Eesha Rebba, J D Chakravarthy, Ramya Nambessan, Vishnupriya Bhimineni, Kamal Kamaraju and Josh Ravi in Disney+ Hotstar web series ‘Dayaa’ directed by Pavan Sadineni
Disney+ Hotstar’s Telugu web series Dayaa relies on the Bengali series Taqdeer. If you assume they’ve taken a neater route with a remake versus an authentic story, the multi-layered plot, because it unfolds, proves it’s ripe to be skilfully tailored to swimsuit a new area. Pavan Sadineni, who beforehand directed the movie Senapathi, ups the sport with Dayaa headlined by J D Chakravarthy.
It’s a coincidence that the sluggish burn series set within the coastal area within the neighborhood of Kakinada and Rajahmundry arrives on the heels of 25 years of Ram Gopal Varma’s Satya which starred JD within the titular function. In one of many later episodes of Dayaa, by means of a whistle-worthy second, Pavan Sadineni doffs his hats to that iconic movie and its titular character named Satya.
In the primary episode, Vivek Kalepu’s digital camera provides us loads of fowl’s eye views of a market in a port city the place almost each inch of area is taken over by quite a few distributors who promote their catch. Dayaa (J D Chakravarthy) drives a freezer van and goes about his mundane job matter-of-factly. We get the sense of an underlying pathos in his eyes and the narrative drops delicate cues to point that Dayaa is probably not what he appears. Anyone habituated to mainstream narratives can spot a turnaround from a mile away. Just a few episodes later, when the rug is pulled from beneath the viewers’ toes, there’s extra in retailer. Even Dayaa’s title, which stands for mercy, has extra to it than that meets the attention.
Dayaa (Telugu)
Cast: J D Chakravarthy, Eesha Rebba, Ramya Nambessan
Direction: Pavan Sadineni
Music: Shravan Bharadwaj
Storyline: A web of crime and politics unravels after an incident turns the lifetime of a freezer van driver the other way up.
Streaming on: Disney+ Hotstar
Pavan, who has written the dialogues with Rakendu Mouli, presents Dayaa’s story as that of an underdog. The freezer van driver has been at work for 2 days at a stretch, sans meals and sleep. His pregnant spouse, Alivelu (Eesha Rebba), awaits his return. Again, you get delicate cues to deduce that Alivelu is probably not the archetypal damsel in misery. Things flip topsy-turvy when Dayaa discovers one thing in his freezer van that pulls him into a maze of crime and politics.
Ramya Nambessan, Kamal Kamaraju, J D Chakravarthy, Eesha Rebba and Vishnupriya in director Pavan Sadineni’s web series ‘Dayaa’, streaming on Disney+ Hotstar
We get flashes of Dayaa’s story — of his adolescence interval when he weeps over his mom’s physique — and extra. The narrative holds again from revealing an excessive amount of within the first season, not just for Dayaa but in addition a number of different characters. Kavitha (Ramya Nambessan) as an unflinching tv reporter, Kaushik (Kamal Kamaraju) as her author husband, their daughter, the workplace politics with Kavitha’s TRP-minded bosses and colleagues, one other younger reporter Shabana (Vishnupriya Bhimineni), Dayaa’s trusted good friend Prabha (Ravi Josh), a no-nonsense cop (Mayank Parakh) and a number of others are a part of the ensemble solid. There are additionally the stereotypical unhealthy buys — a native politician (Babloo Prithveeraj) and one other venomous character who doesn’t converse however sends a shudder down the backbone.
The subplots that discover a multitude of points — a sexual assault sufferer’s identification being revealed by the media, an unethical pharmaceutical medical trial — additionally expose the fault strains within the media, politics and police equipment.
The director will get ample assist from editor Viplav Nyshadam in weaving collectively the totally different features, revealing segments of a number of backstories once in a while, so as to add to the intrigue. Shravan Bharadwaj’s background rating and Vivek Kalepu’s cinematography intensify the drama with out drawing consideration to themselves.
Dayaa is just not with out niggles. I haven’t watched the Bangladeshi authentic to know if the story and the characters have been replicated with out adjustments, however sure features may have been higher. For occasion, it’s foolish that an investigative journalist who is claimed to be among the many greatest within the nation is proven to prematurely reveal her findings to a highly effective suspect. Why, for heaven’s sake, would she additionally foolishly show a pen drive when there may be an imminent menace?
Despite such missteps, Dayaa makes for an attractive watch. Season one is probably designed as a prelude to a bigger drama in season two. Alivelu’s character, for instance, looks as if the trailer to a greater risk.
Dayaa’s energy additionally stems from the performances. J D Chakravarthy is superb because the understated and brooding Dayaa, shifting from being a hapless sufferer to a man who can name the photographs. Ramya Nambessan befits her half as a stoic crime journalist who can also be weak. Vishnupriya as Shabana conveys the keenness and naivete required on her half. We don’t see sufficient of Eesha Rebba however she is effortlessly convincing as Alivelu. One hopes Alimelu gives extra within the subsequent season. Convincing performances additionally come from Kamal Kamaraju, Ravi Josh and Prithveeraj.
The reliable ensemble solid and the multi-layered, intriguing narrative make Dayaa an absorbing series with potential for a smarter follow-up.
