It could have been a great web series, but unfortunately, it couldn’t be one. Just like the Naik Raikar family, the story lost its essence due to the very complexities which were supposed to be its back-bone. It looked like the writers couldn’t figure out what to give more importance to, the characters or the story; and the Director couldn’t figure what to give more importance to, the actors or the story. In the process, a great plot and an ensemble of the experienced, talented cast was wasted. Not just the actors, justice wasn’t done even to the characters.
If you simply sit back and study every character, each had the potential to contribute to the story in a way which would have made each of them stand out, claim their own space, be individualistic, and yet, merge in beautifully with the other characters allowing the story to flow smoothly and flawlessly.
What has happened now is, the makers couldn’t handle so many powerful characters at the same time. Since this was Season 1, they had ample time to slowly build and unveil each character at the right time. It is more like, there is a process you follow for cooking. You first add onions, then ginger-garlic paste, fry it well, then add tomatoes, and at last, comes the veggies and masalas. Though you can experiment in the last stages, you cannot simply add every ingredient together, not fry them well, cook it as you please, and serve the dish. If you follow this kind of cooking, no matter how royal your ingredients are, your end result will always be a disaster. In The Raikar Family, the ingredients were right, the procedure went drastically wrong.
The story, of course, had its own loopholes, but the direction too was also on the weaker side which is why nothing could save the show.
Speaking of the story, it was predictable. For example, at the beginning of the second episode, I could predict that now every episode will open with a new suspect and what could be his/her reason to kill Tarun Raikar. And that is exactly what happened. Not just that, towards the end, the series became a fun time for my family. We were predicting dialogues which again turned out to be the exact words the characters uttered next. For a story that should have been an ‘edge-of-the-seat’ thriller turned out to be unintentionally funny.
What angered me the most was the way Kunal Karan Kapoor was sidelined. Again, the makers couldn’t utilize great talent. The guy was literally used like an extra. Atul Kulkarni, Ashvini Bhave, and Lalit Prabhakar’s characters though got the limelight, the director again failed to portray their strength. He did not explore their shades.
Though I can mention the scenes here and what went wrong where but seriously, it is not worth it. To be very honest, The Raikar Case is a super-boring, predictable, mismanaged family drama. Instead of keeping you hooked and curious about what happens next, there are chances of you picking your phone and chatting with friends most of the time while the characters keep knocking your TV screen for attention.
The biggest headache in the whole series was John Pereira, the investigating officer. If I could, I would have definitely murdered this guy and saved Tarun’s life.
And yes, how can I forget? Since the makers thought that they are making a masterpiece that will need a season 2, they ended the series with the most foolish twist I have ever seen. Most of the time, the endings of season 1 make you so curious that you can’t wait for season 2, but this case is a bit different. The twist at the end makes you crib and pledge that no matter for how long the lockdown extends, you will not put yourself through this torture again.
Where to Watch? Voot Select
The Digital Popcorn 