The gory thriller Mirzapur went live on Prime video last month, so does the latest offering from Prime originals live up to the hype?? Let’s find out…

2018 witnessed the insurgence of web series to main stream media and viewers seem more inclined to binge watching than going to theatres. Though new, India seem to be well caught in the web series game with brilliant and ambitious projects like ‘Sacred Games’ and ‘Ghoul’ (Netflix) and the relatively underrated ‘Breathe’ (Prime video). Mirzapur does a fine job holding ground in this competitive market with some intense acting performances by the ensemble cast coupled with remarkable story telling. Writer/Director Karan Anshuman, along with fellow directors Gurmeet Singh and Mihir Desai have done commendable job establishing the city of Mirzapur, a lawless belt of Purvanchal in Eastern India. The plot, though at times feel predictable, manages to keep viewers at the edge of their seats, which is true for all the 9 episodes aired so far. The final episode ends with a proper cliffhanger befitting any thriller web series, engaging viewers for the upcoming series.

THE PLOT revolves around Akhandanand Tripathi (Pankaj Tripathi), also known as ‘Kaleen Bhaiya’, a millionaire carpet exporter / don of Mirzapur and his empire of illegal gun trade and opium smuggling. For twenty years, the ruthless Tripathis have been the dogmatic rulers of Mirzapur, from the mighty Satyanand Tripathi (Kulbhusan Kharbanda), Akhandanand’s father, to the unworthy and power hungry Munna Tripathi (Divyendu Sharma), Akhandanand’s son. In an unfortunate turn of events, involving Munna at a wedding procession, the tripathi’s get dangerously entangled with underdogs Guddu (Ali Fasal) and Bablu Pandit (Vikrant Messey) which ignites a game of ambition, power, loyalty and greed, that threatens the control of Tripathi’s on Mirzapur.

Final verdict: With sufficient bloodshed and gore Mirzapur is a well-knit thriller with powerful performances from almost all the lead actors namely Pankaj Tripathi, Divyendu Sharma and Ali Fazal coupled with beautiful supporting executions. Shweta Tripathi, Rasika Dugal, Shriya Pilgaonkar, Sheeba Chaddha just to name a few. In short, a gripping plot and superb acting manage Mirzapur to stand out from the competition, with season 2 holding promise to predominantly being the back story of the rein of the Tripathis and a fresh ensemble of new characters.

Stars: 2.5/5