Dahaad Review: Vijay Varma Packs Solid Punch As Menacing Baddie, Sonakshi Sinha Shines In Gripping Thriller

Dahaad review: The story of a police officer, who is on the mission to find a serial killer who is wreaking havoc in a small town in Rajasthan, should make for an interesting watch, isn't it? After Pataal Lok and Tandav, Amazon Prime Video is back with yet another gripping thriller in the form of Dahaad.

The crime mystery thriller has been making waves ever since the trailer was unveiled earlier this month. Dahaad has all the ingredients required for a successful crime thriller- intriguing plot, captivating screenplay, multi-dimensional characters, suspense and an evil villain who sends chills down your spine.

Is Amazon Prime India's newest series Dahaad worth the time? Absolutely. It not only touches thought-provoking subjects like casteism, honour killing and love jihad and but is also backed by power-packed performances by the lead artists.

DAHAAD REVIEW: STORY IS FAB, SCREENPLAY IS GOOD BUT EDITING...

Dahaad focuses on Anjali Bhaati (Sonakshi Sinha) and her mission to find a missing girl. The protagonist, while investigating the case, finds that there's a connection between several other missing girls and their deaths.

Anjali, who belongs to a lower class strata, is the only woman police officer in the remote town of Mandawa. Her probe into the cold case brings her to Anand Sawarnakar (Vijay Varma). Despite working round the clock with her seniors- SI Kailash Parghi (Sohum Shah), and the station in-charge Devilal Singh (Gulshan Devaiah), Anjali finds to find evidence against the Hindi professor. However, she is determined to nab the culprit and here the story catches pace.

The show boasts of sincere performances but is marred at times by the editing, which could be crispier. A few scenes could be trimmed as they wouln't have disrupted the follow of the story. All said and done, the impressive story, tight screenplay and strong characters are one of the few highlights of the series.

Reema Kagti and Ruchika Oberoi have delved into the world where people from lower caste are discriminated in the society and yet no one bats and eye. However, the protagonist Anjali Bhati, who is herself a victim of such discrimination, doesn't hesitate to raise her voice and roar like a lioness. This is what the USP of Dahaad is. A strong lead, who slams a wealthy man for objecting to her entering his home because of her caste- what an epic scene.

DAHAAD REVIEW: VIJAY VARMA IS A SCENE-STEALER

One can go on and on and praise Vijay Sharma but it still won't be enough. Imagine watching the crime thriller about a serial killer and yet getting engaged with the ruthless baddie, courtesy of the impressive performance by Vijay Varma. After Darlings, once again the Gully Boy star has tapped himself into the character. He didn't play it over the top and yet managed to leave a reverberating impact on me.

Anand Swarnakar is a sinister and yet relatable. You would hate him for the miseries that he has brought upon the victims and yet believe in the beginning that he is innocent because of his family man image.

WHAT AN OTT DEBUT! SONAKSHI SINHA, WE NEED TO SEE YOU MORE

I have always maintained that Lootera's Pakhi will remain Sonakshi's best performance till date. And I have to say that her act as Anjali in Dahaad is praise worthy. The B-town diva made an impactful debut in the web space and deserves all the praise.

While we have seen female cops in Mardaani (Rani Mukerji) and Drishyam 2 (Tabu), Dahaad's Anjali Bhaati is different as she is vulnerable yet strong. Kudos to Sonakshi for nailing the part with ease. Give her the right script and Sona will deliver, that's for sure.

DAHAAD REVIEW: PERFORMANCES

While I talked about Vijay and Sonakshi's riveting performance, both Sohum Shah and Gulshan Devaiah also deserve a special mention. Gulshan has once again showcased his acting prowess as the cop, who is dealing with issues in his personal life. How often do you see a character discussing the taboo topic of sex with his child? Well, Devilal Singh didn't shy away from talking about consensual sex with his son.

Gulshan brought life to the character of the Senior Inspector, who will never engage in discrimination and will fight for the truth even at the stake of making his dear ones upset. Life might be tough for him but his actions are rock solid.

Sohum Shah aced the character of a corrupt officer by delivering a nuanced performance. Who says man cannot be vulnerable? Shah's honest performance in the scene where his characters expresses grief over the condition in his life will make you cheer for him. I blew a whistle while watching the scene. It is his time to shine bright.

DAHAAD REVIEW: IS IT WORTH WEEKEND BINGE?

Overall, Dahaad is perfect for weekend binge-watch as it will keep you invested from start to finish. Watch the show for Vijay Varma as he has delivered yet another chumeshwari performance, which definitely deserves your watch. The web series is an eye-opener for the people, who still believe that caste discrimination is a thing of the past.

This Dahaad can be heard across all the corners. The series is available for streaming on Amazon Prime Video.