Kankhajura Series Review: Roshan Mathew gives it all in a show that fails to keep up

The title of Roshan Mathew’s Kankhajura sets the tone for what is to follow. Kankhajura is the dramatic Hindi word for centipede, a predator prowling on insects and has the ability to pierce through human ears. It is used to describe the manipulative tendencies of the protagonist Ashu (Roshan), a feeble looking, stuttering man whose innocent face hides a sinister side. There is a certain visceral quality embedded in the Hindi title—just like how the thought of a centipede brings chills to your skin. The show, however, doesn’t know how to build on to that feeling. It believes in plainly narrating the story without evoking the necessary mood.

Adapted from the Israeli series Magpie (2019), Kankhajura opens in the jail, where Ashu is seen helping the cops bring out a confession from a murderer by ‘going into his head’. “Ashu is a dangerous man,” remarks a cop. Back into the world after being in jail for 14 years, all he wants is the love and attention of his muscular, builder brother, Max (Mohit Raina), who doesn’t consider him an equal. Max is in the process of building a township in an old locality in Goa but faces opposition from a local crime family. Ashu vows to help him and takes matters in his own hands, using his persuasive skills — sometimes to deadly consequences. At the same time, he continues his side-gig of helping the cops.

At its center, Kankhajura is the story of two brothers who are polar opposites yet a similar vein of manipulation runs through them. Max has built an empire with lies, deception and corruption. His wife, Nisha (Sarah Jane Dias) is not too pleased when some of these lies come to the forefront. It is also a story of bullying and abuse. Max, along with his childhood friends, Pedro (Ninad Kamat) and Shardul (Mahesh Shetty), have only taken advantage of Ashu’s innocence and tenderness. But years in jail have hardened him; his mind has learned to fight in ways his fists never could.

Director: Chandan Arora

Starring: Roshan Mathew, Mohit Raina, Sarah Jane Dias, Mahesh Shetty, Ninad Kamat, Trinetra Haldar, Heeba Shah, and Usha Nadkarni

Streamer: Sony LIV

Ashu is filled with complexities. His multiple facets required a nuanced telling. Instead, what writers Chandan Arora (also director), Sandeep Jain and Upendra Sidhaye build is a simplistic story out of a dense material. There is little flavor to the other characters who are merely reacting to what is happening to the story. The cops are just doing their duty; at times, their portions seem to have cut out of a middling TV serial. The storytelling is too direct, leaving no room for interpretations. What began with a promise of dark and twisted ends up becoming too straightforward for its own good.

Even the visuals by Rajeev Ravi and the editing by Parikshhit Jha lack a sense of invention. There is a singular ordinariness spread over, with the sole aim of just wanting to paint the bigger picture but forgetting to add any lasting finishing touches. It is ultimately Roshan’s stellar act which adds a sense of flair to the show. He practically lifts up every scene with his astutely picked up Goa lingo, frail body language and controlled expressions that hold more than they reveal. His performance is like a puzzle that keeps unraveling in newer ways each time. Mohit is fairly convincing too as the tough elder brother and so are others in their respective parts. They appear only to be serving the plot while Roshan leaps out and speaks to you on a deeper level, seldom getting repetitive.

Kankhajura often feels like a show cobbled together from scraps of the original. It has an inventive, emotionally resonant story with the possibility to venture into a territory usually not explored by Hindi shows. Yet, much of it is urgently lost in adaptation. It plays like an international tale whose depth is never fully grasped by its local storyteller. There are no rusty details, clever references or thoughtful world-building. It is just a regular recollection—much like the hapless centipede, which had the potential to crawl under your skin, but never quite knew how to bite.