The latest eponymous OTT crime thriller series on Netflix which well describes itself, is about smuggling of gold, drugs, luxury items and expensive watches however primarily via air and more about gold or peela as it is called in the series. Gold has always allured our people. Taskaree: The Smuggler’s Web review…
The penchant for gold jewellery is well known, Indians have the largest domestic appetite for gold, the amount of house-held gold would embarrass even Fort Knox. Thus any import duty or taxation invites smuggling in this yellow metal. Historically too gold had been the most smuggled item apart from electronics till the 1990s however there was a lull in the interim period when the duty was reduced 2% but lately with the rates and duty going north it has come back in fashion.
Taskaree: The Smuggler’s Web is now streaming on NETFLIX (No. of episodes 7)
It reveals how with tech advancements, smugglers too have become innovative in bringing in gold, other luxury and expensive products without detection. The series outlines how a special team of customs officials to step up vigil on airports to curb rampant smuggling when the relevant minister comes under fire for it.
A special officer Prakash Kumar Assistant commissioner of Customs (Anurag Sinha) with a clean record is imported to the Mumbai airport who intelligently forms a team of like minded, clean and smart officers which include Arjun Meena (Emraan Hashmi), Ravinder Gujjar (Nandish Sandhu), Mitali Kamath ( Amruta Khanvilkar) and others, the three main have a background which is quickly explained away. However what they are up against is an international syndicate run by Bada Choudhary (Sharad Kelkar) and his cohorts who has, in his own words, a well oiled smuggling racket going whereas he himself is having a ball in his luxurious villa abroad. The team is endeavoured to finish the syndicate.
Here the game starts and there are a lot of ups and downs with both sides trying to outwit each other with moles available on both sides however there is an unexpected twist in the penultimate episode. What one wonders is how the kingpin blatantly picks up a phone and calls up an officer, informs about where and how his booty will be shipped and dares him to stop it.
Coming down to the making and acting part, well conceived, written and part directed by Neeraj Pandey who has movies like Baby, Special 26, Rustom and M.S. Dhoni behind him, the scale the series has been mounted on was expected but too many cinematic liberties have been taken though a plus point is that despite a large cast the director has not wasted time on establishing each character and has cut the chase and come to the point straight from the second episode onwards. Would like to add that some characters are very close to some real people, it seems someone has really done their research. The series is flashy and tout then sags in between and subsequently enters an improbable territory.
Emran Hashmi is like himself but a bit restrained. Sharad Kelkar as the syndicate boss, apart from his voice does not look menacing enough, is rather soft, he appears absolutely cool despite losing 500 kgs of gold, WOW!!!. Amruta is feisty, Zoya as Arjun’s mole and love interest is soothing to the eyes we may see more of her hence. Seeing Nandish in a meaty role after Uttran, I would say well played.
All in all a good time-pass and education on how to smuggle gold, but a word of caution our security apparatus too is well oiled and informed so do it at your own risk.
Maybe a lazy Sunday viewing at most. Streaming on Netflix.
– Review by PAWAN GUPTA
Cast of Taskaree: The Smuggler’s Web-
Emraan Hashmi as Arjun Meena, Customs Superintendent at Mumbai Airport
Sharad Kelkar as Bada Choudhary
Nandish Sandhu as Ravinder Gujjar
Anurag Sinha as Prakash Kumar IRS, Assistant commissioner of Customs
Amruta Khanvilkar as Mitali Kamath
Zoya Afroz as Priya Khubchandani
Virendra Saxena as Shrikant Saxena
Jameel Khan as Suresh Kaka
Sumit Nijhawan as Anna
Anuja Sathe as Meenakshi
Freddy Daruwala as Rahul
Krishan Tondon as Sharma Ji
Ekavalli Khanna as Mrs. Sayyed
Sajjad Hussain as IRS Customs Chief Commissioner
Hemant Kher as Custom Officer Jainesh Patel
Credits of Taskaree: The Smuggler’s Web-
Created by Neeraj Pandey
Written by Neeraj Pandey, Vipul K. Rawal
Directed by Neeraj Pandey, Raghav M Jairath, B. A. Fida
Music by Advait Nemlekar
