A spine-chilling experience with excessive blood and gore
Background
After a brief lull, zombie based horror content has returned with Betaal which is produced by Gauri Khan and Gaurav Verma under Blumhouse Television, SK Global Entertainment with Red Chillies Entertainment and streaming now on Netflix. This 4 episode series with sheer technical brilliance and outstanding performances indicate the creative expertise and abundant talent possessed by us in making shows that are accepted and acclaimed across the world.
Storyline
A highway is planned across the tunnel under the dreaded Betaal mountain to which the villagers of Nilja village in remote Campa forest vehemently oppose and even ready to sacrifice their lives to abort the highway plans as they have their own fears. Ajay Mudhalvan (Jitendra Joshi) who takes up the work has to vacate the village and pack off the villagers out by branding them as Naxalites and insurgents.
His teenage daughter Saanvi (Syna Anand) and wife also become witness to the gory bloodbath that is going to unfold due to selfish interests of Mudhalvan who seeks the help of Baaz squad from CIPD (Counter Insurgency Police Department) to get the things done for him. Commandant Tyagi (Suchitra Pillai) of CIPD Baaz squad plays into the hands of Mudhalvan and ventures out to free the Nilja village aided by her trusted lieutenants Vikram Sirohi (Viineet Kumar), Ahluwalia (Aahana Kumra), Akbar (Jatin Goswami) and Nadir Haq (Siddharth Menon).
CIPD gets onto the work unaware of the trouble that comes from a different kind of enemy who is more powerful and stronger than they expected and above all their thirst for blood make them a formidable force to fight with. Lead by Colonel Lynedoch, the zombie form of British army starts wreaking havoc to satiate their hunger and it’s up to Sirohi and his men to bounce back with the help of local village girl Puniya (Manjiri Puppala) who turns out to be the trump card in this war against death defying enemy who doesn’t spare anyone to survive.
The clash between zombies and Baaz squad gets lot more complicated and Sirohi has to face many nerve shattering moments before solving the puzzle of Betaal mountain which not only proves to be a herculean task but a dangerous one too with many lives at stake. The war with blood thirsty zombies takes many bizarre turns with more mayhem and many more corpses piling up on the way to victory by Sirohi who wages a lone battle against monsters who only speak the language of death.
Artiste(s) Performances
Viineet Kumar who essayed the role of the leading man Sirohi is a treat to watch. The strange intense look on his face which he maintains all through the series is itself an indication of the kind of struggle he faces inside him which he expresses effectively with that single look without the help of any dialogue or modulation. His character who believes in doing the duty by defeating all the challenges is a perfect ode to the real soldier.
Suchitra is brilliant in a role which got different shades and she has done exceptionally well to nail down all those shades with great determination. Syna Anand as young Saanvi is another revelation and her character which travels throughout the story from the beginning to end is quite crucial and she exhibits great talent in many scenes with good expressions.
Manjiri Puppala as Puniya has done a commendable job and Aahana Kumra, in a deglamorized role which invokes lot of sympathy has displayed her acting skills once again. Other actors Jitendra Joshi, Jatin Goswami and Siddharth Menon are also impressive in this horror saga.
Technical aspects
The creator, writer and director Patrick Graham (assisted by Suhani Kanwar in writing) along with Nikhil Mahajan has made his mark felt once again in horror genre after Ghoul. His taking technique and the way he composes every scene in Betaal is quite remarkable. He is ably supported by some soul stirring score by Naren Chandavarkar and Benedict Taylor which really enhanced the scariness all through the series.
Tanay Satam’s photography is extraordinary with so much to do with very minimum lighting as most of the series took place in night and in dark mode, the night effect shots are truly tremendous and the stunning visuals make greater impact on the viewer.
The editing of Abhijit Deshpande is slick without any gaps and special appreciation should inevitably go to the designing of characters and their prosthetics by Millennium FX from UK with costume designer Shruti Kapoor for their outstanding contribution.
Our honest feeling
The premise of Betaal Mountain and the curse perpetrated by Colonel Lynedoch through the black magical powers are too fictitious to be accepted. The British army who got trapped in a tunnel during 1857 mutiny surrounded by a remote village where villagers believe in evil power of Betaal looks very cinematic
The scriptures along with images and writings that support the curse of Betaal Pahaad are far from convincing. The creators should have thought of another plausible concept to unleash the zombies so that it’s more relatable and looks relevant to the current scenario. The probability of second season is not ruled out and let’s expect some kind of socially relevant concept in Betaal 2
“Overall, Betaal is a compelling watch for a different kind of viewing experience with some top notch technical brilliance”. Betaal serves all the thrills and required chills on a platter to make it as an enjoyable fare mainly due to the shorter and brisk paced episodes which keep the viewer engaged all through the series. We consider it a “Thrilling, Engaging & Visually Stunning” web series on Netflix!
