Name: The Raikar Case
Cast: Atul Agnihotri, Parul Gulati, Kunal Karan Kapoor, Ashwini Bhave, Neil Bhoopalam, Neena Wadhwa
Direction: Aditya Sarpotdar
Whenever you hear the word ‘family’, the first set of things that hit your mind are words like dear ones, your own people, your comfort zone, love, and whatnot. To cut things short, you relate it with everything good and positive. But imagine the same family becoming a grey zone filled with negativity, trust issues, deceit and most importantly, greed. Readers, don’t fret, as we aren’t talking about your family but we are certainly talking about the Raikar family which is a part of Voot Select’s latest offering, The Raikar Case. So what exactly is the deceit about? Let’s find out.
The Raikar Case, in short, is a whodunnit murder mystery that primarily revolves around the Goa-based Raikar family. The show is based in Goa which is one of the most infamous places when it comes to tourist-related crimes in the country.
The story begins on a rather dark note when we see Tarun Zachary Naik Raikar, the youngest 16-year-old boy from the Raikar family falling down from a cliff. Now, given a normal situation, any sane mind would get an eerie feeling that it’s a tragic suicide. But is it really so? Well, Goa Police S.P John Pereira (Neil Bhoopalam) has a different take to this whole act as he is pretty much convinced that it is not a suicide but a very well-planned and staged murder.
Soon what follows from the investigation is the introduction of the prestigious, affluent and most importantly powerful Raikar clan of Goa. The family is spearheaded by Yeshvant Naik Raikar (Atul Kulkarni) who plays a pivotal role in shaping up the family cashew business. But that’s not all. He also happens to an aspirant politician who would love to see himself in the position of power. His wife, Sakshi Naik Raikar (Ashwini Bhave) is a rather contrasting character who is calm and composed and runs the home wholeheartedly. Their daughter Etasha Naik (Parul Gulati) is distraught because of Tarun’s death and is hell-bent in finding the real cause of the murder as well as the murderer. The family also comprises of Yeshvant’s son Mohit (Kunal Karan Kapoor) and Lily D’Silva Naik Raikar (Neena Wadhwa), who lost her husband and daughter in a car accident prior to Tarun’s death. Throughout the entire family, the narrative gives us a vibe that there’s an eerie silence compiled with guilt in each and everyone’s mind and adds a layer of intrigue to this complex murder mystery.
As the narrative progresses, the complexity only increases to make you believe that almost any of these members could be behind the death of the young Tarun. The complexity hits an all-time high when we also see a variety of skeletons in each of their closets. Not only does it leave you all confused, but it also makes you quench for more when it comes to solving the mystery. With each and every twist and turn that follows, it only makes you wonder what the real reason for the killing could be and who is the real killer? Though you are tempted to bring in your own thinking, when you are fed with information like Tarun being the possible sole inherent of all family wealth, then it isn’t as simple as it looks by the exterior of it.
A dead child, a deceitful family, a sharp and intelligent police officer trying to get to the roots of the case, what else can you ask for? Is it actually a death or a suicide gone wrong? Watch yourselves because no spoilers allowed here.
Director Aditya is pretty successful when it comes to exploring the fact that how easily family bond and love for one other can turn into deceit for the thirst of wealth and power. A lot of credit needs to go the writers Karmanya Ahuja, Bijesh Jayarajan, Chinmay Mandlekar, and Anita Nair. The writer and the director have truly blended well when it comes to understanding each other’s vision and the end product is a result of that. Although certain twists and turns make you feel a little prolonged and a bit of a forced attempt to create further confusion, overall it matches well with the subject as most importantly, it is able to captivate the audience’s mind and engagement throughout. Atul Kulkarni as Yeshvant Naik Raikar is simply magnificent and the layers that he brings into his character are laudable.
Parul Gulati and Kunal Karan Kapoor have always been fine actors and they have shown depth in their performances. Neil Bhoopalam deserves a special mention for playing a strong and level-headed cop character, which touches everyone’s hearts. The director makes a successful attempt in not letting the plot and the sub-plot slip amidst many twists and turns and that’s one of the winning factors for this show.
Overall, The Raikar Case is the perfect watch when it comes to understanding how cardinal sins of life can get the better of any bond and tear apart relationships into pieces. The cliffhanger ending at the end of each and every episode will make you swipe to the next. A good and intense watch for sure.
3.5/5 stars