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FCC take: A superb ensemble cast anchored by the assured Zahaan Kapoor and the edgy Rahul Bhat, elevates the already good material under Motwane’s dual eye for aesthetics & realism, making Black Warrant one of the best offbeat shows in recent times

Jubilee was a runaway success for Netflix last year, and the streaming platform seems to have scored again by letting Vikramaditya Motwane anchor another fresh series, Black Warrant.

Based on a screenplay adapted from a book based on real events, Motwane & co-showrunner Satyanshu Singh, the series casts newcomer Zahaan Kapoor (the great Shashi Kapoor’s grandson) in the role of Tihar jail jailer Sunil Gupta, & other fresh faces Paramvir Cheema & Anurag Thakur as his coworkers and buddies in Tihar, with Rahul Bhat (Ugly, Kennedy) playing the Dy Superintendent who calls the shots.

But does he really? As the story deepens we meet the other key players in the jail – the gangs who truly run the show, & the jail’s mor (peacock) (as the show repeatedly calls him) , an enigmatic, slithering, dangerous Charles Sobhraj (played superbly by Sidhant Gupta).

The series is consistently engaging, playing out as a series of experiences from the jailers’ point of view. This makes the series episodic, each of the seven episodes playing out as a new problem for the team to face & get out of.

The technical aspects are stellar – cinematography, sound design, editing – all supporting the directors’ vision.

The high points of the series are the first two episodes  – the first one sets the tone & lays out all the players, the second one is about the titular black warrant, the death sentence & hanging of two of the jail’s infamous inmates, a harrowing, intense watch – & this also means the series peaks early, which is both a good & a bad thing. The other thing that stands out as a miss is the characterisation of the women, except Rajashri Deshpande who rises above her thinly written reporter role in Episode 2, the rest of them are written without detail or backstory & hence don’t become memorable.

The real highlight of the series is the camaraderie that is truly brought to life by Kapoor, Cheema & Thakur – their changing dynamics & performances carry the show all through to the finale.

Overall, Black Warrant is a solid series from creator & director Vikramaditya Motwane, & its greatest contribution could be the addition of some very fine actors to the Hindi cinema / OTT scene. Watch the whole series on Netflix.