Jaanbaaz Hindustan Ke Review: Regina Cassandra steals the show in this Republic Day Flick

Cast: Regina Cassandra, Barun Sobti, Sumeet Vyas, Mita Vashisht, Gayathrie Shankar and Chandan Roy

Director: Srijit Mukherji

   

Streaming on Zee5

Language: Hindi

Runtime: 8 episodes of 30 – 40 minutes each.

The two main characters in charge of Jaanbaaz Hindustan Ke, which is produced by Aditya Pitte and Samar Khaan and written by Neeraj Udhwani and Ashish P Verma and is based on actual events, are both women: dedicated police officers who put their lives on hold to pursue jihadi terrorists from the north east to Kerala.

Plot

The Zee5 series aims to show audiences the difficulties and sacrifices made by IPS officials. Jaanbaaz Hindustan Ke, directed by Srijit Mukherji and based on real-life events, centres on Meghalayan IPS officer Kavya Iyer (played by Regina Cassandra), who is nicknamed “Shillong Ki Sherni” by the public and media for her bravery and successful missions. Due to her aggressive attitude, Kavya frequently leads her team into hazardous situations without any regard for their safety.

Estranged from her husband Sameer (Barun Sobti), she lives with her mother (Deepika Deshpande) and chirpy kid Reyansh (Jihan Hodar).

She walks into an ambush while pursuing militants across the foggy terrain and is transferred out in disgrace when many members of her unit are killed. She claims that RDX has been smuggled through the Bangladesh border, but no one pays heed to her.

Her spouse threatens divorce and demands custody of their son as she battles with professional challenges.

She is transferred to the National Investigation Agency, run by Mahira Rizvi (Mita Vashisht), when a different group of terrorists kill the chief minister of Assam in a drone attack, presumably using the smuggled explosives . Initially rude, her new boss eventually becomes friendly with Kavya after realising that she goes about things her own way and achieves results.

The terror attack leads them to Jaipur, where Kavya believes that there will be additional drone attacks on MLAs.

The group makes progress in identifying the terrorists who led them from Guwahati to Jaipur and then to Poovar in Kerala.

Two individuals – Tariq (Sumeet Vyas) and Thasleena (Gayathrie Shankar), who recruit radicalised Muslim teenagers to operate drone bombs and make sure they are killed afterward, are the real “masterminds” behind the terrorist operations.

The Good

The director Srijit Mukherji’s detailing is commendable. He has managed to show Policing in a proper way without making them look like a demi-God, which Bollywood is famously known for doing. The mystique landscape of North East and Back waters of Kerala were captured beautifully. The action scenes of Jaanbaaz Hindustan Ke are well choreographed. The Music and the background score by Arko and Roshin Balu respectively keep a solid hold on series. 

The Not so Good

The police chase should have been tense to the point of being nerve-wracking, but filmmaker Srijit Mukerji downplays the tension. The cops can come across as being unprepared sometimes.

Performances

Regina Cassandra has a wonderful screen presence, but her portrayal of Kavya is largely one-dimensional. Regina channels on Kavya’s indomitable spirit.

Mita Vasisth impresses with her no-nonsense NIA chief’s attitude.

Chandan Roy impresses us as, the serious, bespectacled, Tech guy who speaks chaste Hindi with a Bihari accent.

Sumeet and Gayathrie are convincing as the terrorist duo.

Deepika Deshpande and Jihan Hodar impresses in supporting role.

Final Verdict

Srijit Mukherji is known for his wonderful contributions to Indian cinema and webseries, and a more nuanced approach could have done wonders, but Jaanbaaz Hindustan Ke definitely makes the list.

Trailer Link – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqPincGob8Y