. Mouni Roy embodies the bombshell princess with ease, while Harleen Sethi gets little to do. Vinay Pathak’s Jagan Seth is also an interesting portrayal from a seasoned actor.
Music and Other Departments?
Created by Milan Luthria, Sultan of Delhi’s strongest asset is its camera work. Although the sets look a lot superficial, the soul of post-partition Delhi is essentially captured by the show’s camera work. Sangeet Siddharth’s and Mallik brother’s music does a fair job, but is of no match to the soundtracks of Luthria’s previous works.
Highlights?
Core Story
Anupriya Goenka
Climax
Cinematography
Drawbacks?
not all actors fit in the world
Slow pace
Less Impactful execution
Did I Enjoy It?
Selectively watchable.
Will You Recommend It?
Selectively, with huge reservations.
Sultan of Delhi Series Review by Binged Bureau
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