Journey into the Dark Netherworld

Series: Paatal Lok

Cast: Jaideep Ahlawat, Neeraj Kabi, Ishwak Singh, Abhishek Banerjee, Gul Panag, Niharika Lyra Dutt, Mairembam Ronaldo Singh, Jagjeet Sandhu

Rating: 4/5

Hindu scriptures divide the universe into three worlds:  -
Swarg Lok where the Gods belong
Dharti Lok where humans belong
Paatal Lok where the insects belong
This show explores the Paatal Lok of India.

The series is like a jigsaw puzzle where in the beginning it suggests the viewers that there is a big picture and with every episode it provides you with different pieces of this puzzle. Slowly and steadily the series eases you into the climax to give the complete picture.

Paatal Lok introduces our protagonist (Hathiram Chaudhary) as a washed out cop stuck in a dead beat job. He is suddenly presented with an opportunity to redeem his career with a high profile case. On the other hand a successful journalist Sanjeev Mehara’s life is turned around after a failed assassination attempt on him.

Here is a deep dive into our episode wise take on the show (*Spoiler Alert*)-

Episode 1 : Bridges

This episode signifies the Bridge from where the whole saga unfolds. Here four culprits (Tope Singh, Kabir M, Cheeni and Tyagi) are arrested for a murder attempt on the famous journalist Saneev Mehara who is shown as ethical and brave and someone who has stood up against the system in the past.

We are introduced to our protagonist Inspector Hathiram Chaudhury whose career is deprived of any real police work and believes is stuck in Paatal Lok where insects belong. He then gets an opportunity to revive his career through the incident on the bridge. He is assisted by his bright officer in training Ansari who is shown to face various prejudices throughout the series because of his community.

Then we are taken into Hathiram’s personal life where he tries to bridge the gap between the English speaking high class society and the non-English speaking middle class society by sending his son to an elite school. But his son is unable to cope with this school and that reflects in his behavior and results.

The scene then shifts to the four culprits in the police station. Here while dealing with Kabir M the prejudices of the police against Muslims is seen. Also Hathiram and Ansari realize the severity of the case when they discover that Tyagi is a most wanted criminal for 45 murders. The sheer look from Abhishek Banerjee (Tyagi) in the closing scene sends chills down the spine and you are already hooked.

Episode 2 : Lost and Found

This episode begins with the police trying to find the lost phone that was thrown into the water from the bridge by Tope Singh to destroy evidence.

It then takes us to the interrogation of Kabir M where Hathiram playing the bad cop throws insults on him related to his community which shows how we unknowingly refer to the Muslim community as an insult. Then Ansari plays the good cop by connecting with him on the basis of the same community.

Sanjeev Mehra is then called for identifying the culprits and the shot between him and Tyagi sends goosebumps. It elevates the tension on the show to a new level.

Hathiram finds out that Sanjeev Mehra went to the same school as his son which makes him proud but his son feels lost in his school where he is a misfit among the high class society students. He finds himself being more comfortable among people in his society who are busy brandishing guns.

Sanjeev Mehra feels lost with his wife (Dolly) who is an anxiety patient and finds a connection with a colleague (Sara) in his office.

The Delhi Police under Hathiram find a few leads and decide to probe further into Tyagi by visiting Chitrakoot but the Police headquarters is shown disinterested in the case.

The episode ends with the lost phone being found and this keeps our momentum of the show going.

Episode 3 : History of violence

This episode signifies the violent history of the culprits that have shaped their personalities.

It starts with showing the violent beginning for Tyagi who in the course of time becomes a dreaded and dangerous criminal.

It moves on to the story of Tope Singh who is a victim of the rigid caste system in rural India. He is then pushed into violence when he tries to break himself free from this caste system.

This episode drives the point that violence is a vicious cycle from which it is very difficult for a person to come out.

There is also foreshadowing of the uprising of the lower caste individuals like the Dalit movement and how the political establishments are making use of this situation to come to power in various states.

We also meet Amitosh, a reporter in Chitrakoot who plays an important role to solve this case.

