"Delhi Crime" five years later

 Back in 2021 I watched the "Delhi Crime" (2019) series and posted a blog after the first season   http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2021/01/delhi-crime-is-gripping-drama-about.html

Since then they have added two more seasons and it seemed a good time to go back to the beginning and follow up to the end of the third season.

In the second series, Vartika, a senior police official is admired, but is confronted with another serious crime.  Some elderly middle class citizens are brutally murdered and the public seems certain that a notorious gang is responsible.  As with the previous season there is police bureaucracy infighting, compounded by agitated journalists along and limited resources.  Some gang associated suspects are rounded up, but Vartika soon realizes they are innocent of the murders and releases them.  Being very methodical she contends with a lot of criticism, but solves the crime.  

In the third season Vartika has been promoted to Assam, a distant jurisdiction, noted for tea.  While following an illegal arms movement the police stumble on a trafficking ring for women from Assam to Delhi.  Likely it was mostly for purposes you can easily imagine, but at one time they were specifically looking for pre puberty girls for illegal medical experiments.  Soon we encounter Meena, a recruiter and trainer for the girls.  Vartika takes it upon herself to follow up to Delhi and work with familiar support staff.  Later she travels to Mumbai on the same project.  She is close to being demoted, but she is very methodical. 

Neeti Singh, an important assistant has gone through a romance and then a divorce.  Vartika's daughter Chandni moved to Toronto, Canada and returned.

Richie Mehta was the creator  writer and executive producer of the original "Delhi Crime" (2019).  He is not related to Deepa Mehta, well known Canadian film maker who also has done films based in India.  Richie from Mississauga, Ontario graduated from the University of Toronto.  He took a film production course at Sheridan College and one of his experimental shorts ended up being made into a feature, "Amal" (2007) which made it to the international circuit and won him some awards.  Over the years he has written, directed and/or produced successful films such as "I'll Follow You Down (2013) and "Siddharth" (2013).  When he heard of the major rape story on international news he was concerned that it painted India in a bad light and overlooked elements of the crime which was resolved very quickly.  Looking for a feature film his six years of research he needed a mini series to squeeze in all the relevant details.  He saw it as a mission to bring light to the story.  Richie chose to emphasize the people involved rather than the horror of the actual crime.  To be as authentic as practical he used Neeraj Kumar who had been Delhi Police Commissioner at the time as consultant.

Tanuja Chopra was brought on as director, producer and writer for the remaining two seasons.  Born in California he received a degree in Seminotics from Brown University in 1999 and a  Master of Fine Arts in Film degree from Columbia University in 2007.  He has done music videos.  Tanuja has 15 directing credits, 6 for producing and 10 for writing. 

Ceiri Torjusson, the composer for the last two series was born in Wales and can speak Welsh.  While in high school he started performing and composing for jazz, funk and disco bands.  He received music degrees from York University (in the UK) and University of Southern California.  Ceiri spent seven months touring and teaching in India where he picked up an interest in northern India classical music.  He has 101 composing credits, 56 for the music department and 2 for additional crew including "I Robot" (2004).

Johan Heurlin Aidt, responsible for cinematography was born in Denmark.  He has 13 cinematography credits, 13 for the camera and electrical department and 3 for directing including "The Loudest Voice" (2019), "The Report" (2019), "Ocean'8" (2018),  and "House of Cards" (2013).  Earlier blogs on two of these:  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2020/11/the-loudest-voice.html and  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2020/05/the-report.html

Parikshhhit Jha was an editor.  He has 25 editor credits, 8 for the editorial department and 4 for producing including "Kai Po Che" (2013).  See http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2013/05/kai-che-po.html 

Assembling a cast for this level of production requires someone like Mukesh Chhabra.  He has been involved with the casting of such films as "PK" (2014), "Haider" (2014) "She" (2020) and "Del Bechara" (2020). He has acted (small roles) in many of the films including, "Amal" (2007), "Siddharth "(2013) and "Delhi Crime" (2019-2025).  Further research revealed that Richie Mehta wanted to avoid mega stars (expensive and distracting) and this allowed Mukesh to seek out the best actors for the roles.  Earlier blogs on some of his films:  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2015/03/pk.html and http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2015/02/haider-bollywoods-version-of-shakespeare.html

