Guns, roses and a mix of doses

Nonika Singh

Don’t judge a book by its cover. But can a web series be judged by the big names associated with it? As ‘Guns & Gulaabs’ boasts of a stellar cast and master storytellers Raj and DK, the buzz around it was bound to be high. Even its trailer had a record-high viewership.

On the face of it, with the quirky title inspired by the American rock band’s song, ‘Guns N Roses’, the crime thriller has all that it takes. Actors are top notch — from Rajkummar Rao to Dulquer Salmaan to Gulshan Devaiah to Adarsh Gourav. A throwback to the Nineties, it is set in a fictional place called Gulabganj (shot in Uttarakhand) and takes us into the world of opium cartels and a retro period of Campa Colas, Ayn Rand and landlines.

In the very first scene, the makers rather cleverly interweave school students professing their love with engravings on their arms and gangsters running for a kill. The murdered man is no saint but another gangster. The twist lies in the fact that he was Tipu’s (Rajkummar Rao) father, who is a regular mechanic with no intention of walking in his father’s footsteps. Only, he is inexorably drawn into the clutches of crime. The plot unfolds bit by bit and we meet its four central characters. All drawn with acuity and portrayed with finesse and acting chops that their characters demand. Atmaram (Gulshan Devaiah) who kills without mercy by imposing four cuts on his victims, narcotics officer Arjun Verma (Dulquer Salmaan) who appears dutiful and honest, Chotta Ganchi (Adarsh Gourav) who is heir apparent to the empire of Gulabganj’s ganglord Ganchi (Satish Kaushik), and of course Tipu.

A big opium deal is at stake and the lives of all four get intertwined. None of them is what they appear to be. Is Tipu truly a maniac killer who can murder with a spanner and hence live up to the sobriquet Panna Tipu? Trust the talented Rao to portray the many inflections of his part as well as retain the innocence of a lovelorn aashiq, despite the occasional brutal turn. Each character is layered.

And just before their real persona is revealed, Raj and DK lay down the clue for us. In case of Chotta Ganchi, it is the impassioned dialogue he utters about women power. Arjun’s designs are evident in his refusal to sign an official document. Atmaram, who, like a cat, is blessed with many lives, of course remains consistent in his impenetrable ruthlessness. But with many common foibles like the way he keeps an eye on the ticking meter at the STD booth, reminiscent of the days many of us did the same.

Each episode has a surprise in store and a twist in the tale. Yes, women are very much around. There is TJ Bhanu as Tipu’s love interest and more, and Pooja Gor playing Arjun’s wife. We all know how Raj and DK love to explore the children’s world. If adult characters are full-bodied personas, children’s universe is well etched too.

Indeed, the real acumen of celebrated directors lies in how they build their unconventional narratives with attention to detail and characters who are rather piquant. The series has this quaint charm about it, though the characters are far wackier than the sum of its individual parts. Crime, love and innocence are different threads and at the centre of this seven-episode series.

Written by ‘The Family Man’ creators along with Suman Kumar, the period look reflects as much in the atmospherics and cinematography by Pankaj Kumar as in the writing. Songs, movies, cricket trivia like reference to Sachin Tendulkar, all are markers of the 1990s. One episode is even named after the famous Bryan Adams’ 1991 song, ‘Everything I do, I do it for you.’

Though ‘Guns & Gulaabs’ is being touted as a black comedy thriller and humour does lace its proceedings, it’s not a laugh-out-loud comic entertainer. Sure, the spoof-like drama is chuckle-some and despite lags takes you through to the final episode that is over one-hour long. The finale has many a moment that will keep you on tenterhooks. However, the way they tie up the loose threads around Arjun’s story is a bit too simplistic in this otherwise over-the-top drama. Overall, the series is watchable as long as you don’t expect an encore of ‘The Family Man’. Gulabganj is a world of its own. Only, the metal and mettle of ‘Guns & Gulaabs’ is far less exciting than you anticipate.