Finally we are introduced to the Gujjar gang which consists of Masterji and his brother Gwala. Their sheer power and influence over Chitrakoot is highlighted in various instances in the episode like -
The mention of GG restaurant by the police for a free breakfast and the GG restaurant calendar that can be seen behind the head inspector in the police station states the Gujjar influence on the city Police force. Hathiram then spots the name Gwala Gujjar as the founder of the Temple. These scenes state the influence of Gujjar Gang on every aspect of the city.

Sanjeev Mehra is then shown as an opportunist who takes the sensational journalism road sabotaging the investigation.

Episode 4 : Sleepless in Seelampur

This episode signifies the sleepless nights spent by Hathiram and Ansari to crack the case.

The story shows the dark past of one of the culprits (Cheeni) and it draws parallel to his current situation. In childhood Cheeni was used as a decoy to cheat people and in this current situation he is supposedly used as a decoy for the entire plan.

While Hathiram tries to find success by cracking the case, his wife at home tries to find success by investing in her brother’s business. In the process they end up ignoring their son who is moving to the dark world of violence and drugs as he attempts to connect with his fellow colony friends.

There are these two scenes – in one the policemen deliberately offer prayers very loudly in front of Ansari and then reluctantly give Prasad to him, this shows how the policemen alienate Ansari because of his community.

Hathiram faces a number of setbacks in the case like Cheeni who they believed to be a woman turns out to be a man, one of their leads is killed and another one flees the country and the case is handed over to CBI.
The frustration within Hathiram keeps on building up throughout the episode.

Meanwhile Sanjeev Mehra is spending sleepless nights to save his job and explore new opportunities to save his career.
A powerfulful dialogue in the episode states how media houses are bought by those in power nowadays instead of being feared
"Dont stay out of radar, buy the radar"

In a piece of brilliant acting by Jaideep Ahlawat (Hathiram) when he gets suspended even after spending so many sleepless night takes the series to another level.

Episode 5 : Of father and son

It signifies the relationship between father and son, and how actions of a father on his son has long term impact on multiple generations of the family.

The physical abuse faced by Hathiram from his father is passed on to his son.
But in this case Hathiram's wife plays a key role in making him realize that his violent anger towards his son is a manifestation of his own frustrations and shortcomings and that he needs to overcome it so that he doesn’t alienate his own son.

In this episode, crude comments by the top officials of CBI about the Muslim community further highlights how these sly remarks alienate the community on a whole.

The CBI cooks up a story and gives a terrorism narrative to the case. Hathiram, Sara and Ansari realize there is a bigger picture and the CBI is coming up with a story to protect some higher interests in the system.

Hathiram and his son's relationship further become restrained while his fatherly support to Ansari creates a supportive and emotional relationship.

Episode 6 : Past prologue

This episode begins by showing the impact of the Babri Masjid demolition on the Muslim community of the country through Kabir’s story and how they have to always live in fear and find ways to hide their identity.

It also focuses on the issue of rampant Child abuse of the street kids of our country through Cheeni’s story. The same abuse is reflected in Indian jail and shows that the vulnerable will always remain vulnerable.

In this episode, Hathiram leaves his abusive past behind and redeems himself in front of his son and gets his respect

Past opinions about Sanjeev Mehra are shattered and Sara loses respect for him and pursues her brand of ethical journalism.

Hathiram and Ansari get together to find evidence that the CBI is lying. After Kabir’s death in the jail, Sara gets together with Hathiram and Ansari to show them the political connection to the case between Gwala Gujjar and Vajpayee – a politician from Chitrakoot.
The murky investigation reveals the further dark belly of nexus between Politics, real estate and media.

Episode 7 name: Badlands

This episode tells us about the rural badlands from where the events happening in Delhi are orchestrated. 

The Theme of dogs in the entire episode is significant.
Dogs signifies loyalty which Masterji appreciates
Dogs can also calm a psychopath like Tyagi
Dogs are also great companions and Sanjeev's wife finds this companionship in a stray dog
Death of dogs is considered inauspicious and the death of a dog under the bus in which Hathiram was travelling foreshadows the events that takes place .

In this episode, Sanjeev loses Sara's loyalty while the story shows how Masterji obtains Tyagi's loyalty.

In the whole episode, Lord Hanuman (who served Lord Rama) is shown to signify how Hathiram is a loyal servant of the law enforcement and has come to make amends for the case that too off duty.

Episode 8: Black widow

This episode tells the story of the black widow spider in which the female has sex with a male spider and then kills it.