Shefali Shah played Vartika Chaturvedi, the officer in charge in a no nonsense manner cutting through excuses, political pressures and red tape.  Shefali has won numerous awards, with 45 acting credits including "Mohabbtein" (2000), "Monsoon Wedding" (2007), "Gandhi My Father" (2007) "Laksmi" (2014), "Dil Dhadakne Do" (2015), as the romantic lead in "Once Again" (2018) and as a woman in early dementia who persuades her husband back to where she had an affair in "The Three of Us"  (2020).  She won an award for her role in "Delhi Crime"   See  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2024/01/three-of-us-is-subtle-drama.html and http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2022/12/doctor-g.html

Raskika Dugal played Neeti Singh a trainee police officer who proved she was more thorough than most male officers.  She commented that for Season 2 she had received a promotion as did her model police officer she was following, but for Season 3, the model police office got another promotion, but she did not.  She got a degree in math.  Raskika has 55 acting credits, 1 for writing and 1 for cinematography including "Manto" (2018), "Once Again" (2018) and "Hamid" (2018) for which she won best actress award.  

Rajesh Taileng  played a key officer in pursuit of the rapists.  In 2022 he wrote a poetry book.  Rajesh has 44 acting credits 8 for writing and 5 for directing including "Mangal Pandy:  The Rising" (2005),  "Amal" (2007), "Siddharth" (2013), "The Second Best Marigold Hotel" (2015) and "Pagglait" (2021).    

Adil Hussain plays a supervisor under pressure from politicians and bureaucrats.  He is very versatile and is fluent in English, Hindi, Bengali, and Assamese.  An international award winner including Norway, he has 101 acting credits and 3 for producing including "The Reluctant Fundamentalist (2012), "Life of Pi" (2012), "English Vinglish" (2012), "Tigers" (2014), "What Will People Say" (2017) and "Kabir Singh"(2019) and "Good Newwz" (2019).  See http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2020/02/good-newwz.html  

Denzil Smith played the husband of the chief inspector. and the father of the girl wanting to leave.   He has 76 acting credits including: "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel" (2011),  "Talaash" (2012) "The Lunchbox" (2013), "The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel" (2015), "Viceroy's House" (2017), "Photograph" (2019), "Badla" (2019) and "Tenet" (2020).  Read about Badla, a remake of a Spanish film:  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2019/09/a-masterpiece-film-and-very-good-remake.html

Yashaswini Dayama  plays Chandni, the daughter of the chief inspector and leaves (for opportunity in Toronto) because of her negative opinion of Delhi and becomes involved in protests.  She has 16 acting credits inclukding "Phobia" (2016) and  "Dear Zindagi" (2016).

Huma Qureshi played Meena in the third season.  She was spotted by Anurag Kashup while doing a commercial for Samsung Mobile.  She has 39 acting credits and 2 for producing including "Gangs of Wasseypur" (2012), "Badlapur" (2015),  "Jolly LLB 2 (2017) and "Jolly LLB 3" (2025).

This series, like many other police dramas points out bureaucratic infighting and budget concerns, but tries to emphasize there are many dedicated officers.  "Delhi Crime" is available dubbed or subtitled on Netflix where it is possible to view all three seasons.

As usual I have bolded the first mention of films I have seen.  They are not necessarily a recommendation, but generally these are among my favourites.  The cast and crew are well connected to outstanding films and if you follow the links you should be better able to determine if a particular film is worth following up.

"Three of Us" is a subtle drama

As we live longer it seems there are more dramas involving dementia.  "Three of us" demonstrates a subtle breakdown in the early stages.  The story begins with a middle aged woman, Shailaja who has recently learned she has an early onset form of dementia.  We are shown a few instances of forgetfulness while still displaying some intelligence.  She resigned from her job at Family Court, Divorce Division.  She requests her husband, Dipankar to return to a town she spent a few years for her schooling.  Her husband concerned for her safety and with support from their son decides to go with her.  She presses as she feels it is urgent or she might forget.  Once there she is drawn to a name, Pradip and asks about his availability.

