Despite its sloppiness and inconsistencies, Tanaav, a Sudhir Mishra’s Indian adaptation of the critically acclaimed Israeli television series Fauda, makes for a stimulative watch, as it sifts through the socio-political climate of Kashmir and digs deep into the putrid grime of insurgency and militancy clutter. Carefully set in the volatile and antipodal backdrop where two sides are pitied against each other over the conflicting school of thoughts emanating in regard to the idea of Kashmir, Sudhir Mishra’s recreation straggles through for the most parts but still promptly manages to employ the stylebook of Fauda. The narrative-building and the character arcs is what makes this 12-episodes long series produced by Applause Entertainment intriguing, but cogent storytelling is not its strong suit.
The nail-biting drama kicks off on the scenic streets of Srinagar, where a barrage of bullets breaks the placidity among the unsuspecting citizens of the city, while an elderly figure named Mushtaq is whisked away furtively inside a van and later presented in front of Jagjit Malik (played by Rajat Kapoor), an essential cog in the Indian Intelligence Group (IIG). While Jagjit prods him to divulge some important information, Mushtaq plays coy until presented with a lucrative prospect. As opposed to that, what he reveals catapults the story further.
Just like Fauda, a dreaded militant Umer ‘Panther’ Riaz (played by Sumit Kaul) who was expected to be killed in an ambush with Indian Intelligence Group is supposedly still at large. And to add to this hysteric development, he is planning to carry out something nefarious. But as luck would have it, an opportunity to scrag him off presents himself in the form of an upcoming wedding of Umer’s younger brother Asif Riaz. An officer with the force, Vikrant Rathore (played by Arbaaz Khan) arrives at Kabir Farooqui’s (played by Manav Vij) home. Now retired and looking forward to starting a new life as a jam producer, Kabir politely turns Vikrant down but later due to the moral tussle with himself and against the wishes of his wife Nusrat Farooqui (played by Sukhmani Sadana), he decides to head join his team for one last mission.
But not everything goes as per plans because their elaborate gambit to thwart Umer Riaz ends up in a chaotic mishap. It ricochets right through their ranks and results in an unfortunate tragedy, a butterfly effect set in motion that grips Kabir’s team and comes back to haunt them in the following episodes. A galvanic game of cat and mouse ensues that changes the course of the story and inadvertently affects the relationships they share with the close ones. The convoluted plot is hyperbolized with a tangled web of twists and turns, and it bides its time to unfold.
The beauty of ‘Tanaav’ lies in its portrayal of a story without the over-the-top gimmicks of gun fights or threadbare sequences involving pedantic melodrama and/or the need to gussy up its storytelling devices with the help of gore, violence, gaudy theatrics or unctuous characters. By that yardstick, it surely has a look and appeal of a show made for a global audience. Credits goes to Sudhir Mishra for tackling an adaptation as grand as Fauda. Even made on a smaller canvas than its original counterpart, amount of effort gone into reconceptualization of scenes in its wake can be intuited with a single glance.
Rather, Tanaav banks on ideological warfare and presents a contemporary array of characters– an attribute that one might not usually expect from a gritty series like the one in question. In essence, their traits and characteristics are all painted in grey and in extension helps drive the profound notion of showcasing human emotional stories with a pinch of salt. For reference, Umer Riaz, the foreboding antagonist of the series is diabolical and operates under the whims of his bellowing ego but then he also possesses a soft corner for his wife and daughter. Or Kabir Farroqui, the Dark Horse of the intelligence is reckless around his family to the extent that he almost projects himself angrily onto his unsuspecting son who responds back in sheer shock. An anomaly not expected from your ‘run-of-the-mill’ protagonist.
Similarly, Fatima Ali (played by Sheen Dass) in a scene is shown battling with her heart-wrenching grief but is hell-bent to follow through with her mephitic plans of redemption. However, when she is confronted by the actuality of her decision, even she shudders to be a part of it—a natural reaction expected from a witting mind. Uday Parmod (played by Satyadeep Misra) gives off an unrelenting and fearless energy but when he gets shot and is at the precipice of life and death, he doesn’t shy away from admitting that he wants to get back to the civilian life. An emotional outburst which justifies his circumstances.
Tanaav is also remarkable for not taking a stance or force-feeding an agenda (even subliminally) to its viewers unlike all the other films or series made around the mercurial atmosphere of Kashmir. Instead, it gives its viewers a chance to develop an opinion or better titillates their curiosity towards the socio-cultural-political history of the valley state. It also retains the beauty of Kashmiri culture with the aid of frequent Kashmiri dialogues and assimilating cultural components like the ‘Noon-Chai’ and ‘Waazwaan’.
While Fauda traces a more labyrinthian history of dissidence in the form of Israel and Gaza conflict, Tanaav’s contemplation of insurgency and militancy in Kashmir can be perceived as far-too simplistic for the taste of the audience. It is certainly not hurried, but the temper constricts the makers from infusing more creativity and adding something new to the existing repertoire at their disposal.
The narrative also dampens midway as the episodes seems to stretch and the story tends to drag in between. Even the most exciting of sub-plots fail to hold the momentum of the show and it eventually fumbles all over the place at the peak of its climax. To add to the flaws, Tanaav is fairly riddled with minor absurdities here and there in regards to how some of the themes are mapped out. Thus, an emotional disconnect even in the most profound of scenes feels like a popcorn kernel stuck between teeth.
Sudhir Mishra deserves an ‘applause’ (no pun intended) for its faithful and genuine cast. The real stars of the show are Manav Vij, Sumit Kaul and Shashank Arora. Manav Vij has encultured himself for the role of Kabir Farooqui, in the sense that he looks cold, calculated and portentous from the outside and with a tempestuous storm raging inside him that makes him more determined. Sumit Kaul as Umer Riaz is also quite convincing. For him to essay a grey character, it surely packs a punch, owing to the actor’s Kashmiri roots especially and his range as an actor. However Shashank Arora in the role of Junaid Alam Sheikh is the perfect fit and surely a match ‘made in heaven’ (again, no pun intended). The way Shashank embodied his character with his emotive eyes, an intimidating cadence in his speech and demeanour, an aura of naivete with a flexible moral compass, it is all too brilliant and lends gravitas to the story.
Other actors too have played their part well whether it’s Arslan Goni as Kunal Matoo, a core team member of Indian Intelligence Group, Rajat Kapoor as Jagjit Malik, Arryaman Seth as Danish Tahir, M.K Raina as Mir Saab, Arbaaz Khan as Vikrant Rathore and Amit Gaur as Muneer Jilani. In comparison to male actors, female actors were not properly utilised as per their acting mettle. Irrespective of that, they delivered their part well, especially Ekta Kaul as Doctor Farha.
Summing it up, Tanaav is a great show but there is a lot of potential that the makers couldn’t explore. While the realism, gritty character sketches, crisp cinematography, commendable sound design and objective storytelling forms the soul of the show, the inconsistencies in its pace, dearth of creative inputs are some of the most glaring drawbacks. Regardless, Sudhir Mishra’s attempt to assimilate Fauda’s story for the Indian milieu remains honest to Fauda.
Tanaav produced by Applause Entertainment is now streaming on Sony LIV App
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