Rudra - The Edge of Darkness review: Narrative crimes

I hugely enjoyed Ajay Devgn’s brief appearance in Gangubai Kathiawadi. It was special because the actor wasn’t grandstanding or striving for effect. Instead, like in Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam many years ago, director Sanjay Leela Bhansali simply let him be. As Mumbai gangster Rahim Lala, Ajay exuded a measured intensity. Also, it was a cameo, not the lead role. The resulting freedom seemed to ease him up.

Cast: Ajay Devgn, Raashi Khanna, Esha Deol, Ashwini Kalsekar, Atul Kulkarni, K.C. Shankar, Ashish Vidyarthi
Director: Rajesh Mapuskar
Streaming on: Disney+ Hotstar

Ajay is hardly at ease in his debut web series, Rudra - The Edge of Darkness. A deep tiredness weighs on him, as though knackered by the journey from the big screen to small. The show—directed by Rajesh Mapuskar and streaming on Disney+ Hotstar—is an adaptation of the hit British series Luther. Ajay is DCP Rudraveer Singh, a man who’s a walking advertisement for sleeping aid. “When last did you sleep?” asks his friend—and gets no answer.

In the original series, leading man Idris Elba’s performance was the equivalent of a caffeine rush, snappy, volatile, and fringed with guilt. But while Ajay sips several cups of coffee in this show, he’s barely stirred. The actor, commendably, does not try to ape Elba. But any sort of investigator needs to be excitable—which Rudra isn’t. His genius remains unruffled by the challenges on hand. He hops from case to case with the same smug, set expression. The variety in assignments doesn’t matter—double murders, kidnappings, serial killings. They’re all the same.

Take the first episode. After he’s reinstated to the Special Crimes Unit following a suspension, Rudra heads out for his first real case in a while. He solves it in a jiffy, outing Aliyah (Raashi Khanna), an apparent survivor, as the killer. Mystery solved (at least in his head), he lets Aliyah walk, allowing her smirking interest in him to fester into something more sinister. She goes from nemesis to stalker to confidante, bird-dogging his estranged wife (Esha Deol) and her lover. Rudra ignores it because he’s found someone to swap notes with.

Rudra’s methods, too, are equally suspect. He has a reply for everything, which gets annoying (the bland dialogue writing doesn’t help). He is a master analyst, making sweeping deductions with a mere glance at a photograph or CCTV footage. A man with a purposeful walk is “from the armed forces”; a passport is fake because “every forger has a signature style”. Twice, he threatens to plant evidence and actually does. He’s being watched by the department, though his colleagues grant him legendary status. The only sensible figure is Ashwini Kalsekar’s senior cop, who bothers with trivialities like evidence and backup. (As a side note, they should air-drop her into Rohit Shetty’s cop universe. Imagine her flinging the rulebook at almost every scene). 

The show is frequently rescued by its gallery of villains; watch out for K C Shankar, last seen in Rocket Boys and Looop Lapeta. They come from different hells—chawls, art galleries—and cinematographer Sanjay K. Memane tails them across the length of Mumbai. Yet the wide canvas also leads to continuity errors. Aliyah’s apartment overlooks the sea link, but when she emerges downstairs in a scene, we’re at Fort. Other locations feel similarly muddled. I couldn’t make out where the SCU headquarter is, or where Rudra lives. As he concedes, he lives in ‘andhera’ (darkness), not Andheri.

What makes a detective? Can method explain madness? Mapuskar’s series brims with questions, but not many answers. Its warped view of Rudra’s questionable heroics is made apparent at a coffee shop. A senior official, played by a pitch-perfect Ashish Vidyarthi, reproaches him for indiscipline. “You follow your orders,” Rudra responds. “I’ll follow my duty.” We’re backing vigilantes again.