 The three refers to Shailaja, Dipankar and Pradip  The wife of Pradip, Sarika is also involved in a supporting role.  Dipankar is more concerned about his wife's mental health than being jealous.  Pradip at first is not aware of her dementia and is confused as he had put her out of his mind for many years.  Sarika doesn't feel threatened at all and encourages him to meet Shalaja and all four get together a few times.  The two men get along very well and eventually Dipankar explains Shailaja's gradually building dementia.

We learn that Shailaja has memory problems and cannot remember too much of her relationship with Pradip, but it was meaningful.  Towards the end we realize she broke their relationship, but she doesn't remember that, but feels guilty.  At the end we feel the four all get along, but Shailaja is well aware of her deterioration.  

The feeling left with this viewer is relief of the relationships, but sadness that one of them is in declining mental health.  It is like a tragedy, but with the satisfaction she is being treated well and gets some satisfaction out of life.  If we live long enough we all will know more people with dementia and unfortunately some of us will succumb.  The people close to the victim will feel the pain as much or even more.  Others may react differently, but most of us will be a little more sensitive to dementia.

This emotional and intellectual feeling took some deft handling.  Here are some of the people who made it a memorable film.

Avinash Arun was director, a key writer and cinematographer.   Before really rolling with his film career he did videos for weddings and birthday parties.  He has 24 credits as a cinematographer including "Drishyam" (2015), "Masaan" (2016), "Madaari" (2016) and "Hichki" (2018).  He has 4 director credits including the Marathi production of "Killa" (2014) that he was also the cinematographer.  Directors are mostly concerned with the actors, but a perspective on the visuals adds value to the film.              http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2015/11/driishyam-bollywood-remake-masterpiece.html        

Arpita Chatterjee was another writer.  A former journalist she has 6 credits as a scriptwriter including    "Bheja Fry"(2007).

Sarita Patil, was one of the producers.  She has over 25 film credits including  "The Dirty Picture"(2011), "Drishyam" (2015),  "Lucknow Central" (2017), "Thambi" (2019), "She"(2020) and "Monica, O My Darling" (2022)  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2015/11/driishyam-bollywood-remake-masterpiece.html

Alokananda Dasgupta provided the music.  She received a music degree from York University, Toronto, Ontario.  She has 32 composing credits including "B.A. Pass" (2012), "Trapped" (2016), "Sacred Games" (2018-2019) and Ajeeb Daastaans" (2021).

Sanyukta Kaza did the editing  Her 44  credits include"Ship of Theseus" (2012) and "Trapped" (2016).         http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2017/01/ship-of-thesus.html

Shefali Shah plays Shailaja, the woman with early onset dementia.  She started her career on the Gujarati stage.  She speaks Gujarati, Hindi, English,Tulu and Marathi.  She is noted for being selective and has won many awards in a variety of roles.  She is a critics' favorite.  She has 39 film credits including "Satya" (1998),"Monsoon Wedding" (2001), "Gandhi, My Father" (2007), "Mohabbatein" (2009),"Karthik Callilng Karthik" (2010), "Dil Dhadakne Do" (2015), "Once Again" (2018), "Delhi Crime" (2019), "Human" (2022) and "Doctor G" (2022).  She also wrote and directed two short films on the subject of the Covid-19 pandemic.  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2022/12/doctor-g.html

Jaideep Ahlawat  played Pradip, the long ago boyfriend.  He has 32 film credits including "Gangs of Wasseypur" (2012), "Raees" (2017), "Raazi" (2018)"Ajeeb Daastaan" (2021), "Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar" (2021) and "Jaane Jaan" (2023).  Check http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2023/10/jaane-jaan-from-devotion-of-suspect-x.html

Swanand Kirkire played Dipankar, the husband.  A lot of film career involves music where he has 69 credits including "3 Idiots" (2009), "Barfi" (2012) and "Kai Po Che" (2013). awards for both lyrics and playback.  He has also got 35 credits for acting including "Chameli" (2003), "Badrinath Ki Dulhania" (2017) and "Qala" (2022).  Furthermore he has 10 writer credits.   See http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2013/05/kai-che-po.html

Kadambari Kadam plays Sarika, an understanding wife.  Her background is in the Marathi theater.  She has 16 film credits.  She is married to Avinish Arun.

