‘Qubool Hai’ web series review: The Telugu-Dakhani series scores on some fronts and engages partially

Just a few years in the past, when the digital area was starting to open up, filmmakers noticed it as a chance to inform tales with out being tied down by field workplace constraints. Qubool Hai?, the six-episode Telugu-Dakhani sequence streaming on Aha, is one such instance. Sans starry names, Qubool Hai? narrates a dramatised fictional story (by Pranav Pingle Reddy, Sanjiv Chakravarthy and Kevin Ronith Kumar) impressed by actual incidents of kid marriages and trafficking in Hyderabad’s Outdated Metropolis. Such a premise can lend itself to a compelling narrative. Directed by the trio Pranav, Umair Hasan and Faiz Rai, the sequence lives as much as its potential in some parts however doesn’t come collectively as a cohesive complete. 

There’s an genuine, lived-in milieu as Karthik Parmar’s digital camera leads us right into a decrease middle-class dwelling that’s decked up for a marriage. Past the gaiety is the sordid actuality of a younger woman, in her early teenagers, being married off to a a lot older Arab man. Over time, there have been a number of information experiences of ladies being married to aged males and later trafficked. The sequence turns its gaze on such cases that proceed to occur and appreciably, with out voyeurism.

The story is about within the Talabkatta space the place circle inspector Faizal Khan (AJ Karrthik) is courting the media highlight for cracking different, comparatively smaller crimes. A newcomer to this police station is Bhanu Prakash (Manoj Muthyam), who finally wakes as much as the wedding dealer and trafficking nexus. 

At an NGO that counsels women who’ve been rescued, two academics need to get to the foundation of the problem, although their paths are completely different. The bodily training trainer Shahnaz (Abhilasha Poul) who teaches women self-defence strategies desires to deal with the problem head-on whereas Khatija (Vaishali Bisht) believes within the long-term strategy of counselling households towards freely giving their daughters in such marriages. 

Issues take a flip when 13-year-old Ameena goes lacking. Life goes on in Talabkatta. The one one who has the sense of urgency to trace the woman earlier than it’s too late is Shahnaz.

The story tries to search out solutions to urgent questions: what makes households gullible sufficient to purchase into the lofty guarantees of marriage brokers? How does this community function? All this unfolds at a somewhat unhurried tempo, which seems to be a dampener for the story. Maybe it was supposed to mirror the unhurried life-style of Hyderabad and the ‘chalta hai’ perspective, nevertheless it doesn’t augur properly.

On the brighter aspect, there are some good performances, particularly by Abilasha and Feroze. The latter performs Asif, a personality from the streets of the Outdated Metropolis, with the genuine Dakhani lingo and diction. Asif has a expertise for predicting the end result of cricket matches and makes tidy sums in betting; he additionally has a means of talking and a straightforward manner. When issues come to hurry, it appears shocking that Asif is certainly naive to not know what he’s moving into.

The narrative takes a darker flip when a wedding dealer Jawed (Suresh Gehra) and a kingpin, Rafeeq (Vinay Varma), are introduced into focus. As standard, Varma stays on beat with what’s required for his character and places up a menacing efficiency that will get additional accentuated by the area he inhabits, just like the akhada.

It’s simple to guess from a distance the risk to Asif and his household however when the occasions unfold, it’s chilling. There’s additionally an attention-grabbing character known as Burqewali, who turns into a logo of retaliation and liberation. This facet may have been explored higher. We get fleeting traces and pictorial symbols of how the Burqewali is starting to be revered by women within the locality, however it’s not sufficient. In the direction of the tip, there’s a terrific episode the place the Burqewali takes on a mighty pressure, however then, the digital camera retains slicing away to point out us what is occurring in one other area, which isn’t half as attention-grabbing. Jerry Silvester Vincent’s music rating heightens the tempo within the ultimate episodes. If solely these episodes had additionally been edited higher to construct the strain.

The manufacturing design by Rohan Singh deserves a point out and the group, as an entire, must be appreciated for exploring the nooks and crannies of the Outdated Metropolis properly sufficient.

The sequence ends on a cliffhanger, leaving a number of questions unanswered. Had the sequence been extra tightly edited with higher pacing, it may have made for a gripping drama somewhat than one thing that engages in components.

(Qubool Hai? is streaming on Aha)