A perfect package of entertainment

Summary

Cast: Shahid Kapoor, Vijay Sethupati, Rashi Khanna, Ragina Cassandra, Amol Palekar, Bhuvan Arora, and Zakir Hussain.
Director: Raj and DK
Producer: Raj and DK
Music: Sachin- Jigar, Tanishk Bagchi, and Ketan Sodha
Genre: Crime thriller
OTT platform: Amazon prime
Episodes: 8

The director duo of Raj and DK specialise in taking global issues and looking at them through a humanistic lens.

For example, in The Family Man Season 2, Through the character Raji — a hardened LTTE militant — played by Samantha they made a point that a freedom fighter for some could become a terrorist for others.

The crime — counterfeit currency

Most of the characters in The Family Man series had their share of moral ambiguities.

In Farzi, Raj and DK looked at the issue of counterfeit money.

Counterfeit currency — as everyone knows — is a currency that is not genuine but made to look exactly genuine to deceive people.

Farzi has similarities with both seasons of The Family Man, in the sense that here also a cat-and-mouse game along with a troubled personal life does exist.

Farzi is not as tight as the two seasons of The Family Man but there still is a lot to like here.

Farzi captures the journey of an antihero Sunny (Shahid Kapoor).

Sunny is a small-scale sketch artist with a lot of pent-up anger towards the system.

Sunny’s grandfather — played by veteran actor Amol Palekar — is an old-time journalist.

He runs a revolutionary magazine called Kranti, which does not sell much similar to most magazines of that genre.

As a result, a situation arises where the magazine has to be shut down following huge debts.

The tale around the crime

To revive the magazine, Sunny and his best friend Firoz (Bhuvan Arora) start designing counterfeit money.

Soon, Sunny and Firoz come to the notice of Mansoor (Kay Kay Menon), who is the biggest name in the world of counterfeiting, and become part of Mansoor’s business.

Initially, it is all about saving Nanu’s Kranti magazine but soon it becomes more of a self-destruction.

Parallel to this you have Michael (Vijay Sethupati) who is a fiery task force officer, hell-bent on eradicating fake currency in India.

He shares an interesting equation with the central minister played by Zakir Hussain. In this mix, there is also Megha (Rashi Khanna). Megha is an important cog in the team of Michael.

The rest of the story focuses on whether Michael will be successful in his mission or not and more importantly how Sunny’s life changes because of this illegal business.

The best of an anti-hero

The best part of Farzi is how the directors make you empathise with its anti-hero.

Audiences know that Sunny’s actions are not right but at the same time, they understand where Sunny is coming from.

There are many layers to Sunny, and through him, the director presents a psychological portrait of a man who is consumed by greed.

During the course, Sunny’s personality changes so much that even his loved ones fail to recognise him anymore.

Vijay Sethupati at his best

Farzi also dwells deeply into the topic of the production of fake notes and their infiltration into the economy. These details have a certain shock value and keep the audiences engrossed.

By its very nature, Farzi falls under gritty space but at the same time, there are also some highly entertaining moments.

The best of them involves Vijay Sethupati’s Michael and the central minister.

Their banter is filled with many entertaining lines that bring much-needed relief.

Raj and DK also deserve credit for the portrayal of Rashi Khanna’s Megha who can be seen in different spaces, not just her professional life.

Khanna plays Megha with the right amount of spunk even after standing opposite more experienced actors like Vijay Sethupati and Shahid Kapoor.

The rest of the cast’s performance

Sunny’s equation with grandpa has also got some tender moments.

There is a quiet dignity that Amol Palekar lends to his part as an idealistic journalist.

However, a little more info about the objectives of Kranti magazine would have made his character even more memorable.

The same applies to Michael’s troubled personal life. His moments with his wife (Ragina Cassandra) and the son are sweet but in the scheme of things they come across as more of an add-on.

There are a couple of scenes where Vijay Sethupati converses with Manoj Bajpai’s Srikant Tiwari from The Family Man series. This hints at a possible crossover between the two agents in season two of Farzi.

Shahid Kapoor’s knock-out performance

Shahid Kapoor as Sunny delivers a knockout performance. Shahid has always been good at playing conflicted heroes and in Farzi too he lives up to it. He captures the various shades of Sunny with the required finesse.

Vijay Sethupati is a treat to watch as the fiery task force officer.

It takes a little time to get used to hearing Vijay Sethupati speak Hindi but he grows on you as the series progresses.

He is at his best, particularly in the lighter moments. Kay Kay Menon is someone who doesn’t need a particular introduction and here too the veteran is in solid form.

Last but not least Bhuvan Arora gives solid support. He instantly makes you fall in love with Firoz.

The verdict

The technical departments led by cinematographer Pankaj Kumar are also in perfect sync with the gritty nature of the series.

In a nutshell, Raj and DK continue their streak of delivering solid content with a perfect package of important issues and entertainment.