Mental illness is not funny and this film reflects the seriousness of dementia, something most people fear.  Available on Netflix with subtitles.

Doctor G

"Doctor G" (2022) was among my most anticipated movies, but assumed it would not  be available for several months, however could not miss a chance to watch an Ayushmann Khurrana film when Netflix came through.  Shefali Shah has also proved to be an indicator of a good movie.  

Uday is coerced awkwardly to switch medical studies to specialize in gynecology.  He has social hangups which his all female classmates pick up on.  They tease him with nicknames including "Mr. Nipples".  Dr. Nandini, his immediate superior is tough on him, but feels being male should be no handicap.  Gradually he develops not only skills but pride and a sense of purpose.  

His single mother had decided she wants to date and Uday resents her for it and at a later point tries to break up a developing relationship.  His girl friend breaks up with him saying he doesn't understand women and doesn't really listen.  Finally he seems to have found a mutual attraction with another student, Fatima, however she stops after a kiss declaring she will remain loyal to her fiance while also declaring she wants to be friends with him.  Understanding women is a challenge during most of the movie.

It would be natural for a film about an gynecologist to touch on abortion.  It is not common in his clinic but apparently legal with some restrictions.  A mentor (and hero) of Uday's gets an underage woman, Kavya, pregnant and seeks an abortion to avoid trouble with his wife and job.  Uday avoids actually doing it, but lies to Dr. Nandini and Fatima.  Uday learns that Kavya  has a complication that would make an abortion risky.   His mentor is desperate and forces a situation.  Temporarily Uday agrees to let Kavya stay with him and his mother.  Things go wrong and Uday is threatened with dismissal, but his experiences have opened his mind in many directions including his mother, Dr. Nandini, Fatima and his mentor.

Although male gynecologists are well established in India, there is still a bit of a stigma with males seeking more acceptable specialties.  Males are also reluctant to develop friendships with females.  Abortion is of course a controversial topic.  Ayushmann tackles all these issues in this film.

The film does not just make a social statement, it is very entertaining.  For this combination it requires some professional attention.  Here are some of the contributors.

Director/writer Anubhuti Kashyap started her career as a subordinate director on 3 films and moved onto director for three other films before tackling "Doctor G" and adding on writing.  She is sister to Anurag Kashyap, a well regarded film maker. 

Saurabh Bharat also worked on the screenplay after contributing to the story.  He graduated from the    New York Film Academy.  He had been a dentist who went onto be a radio disc jockey before becoming a script writer.  He had awards for his first short film that he also provided cinematography as well as directing in 2011.  He was an assistant director for "Satyagrah" (2013).

Music was provided by Amit Trivedi.  He has also been a backup singer in many films.  His credits include  "Aamir" (2008), "Udann" (2010), "Chillar Party" (2011), "Kai Po Che" (2013), "Queen" (2013), "Dear Zindagi" (2016) "Secret Superstar" (2017), "Padman" (2018),  "Andhadhun" (2018) and "Goodbye" (2022). 

Cinematography was handled by Eeshit Narain.  His film credits include "Qarib Qarib Singlle" (2017) and "Once Again" (2018)

Editing was done by Prerna Saigel.  His screen credits include "The Lunchbox" (2013) , "Tigers" (2014) and "Pagglait" (2021).

Ayushmann Khurrana has played numerous socially challenging roles that can make you laugh.  For example his first feature he was a sperm donor with "Vicky Donor" (2012).  In "Dum Laga Ke Haisha" (2015) he tries to get out of an arranged marriage with an overweight girl better educated than him.  In "Shrubh Mangal Savdhan: (2017) he had erectile dysfunction.  In "Article 15" (2015) he played a non humourus military officer fighting caste discrimination.  In "Chandigarh Kare Aashiquui" (2022) he played a macho man who found himself making love to a transgendered woman.  "Check:  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2018/12/ayushmann-khuranna-actor-to-watch.html

Rukul Preet Singh played the want to be "friend" for Uday.  She graduated with an Honorus Degree in Mathematics.  She also had golfed at a national level.  In addition to Bollywood films she is able to speak Tamil, Telegu and Kannanda.

