Swara Bhasker and Akshay Oberoi shine in this gripping revenge drama about human trafficking, applauds Namrata Thakker.
Just a few days ao, I watched the Vidyut Jammwal starrer Khuda Haafiz and was very disappointed.
The movie dealt with the subject of human trafficking but only at the surface level, without digging deep into the heinous crime.
Eros Now's new Web series, Flesh, which revolves around the same theme, will make you uncomfortable with its hard-hitting storyline and execution.
The eight-episode series is definitely not for the faint-hearted.
Flesh, directed by Danish Aslam, stars Swara Bhasker and Akshay Oberoi in the lead.
Bhasker plays a tough cop whereas Oberoi runs a systematic business of flesh trading.
When 17-year-old NRI Zoya Mehta (Mahima Makwana) goes missing from a wedding, her parents (Vidya Malvade and Yudhisthir Urs) go to the police station.
While they make a good-looking couple, their marriage has hit rock bottom, and the disappearance of their daughter makes things worse.
ACP Radha (Bhasker) heads the human trafficking department, but she is not in charge of Zoya's case initially. When she gets suspended, Radha decides to find Zoya with the help of her khabris (informers).
Taj (Oberoi) is behind Zoya's kidnapping and gets her to Kolkata.
From Mumbai to Kolkata in a truck, Zoya's journey is not only painful to watch, but gets you all riled up.
We witness another story unravel at the same time.
Two kids, Rajji and Raju, are sold to human traffickers by their uncle after their parents pass away.
The brother-sister duo, along with a dozen of other children, are kept in an abandoned hospital where they are starved, ill-treated, abused and also taught about sex through porn videos.
It is uncomfortable to watch these kids in such a gruesome situation.
As the show progresses, you realise the two stories are connected and the twists and turns keep you on the edge of your seat until you arrive at the climax.
The makers have a done a fine job by keeping the suspense intact throughout the series.
Swara and Akshay lend good support with their acting to make Flesh worth binge-watching. Over the few years, Oberoi has done some fine work and I do think he hasn't gotten his due yet.
The supporting cast does well too.
There are quite a few scenes which the makers could have done away with to keep the show a little less graphic. That way, the series would have catered to a larger audience that isn't used to watching too much of violence and brutal scenes.
The build-up to the climax is gripping, but the end is disappointing.
Also, the show becomes more of a revenge drama and less about human trafficking by the time you reach the last three episodes.
In fact, towards the end, the mystery element becomes quite apparent as well. At least for me, the story became predictable once I joined the dots.
