Aarya Web Series Review | Susmita Sen Aarya Review

Susmita Sen's Aarya Web Series Full Review

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 Aarya opens with the visual artof foreshadowing. The gist of the entire serieslies within its first shot. A woman’s body suspended ina reverse handstand on gymnastic rings. She is perfectly static.

This image alludes to two things: The woman’s world is goingto be turned “upside down" and she will soon be requiredto master a male-dominated field. The woman is Aarya: a unisex name that, dependingon its roots, translates to “noble” or “song” – incidentally both her nobility and her lovefor song will feature heavily in her journey.

I can also think of a third thing. Her mid-air handstand in blackoveralls, makes her resemble a bat. Think of the Batman origin story: A tragedy spurs adormant millionaire to become an iconic protector. Similarly, the murder of her husband spurs Aaryato go from wealthy housewife to steel-minded protector of her three kids. Her mask and cape are figurative;she will play superhero. The only difference:Aarya has inherited a life of villain.

She is forced to exploit her family-business roots ofdrug-trafficking, to pay off her late husband’s debts. Aarya, created for India by Ram Madhvani andSandeep Modi, is a remake of Penoza, an acclaimed Dutch series that charts the riseof a widow to the top of organized crime. The narrative arc of Aaryais loyal to the original.

Some shots from the Penoza trailerlook familiar, too. And reasonably so: why change a successful formula? But, cultural adaptation is the clincher. It’s where other well-cast Hotstar showslike Criminal Justice missed the bus. In that sense, Aarya smartly locates its source materialwithin the upper-class Rajput confines of Rajasthan. Aarya’s family – consist of an ailing old patriarch,a bitterly lavish mother, a hustling brother,a spoilt but sweet younger sister.

This family is visibly one of old wealthand aristocratic privilege. Dysfunctionality is organic to their status: they wear the aura of lost royals, whoin their pursuit of relevance and influence, run an international opium empire underthe front of a pharmaceutical company. When Aarya's husband Tej,who is played by Chandrachur Singh and Aarya argue about their8-year-old son finding his gun, we learn that Tej had left his Chandigarh lifeto handle Aarya’s family “business”, after her own father had suffered a stroke. He did it for love.

He is a reluctant criminal,the CEO of Aarya Pharmaceuticals, and partner to a greedy brother-in-lawand an opportunistic best friend. Tej and Aarya now want out, they make plans todisappear, but a 300-crore cocaine deal gone wrong results in him being gunned downat the end of an eerie first episode. A pen-drive that Tej leaves behindforms the crux of Aarya’s navigation, through a murky world of cops, hitmen,Russians, rival kingpins and dead puppies.

The sign of a good series is when it makesthe viewer forget about the suspense and invest in the slow burning aftermath. Aarya too becomes about its titular character, reclaiming the fragile bridge connectingwomanhood and motherhood. On one hand, there’s the physicality of the plot. She tries to outwit a pensive cop, and suppress the adrenalin rush of dealingwith a dreaded Rajasthani drug lord. Of course, this drug lordis played by Manish Chaudhary. On the other hand,there’s the intangibility of real life: there's grief, a rebellious teenage daughter,a son in adolescent love, a psychologically troubled 8-year-oldwho witnessed the shooting of his father, and a complete lack of trustin the concept of home.

Either way, there’s no winning in her story,only lesser degrees of losing. It’s a tightrope balance, and Sushmita Sen, who returns to Hindi cinemaafter ten years, is a revelation as Aarya Sareen. In a career-defining performance, Sen straddles the complicated subtextbetween the binary texts of female identity.

Sen is the pivot of an excellent cast, that despite abrief lull in the middle overs, maintains the rhythm. The narrative fleetingly dips its toes intothe hidden homes of each character. This gives each of the talented actors – who are otherwise under-utilizedby the Hindi-Cinema ecosystem – a chance to shine.

I like the little touches: Vikas Kumar plays ACP Khan,the passive-aggressive lead investigator, who represents both a religious minorityand a sexual minority. The best friend is played by a superb Namit Das.He's a coke-addled wild card, whose wife, who's played by Maya Sarao,is conflicted about his spiraling ways.

The spiritual foreigner is played by Alexx O’Nell and getsincreasingly tense about the family he’s married into. Flora Saini plays the young second wife of the patriarchand she is never painted as an air-headed gold digger. Sikandar Kher plays the Man Fridayand he lurks like a faithful shadow, shape-shifting between observer and disruptor. Coming back to the opening shot,I can now think of a fourth clue. Aarya’s choice of exercise. She uses the steady rings.

Over nine carefully paced episodes, we then see the tale of a woman, who resist thereplacement of her wedding ring by a drug ring. And most of all, I like the ‘ring’ to the famous Batmanline: "The night is darkest before the dawn".

Given the absorbing first season of Aarya,one might add: the don is coming.