Shefali Shah played the supervisor to Uday.  She has numerous film credits including "Satya" (1998), "Mohabbatein" (2000),  "Gandhi, My Father" (2007)"Karthik Calling Karthik" (2010), "Dil Dhadakne Do" (2015), "Delhi Crime" (2019) and "Human" (2022).

Sheeba Chaddha plays Uday's mother who he loves, but is a bit embarrassed.  Her screen credits include "Dil Se" (1998), "Talaash" (2012), "Gully Boy" (2019), "Pagglait" (2021) and "Baidhaai Do" (2022).

Indraneil Sengupta played the mentor/hero (at least in the early part of film).    He had played in a number of Bengali films and one of my favorite twist movies "Kahanni" (2012) and "Human" (2022).

Ayesha Kasuskar played the underage girl friend.  She had been in "Agneepath" (2012).

Raj Sharma played the prospective boyfriend for Uday's mother.  His credits include "PK" (2014), "Talvar" (2014), "Kaabil" (2017), "Badhaii Ho" (2018), "Delhi Crime" (2019) and one of my top 2022 films "A Thursday" (2022).  Check:  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2022/02/the-message-is-spoiler.html

As with all of Ayushmann Khuranna films you likely will enjoy this one, laughing and pondering.  As usual I have bolded the first mention of movies I have seen.  As an aside those bolded films are mostly highly recommended as I omit those I would not recommend.

Delhi Crime is a Gripping Drama about a horrendous crime

You may have read a bit about the actual crime  (Nirbhaya incident of December 2012) as it made the international press.  The horror of it is hard to comprehend.  If it was a typical rape it would not have captured so much attention.  It took place on a  moving bus and not only did it involve what is generally called a "gang rape," but one of the six perpetrators expressed his hatred of women by using an iron rod.  If you would like more description you have to seek other sources or watch the series which does give more details.  Rape laws were changed as a result to give the victims more credibility.

Such a crime generated not only national outrage, but international criticism.  The police are criticized and careers are threatened, yet they did an incredible job tracking down the rapists.who had fled to different parts of India.  The bulk of the series is about the obstacles in finding the guilty, convincing witnesses, dealing with legal restrictions, the press and violent protests.  The police were initially given little evidence very methodically uncovered little details and eventually caught all 6 rapists in only six days.  Personal details of the officers were part of the drama.  The media soon learned of the iron rod and stirred up the public reaction including misinformation that led to riots demanding the police do something. Political pressure was applied.  Several instances of people not trusting the police.

It won the International Emmy for drama series as well as 3 awards with the Asian Academy Critics Award and has done well on Netflix.  Below are highlights of some key contributors, but be assured many others are responsble for the high quality of the series.  Most of the dialogue is subtitled from Hindi, but about a third is English.

Richie Mehta is not related to Deepa Mehta, well known Canadian film maker who also has done films based in India.  Richie from Mississauga, Ontario graduated from the University of Toronto.  He took a film production course at Sheridan College and one of his experimental shorts ended up being made into a feature, "Amal" (2007) which made it to the international circuit and won him some awards.  Over the years he has written, directed and/or produced successful films such as "I'll Follow You Down (2013) and "Siddharth" (2013).  When he heard of the major rape story on international news he was concerned that  it painted India in a bad light and overlooked elements of the crime.  Looking for a feature film his six years of research he needed a mini series to squeeze in relevant details.  He saw it as a mission to bring light to the story.  He chose to emphasize the people involved rather than the horror of the actual crime.  To be as authentic as practical he used Neeraj Kumar who had been Delhi Police Commissioner at the time as consultant.

