Season 1 – Scoop

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Hemant S @RT50421404 06/27/2023 On the outset, just with Karishma Tanna on the poster, this may seem like a run-of-the-mill drama that would most probably revolve around glamour, yellow journalism and all that. An easy perception based on the packaging. But Hanslal Mehta has an uncanny technique of tapping out some never seen potential out of actors. "Scoop", "Scam"; like the titles that have an identical ring to it, they belong in a similar genre as well. Both are based on true stories. Both revolve around the murky criminal world. Both have an adequate amount of names changed. Well, significantly more in the recent "Scoop" considering we have seen an awakening of "defamation" cases in India. And the one name they didn't change has actually decided to sue the creators, even though he himself is a hardened criminal behind bars (I think). *Caution*: the series revolves around true events that had been in the news during it's time. Though those who are new to it, may feel some "spoiling" despite there not being any mystery to it. The story of "Scoop" is based on "Behind Bars in Byculla: My Days in Prison", a biographical account authored by Jigna Vora on her true experiences, triggered off by events dating back to 2011. Jagruti Pathak (Karishma Tanna), is a leading and successful crime reporter who with her success has risen to the ranks of Deputy Bureau Chief at the daily, "Eastern Age". A single mother in the throes of a divorce, Jagruti has been fearlessly ambitious and been navigating a tricky map between the cops and criminal elements including the underworld to snatch "scoops"- being the first to report on a sensational story from the horse's mouth, or someone close to the horse. She is also the sole upkeep of her close knit family, including her little son. She maintains a nexus with the top cops, including JCP Harshavardhan Shroff (Harman Baweja) and a certain layer of informers as well in the underworld – a give-and-take relationship so as to get accurate stories and updates that have a criminal nerve. Rivals, peers, mentors, protégés – they all surround her, but she revels in the competition. Her boss and a journalist who has weathered the ages, Imran Siddiqui (Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub) backs her bravado and keeps her on her toes when it comes to reporting the truth, as against speculation. Jagruti looks up to Jaideb Sen (Prosenjit Chatterjee), a journalist who is senior to her and has supposedly always managed to grab the truth with his cop-and-criminal relationships; as good as her own or even better. All flows well for her, in fact she snags a much sought-after interview with a criminal kingpin until her world is ripped apart slowly by the very jagged edge she was balancing on confidently. The narrative of the series traces a delicate contour around Vora's memoir and the Jyotirmoy Dey murder case. There must be a hundred theories around the what, who and why of the events that transpired in 2011 and after. I can't say I know, or if I will really know. Any clarity of investigation has been blurred to an illusion, compounded by possibilities of a nexus between the enforcers of law and organized crime. Of course, the prominence of warring factions in the "underworld" were in the spotlight back in the day, now not so much. There are worse criminal elements in the now, to be wary about. The extent to which the journalists of that age were scrambling to get onto the front page was in itself a warning sign of the possible consequences. A dark world with easily corruptible foot soldiers and generals, who could come through unscathed? There is a moment is the series; a moment of realization for Jagruti when she realizes that she walked into a flaming pit with the delusion that she would never get burnt. Hanslal Mehta and Jigna Vora deserve a kudos for placing that grounding moment in the story. Hanslal Mehta's treatment of the material carries what now has become his trademark – an air of realism maintaining respect to the real life personas depicted in the story, where deserved. The scenes with Jagruti in prison are so very well handled. There is rawness and nuance to the atmosphere that a women's prison might encompass. There are many characters floating around in the periphery but almost none of them seemed purposeless. Almost. Though every character actor in the huge ensemble pitches in. Jagruti's family exudes warmth and fear at the same time, with Sanat Vyas and Deven Bhojani leading that front, and Vishal Thakkar playing Jagruti's young son. Quite familiarly, Mehta brings back some old but familiar actors back into the fore – Ira Dubey, Ishita Arun, Ninad Kamat and even Amar Upadhyay in a blink-and-miss part. Tejaswini Kolhapure walks in and out towards the end of the series in a role that could have had more meat, but seems more like a sledging reality show contestant. Jaimini Pathak fleets by with a swift, articulate and cracking appearance. Tannishtha Chatterjee doesn't have a huge screen presence, but whatever she portrays fits right into the character. Tanmay Dhanania, a fresh face some may place back to "that Tea advertisement" with Sulabha Arya seems to show promise in a very grey shaded role. Prosenjit Chatterjee makes an impactful but short cameo in a role that is based on the late Jyotirmoy Dey – the man around whom the whole tornado of events circle around. Harman Baweja is another interesting face that Mehta brings back from the shelves. In a role that shadows the late super-cop Himanshu Roy, Baweja probably is put into a zone which he probably never has been in before and he delivers. In a story with the consequences of truth and the integrity of the fourth estate being on the fore, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub (playing a character based on Hussain Zaidi) is a sincere reflection of a man walking a tough tightrope, and fighting a tough fight. Karishma Tanna is quite the revelation. She may have done her bits in more of reality television and soaps, but "Scoop" brings out a "real" actor in her. She glides through the first half of the narrative as an ambitious newshound on whom the brakes are kicked in; like a victim who wakes up to the realization of getting caught in a gnarly web. Her portrayal of decline and resurrection is laudable. Hanslal Mehta has become a master at picking up riveting subjects and leading a great team of actors into bringing those stories into moving frames. See more Tarek A @tarekali 06/20/2023 Scoop is a searing indictment of the entertainment-obsessed media culture of today, and the wholesale corruption of law enforcement in the face of greed and organized crime. As you watch the terrible fall from grace, fame and power of the animated, ambitious and charismatic protagonist Jagruti Pathak, you cannot but imagine this could happen to anyone in the wrong place and time. The acting of Karishma Tanna is just spectacular, especially as she hits low points in her humiliation and disgrace, showing how a massive ego can be demolished one brick at a time. The supporting cast is also excellent, especially Imran played by Ayyub, a lone torch bearer in a sea of sold souls. As the series progresses your sense of outrage grows, especially seeing the slow wheels of justice grind - reinforcing the credo that delayed is denied. I was outraged at how someone's life could be trampled to bits to suit the agenda of influential people. As Imran aptly asks "Whose mission shall it be to rebuild the destroyed life and career?". Being rooted in fact this series packs a punch, and certain unresolved dangling threads of injustices make one seethe in anger at the smugness of authorities today. How deep is the reach of organized crime, deep enough to choke off justice? See more Read all reviews

Scoop — Season 1

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