Web Series Analysis

Web Series Analysis

[Name of the Writer]

[Name of the Institution]

Web Series Analysis

Introduction

Media has made many advancements in recent years, and viewers have nor more items to choose from to watch. Numerous channels have erupted which are dedicated to a specific genre or sector of media sciences and shows only that type of content. For example, there are news channels which only show news content and talk shows to its viewers; there are channels dedicated to entertainment purposes only that offer various kinds of TV shows to their viewers. There are even channels dedicated to kids’ stuff that display just cartoons and training programs for children of multiple ages.

With the introduction of the internet, a lot has changed in the entertainment industry as well. Producers, drama-makers, and film-makers do not only use the medium of television to showcase their work now but also take help to the internet. A comparatively recent and new trend that has been observed in the circles of media is the introduction of web series to the screens. People now do not have to stick to their television screens all the time and watch any particular show that they desire to watch. They can watch any series or show at their ease, whenever they have time and on whatever device they like to watch; on their desktop, laptop, tablets, and smartphones.

Web Series has been defined as a series of scripted and non-scripted videos that are available on the internet. These web series are usually episodic form and are a part of web media television. The term first appeared in the late 1990s and became more popular in the 2000s. In 2013, Netflix became the first web series offering platform, and since then, it only gained more and more popularity among the audience.

One of the most famous web series that has become famous very recently, especially among the audience of India is a crime and drama series, which goes by the title of "Sacred Games." The upcoming details will highlight the general details of the web series and will provide an in-depth analysis of the popular web-series.

Discussion

“Sacred Games” is a web series of Indian origin that has been adapted from Vikram Chandra’s 2006 Crime and thriller novel, carrying the same name. The Crime, Drama, and thriller web series was the first Netflix original web series produced in India under the banner of Phantom Films. Sacred Games has been directed by Anurag Kashyap, and Vikramaditya Motwane and the screenplay had been written by Varun Grover, Vasant Nath, and Smita Singh. The first episode was released on 6th July 2018 over the internet.

Plot

The story of the series revolves around Sartaj Singh, a middle-aged Mumbai police cop, who is stuck in a mid-life crisis. He totally loathes his job for its dirtiness and corruption. He is a restless man who is profoundly depressed and who lives on sleeping pills and wants to run away from all the problems in his life. One fine day he receives a call from an anonymous number threatening him to create chaos and trouble in Mumbai. The caller challenges him to save his beloved city in the next 25 days as he is on the move and his intentions are not good at all. This call acts a domino effect and initiates a chain of bad happenings in Mumbai City that reveals numerous dark secrets buried deep inside India’s Underworld. The call was actually from a Ganesh Gaitonde, who was a notorious crime lord of his time but had gone missing since the last 16 years.

In his quest to save Mumbai from this maniac, Sartaj Singh is assisted by Anjali Mathur, a competent and hard-working Research and Analysis Wing Officer.

Analysis

Sacred Games is an excellent portrayal of the criminal world of Mumbai Underworld. It opens the eyes of viewers to the shady practices going on around in the night when the whole world is sleeping. The crime strategies of the elaborated networks have been portrayed in an elegant and brilliant manner so that even a layperson can understand the events going on.

Characters

The main cast and crew of the web series consist of Saif Ali Khan, Nawaz Uddin Siddiqui, Radhika Apte, and Kubra Saith. The characters that these cast members play have been elaborated as follows

Saif Ali Khan as Inspector Sartaj Singh

Nawaz Uddin Siddiqui as Ganesh Gaitonde

Radhika Apte as Anjali Mathur

Kubra Saith as Kuku

Sartaj Singh

The character of Sartaj Singh has been brilliantly portrayed by Saif Ali Khan. Sartaj is Sikh police cop serving in Mumbai Police department. He is a deeply disturbed man and loathes his department due to its negative and corrupt environment. He is an honest and hard-working man who believes in using fair means for achieving his goals. It is his honesty and fairness that only he is reached out of the whole department by Ganesh Gaitonde.

Ganesh Gaitonde

Ganesh Gaitonde, a notorious crime lord, who had been very active in the past comes back to the crime scene of Mumbai after a whole 16 years. The crime lord had gone missing or "out-of-practice" for a long time, and people had almost forgotten him during this time. During his high days, he had created a great mess around in the city and was famous for his criminal activities. Now when Gaitonde is back, he has again started repeating his old activities and has become a challenge for Mumbai Police. He is a very cunning and smart man with a manipulative brain. He is also a big narcissist who thinks that he can control everything, that is why he is often seen saying “kabhi kabhi lagta hai apun hi Bhagwan hai." (Sometimes I feel I am the God) (Chandra, 2010).

Anjali Mathur

Anjali Mathur is a kind-hearted, hard-working police officer who is serving in research and Analysis Wing of the Mumbai Police Department. She is also an honest person and genuinely wants to help Sartaj in his mission. She is a brave police cop who loves to takes risks and saves Sartaj in many narrow spaces.

Kuku

The most talked about character after Sartaj and Gaitonde in the series is Kuku or "Cuckoo." Cuckoo is a transgender person who works as a cabaret dancer and is exceptionally stylish. She is playing the love interest of Ganesh Gaitonde. Gaitonde reverts to her for the fulfillment of his sexual needs. Although for the outer world, she is an extremely proud person having a lot of ego and pride but inside she is a broken soul who is a victim of severe inferiority complex and thinks that she is incomplete.

Conclusion

In short, the web series, Sacred Games is a brilliant portrayal of intelligence in honesty in the same place. The series shows that within all the chaos and corruption, there are also honest people who want to serve and save their country. The series I also about hard work and loyalty, that friends show towards each other and help each other in tough times. It can be summarized that Anurag Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane have done brilliant jobs in the direction of Sacred games and every person including the main cast and the side and recurring cast have given out their best in the particular roles.

References

Chandra, V. (2010). Sacred Games :( Hindi edition). Penguin UK.