This episode tells the story of one such black widow (Chanda) who exploits vulnerable males with sexual advances and then leaves them as good as dead.

Sanjeev’s wife feels the attachment to her dog which is missing in her marriage with Sanjeev.

The feeling of minority keeps building up on Ansari’s mind with every passing day and adds to his frustration which he vents out on Hathiram.

Amitosh informs Hathiram how he reported that Vajpayee would meet the Dalits and then bathe in holy water to cleanse himself. This is how Vajpayee acts as a black widow where he exploits the innocent people from the lower caste in villages and feeds on them for power.

Again in this episode a red hanuman is foreshadowed over Hathiram which signifies that he is moving into dangerous territories while serving the law enforcement.

Episode 9 : Swarg ka dwar

It signifies the chance for all the main characters to get out of paatal lok and stand outside the gates of heaven. 

The episode begins with foreshadowing of Tyagi’s fate when a priest reads his horoscope as a child and informs that he is like Hiranyakshyap, the King of Paatal Lok who cannot be killed by anyone else other than Lord Vishnu. In the end we see how this comes true as the news of Masterji’s passing away destroys him and he takes his own life.

This episode gives the message that in the darkness there is still kindness present in the human heart. This can be seen from an act of kindness shown by Tyagi who is otherwise a complete evil.

Hathiram achieves redemption in form of respect at work and at home but at the cost of the four suspects who could not be saved from Paatal Lok.

Sanjeev realizes his wrong doing and keeps his act on to survive in this dark world. He find redemption by appreciating his wife for being the reason for his survival.

Sara gets redemption by taking her stand and this gives her satisfaction.

Only by following Dharma in work you can enter heaven but here the characters compromise on their dharma to remain just outside the door of heaven and part of the larger dark system.




This series is special because along with a robust story it also highlights various issues and conveys various messages.

The series highlights various issues currently faced by our country like the current state of media, the caste system atrocities, prejudices against Muslim community, child abuse and sexual harassment.

Also it carries a powerful message that every human has some level of kindness and empathy in him and their circumstances send them into the darkness or Paatal Lok.

The characters in the series are so real and thus we can completely relate to them and their stories.
Jaideep Ahlawat as Hathiram gives a performance of a lifetime. His performance makes you root for his journey to redemption. In one of the most powerful scenes, he is shown shaking with tiredness and anger at the same time. He also creates some beautiful warm moments with his colleague Ansari and his wife.

Neeraj Kabi gives a well measured performance but nothing to brag about. Abhishek Banerjee gives a very powerful performance through minimal dialogues and screen presence, Ishwak Singh brings warmth to his character and gives a wonderful balance to his character. In their limited scope, Swastika Mukherjee proves to be effective while Gul Panag gives an understated but powerful performance. Mairembam Ronaldo Singh as Cheeni is the surprise package who gives a top-notch performance where your heart goes out for him. Jagjeet Sandhu is explosive as Tope Singh. Niharika Lyra Dutt handles her character beautifully and really craves out a space for herself.

Cinematography by Avinash Arun & Saurabh Goswami is one of the true gems of the season. The close-up shots, the chase scenes, the use of natural lights and the introduction of Masterji in the season are some of the highlights of the cinematography work.

Screenplay by Sudip Sharma is tight and creates a build-up at the right pace. In today’s world of binge watching, writers tend to insert climax in every episode to keep the audience hooked, but Sudip gives due time to each character and their stories to grow and leaves a powerful impact on the audience. Interesting characters like Tope Singh, Dolly and Renu could have been explored more. Even the role of Chanda seemed rushed and her story fails to leave any impact. The dialogues of the season are very powerful and deep.

Directors Avinash Arun and Prosit Roy make the series work as a whole. Avinash Arun being the cinematographer too, shows complete command on the camera work and direction of the series. Both the directors capture some beautiful shots where characters’reflection are shown on mirrors and hoardings to reflect their current state of mind. In recent past many series have tend to overdo violence, but here the directors handle the subject of violence in a very subtle fashion. With so many characters and intricate storylines, the duo directors handle the pace of the series perfectly and keep you engaged till the climax.

This series is a must watch if you are looking for a meaningful show. Don’t miss this journey to the Netherworld.