Robert Friedland, a producer was part of a movement to develop the Asian film market.  He is a mining tycoon who felt mining was poorly portrayed in films, such as "Avatar"  had been the executive producer for "The Sky is Pink" (my favorite film from 2019), "The Wailing"  (2016 Korean) and "Crazy Rich Asians" (2018).   http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2019/12/the-sky-is-pink-my-top-movie-for-2019.html

Sidney Kimmel, producer had helped produce "The Kite Runner" (2007),  "Synedoche, New York"  (2008),  "Gone" (2012) and "Come Hell or High Water (2016).

Johan Heurlin Aidt, responsible for the cinematography had worked in camera & electric department for "The Loudest Voice" (2019), "The Report" (2019), "Ocean's Eight" (2018),  and "House of Cards" (2013).  Earlier blogs on two of these:  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2020/11/the-loudest-voice.html and  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2020/05/the-report.html

Andrew Lockington composed the musical score.   He was born in Burlington Ontario and in 2008 the International Film Music Critics awarded him Breakthough Film Composer of the Year.  He has done the scores for such movies as "Saint Ralph" (2004), "San Adreas" (2015) and "The Space Between Us" (2017).  He had worked with Richie Mehta for "Siddharth" (2013).

Beverly Mills, editor had worked with  "Shameless" (British version 2004-08),  "Death at a Funeral" (2007),  "Call the Midwife" (2013-14), and "India in a Day" (2016 with Richie Mehta).

Assembling a cast for this level of production requires someone like Mukesh Chhabra.  He has been involved with the casting of such films as "PK" (2014), "Haider" (2014) "She" (2020) and "Del Bechara" (2020). He has acted (small roles) in many of the films including, "Amal" (2007), "Siddharth "(2013) and this one.  Earlier blogs on some of his films:  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2015/03/pk.html and http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2015/02/haider-bollywoods-version-of-shakespeare.html

The acting from not only of the listed ones, but all of the others lent credibility to this difficult subject.

Shefali Shah played the officer in charge in a no nonsense manner cutting through excuses, political pressures and red tape .  Shefali has won numerous awards and has appeared in "Mohabbtein" (2000), "Monsoon Wedding" (2007),  "Laksmi" (2014), "Dil Dhadakne Do" (2015)  and as the romantic lead in "Once Again" (2018).  She won an award for her role in this and is slated for a sequel.

Rajesh Taileng  played a key officer in pursuit of the rapists.  He has appeared in "Mangal Pandy:  The Rising" (2005),  "Amal" (2007), "Siddharth" (2013), "The Second Best Marigold Hotel" (2015).    He  also wrote  dialogue for "Amal" (2007) and "Siddharth" (2013).

Raskika Dugal played a trainee police officer who proved she was more thorough than most male officers. She has appeared in such films as "Manto" (2018), "Once Again" (2018) and "Hamid" (2018 for which she won best actress award).  

Yashaswini Dayama  plays the daughter of the chief inspector and wants to leave (for opportunity in Toronto) because of her negative opinion of Delhi and becomes involved in protests.  She has appeared in "Phobia" (2016) and  "Dear Zindagi" (2016).

Adil Hussain plays a supervisor under pressure from politicians and bureaucrats.  He is very versatile is fluent in English, Hindi, Bengali, and Assamese.  Some of his films include, "The Reluctant Fundamentalist (2012), "Life of Pi" (2012),  "English Vinglish" (2012), "Tigers" (2014) and "What Will People Say"(2017).  An international award winner including Norway.

Denzil Smith played the husband of the chief inspector. and the father of the girl wanting to leave.   He has appeared in: "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel" (2011),  "The Lunchbox" (2013), "The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel" (2015), "Viceroy's House" (2017), "Photograph" (2019), "Badla" (2019) and Tenet" (2020).   Read about Badla, a remake of a Spanish film:  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2019/09/a-masterpiece-film-and-very-good-remake.html

Underappreciated police are given a low budget resulting in becoming overworked and open to "gifts" and cutting corners.  Low esteem creates a vicious circle.  In this movie Richie depicts many of the shortcomings of the Indian police force, but also shows us some dedicated talented members which were modelled on actual officers.

Note:  As usual I have bolded films I have seen with the first mention.