Poacher Series Review: Relevant and thought-provoking show on nature conservation

It was in 2015 when news broke about a series of elephant poaching incidents in the forests of Kerala. Around 20 elephants were brutally killed for ivory and yet, unlike a political scam or a celebrity wedding, it wasn't a nationwide trending news. The fact that it happened in a country where elephants are considered a symbol of God, and in a state which proudly calls itself 'God's Own Country', was even more alarming. As per records, it was the first such incident reported in the country after over two decades. Post the Veerappan era, to be precise. The forest officials along with a few other law enforcement departments worked together for months to expose criminal networks, which they suspected to have international reach and terrorist links. Inspired by these true incidents, Richie Mehta, the Emmy winner for Delhi Crime, has made a wonderfully detailed series that brings to light the intricacies of such an investigation and the efforts of a few sincere humans, who stood by nature.

Creator: Richie Mehta
Cast: Nimisha Sajayan, Roshan Mathew, Dibyendu Bhattacharya

Richie's Delhi Crime was a thought-provoking police procedural based on the Nirbhaya case, a crime that shocked the collective conscience of a nation. The show exposed a broken system while also featuring the efficiency of a bunch of law enforcement officers, who normally remain in the shadows. Poacher also follows a similar treatment, but with a more expansive narrative that spans over a period of several months. The protagonist is once again a determined and relentless female officer battling personal demons.

Mala Jogi (Nimisha Sajayan) is a local forest range officer, who is extremely protective of nature and wildlife. It is her way of atoning for her father's sins, who was a hunter. Though Mala despises her father and his deeds, she still has his hunting instincts in her. Despite several adversities, she is undeterred in her hunt for the criminals who preyed on innocent animals. Aiding her in the trail is Alan Joseph (Roshan Mathew), a techie working for Wildlife Trust of India. His technical expertise and understanding of wildlife crime lands him in the investigation, which is headed by Neel Banerjee (Dibyendu Bhattacharya). He is the field director of Kerala Forest Department, but with a spy background and top brass connections.

Richie Mehta has been researching the subject for a very long time and it reflects on the show's authenticity. It paints an honest picture of Kerala, its culture and the locals. Except for a few occasional blips, the dialogues are mostly organic with excellent backing by actors like Kani Kusruti and Sooraj Pops of Kumbalangi Nights fame. Poacher is a multilingual show in the truest sense of the word as it has characters from various regions of the country. Dibyendu's Neel speaks in Bengali while at home and effortlessly switches to Hindi and English at work. Similarly, Mala and Alan speak only in Malayalam when they both are together. There is no forced effort to make the dialogues understandable for the general audience.

A beautiful aspect of long-format storytelling is the space it offers for character development. We get to learn about the characters and their traits only gradually, which keeps us invested in them throughout. Nimisha's Mala initially comes across as the typical hotheaded, resolute officer. But slowly, we learn the reason for her brashness and why she doesn't let Vijay Babu, her colleague-turned-ex boyfriend, get close. For those who are familiar with Nimisha's body of work, Mala might look familiar, but it is still a demanding role. Her body language always carries a sense of urgency and purpose. The actor is at her best while conveying two extreme emotions -- seething rage and a moving breakdown. Roshan and Neel are also effective in their portrayals, especially the veteran, whose presence is a reassuring sight whenever these officers embark on a risky journey.

With these three characters anchoring the show, a lot has gone into sketching their parts in depth. It's a clever choice to link their characteristics with their spirit animals. While Mala's home is populated by her rescued dogs, Alan has a special love for snakes. Neel is more into turtles, a species known for living upto nearly a hundred years. Ironically, Neel is a dying cancer patient with a desire to live long like the turtles. Beyond duty, all three are united by their common love for nature and the need to conserve it.

One of the paramount objectives of Poacher is to raise awareness about preserving the natural world and its wild habitats.

"Elephants are the engineers of the forest", says an official while explaining how they are crucial for our ecosystem. The writing ensures that such vital information doesn't come across as just mere lectures. The concern for nature reflects throughout the show. It is a common sight in such investigation stories to see officials, who are mostly tired and frustrated, resorting to smoking. But throughout the eight episodes, there isn't even a single scene where these nature lovers are seen taking a puff. There's even a blink-a-miss scene where Mala orders vegetarian food in a restaurant. Maybe because she is still traumatised by all her father's killings. Now, these are not details that don't contribute much to taking the narrative forward, but they add a lot of depth to the characters and storytelling, in general.

Poacher runs for eight episodes and each one begins with a murdered elephant and its various stages of decomposition. It's an uncomfortable sight, which the makers seem to thrust on us to remind us of the cost of human greed. In one of the episode openings, we see scavengers feasting on the dead elephant and a few minutes later, they are seen feeding on a hunter's hanging corpse. These birds and animals are there throughout the show suggesting that they are always watching us, even if we don't notice them. It's also a reminder that the world is theirs as much as it's ours.

In Poacher, there is also an attempt to dig into the psyche of a hunter. Before the amendment of Indian Wildlife Act in 1991, hunting was widely practiced in forests across the country. While mostly the tribals hunted to meet their daily needs, many considered it a display of masculinity. In an early scene in the show, a married woman, who is in an extramarital affair with a poacher, explains how she fell in love seeing his courage in hunting down wild beasts. "Hunting is like a chauvinist desire to rule the world," goes one of the lines in the show.

Poacher's release and the themes it discusses assume significance as it comes at a time when man-animal conflict is a raging topic in Kerala. While there are calls from several sections to kill and cull wild animals trespassing into human habitats, not many are willing to admit that it is us who have invaded their space and not the other way around. Like Alan Joseph advises his young son (the next generation), "Animals are not like humans. They attack only if you attack them first. To conserve nature, all we need to do is not disturb it. It'll take care of itself, and us too."