Project 9191 Is A Racy Thriller
Yogendra is freelance writer
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By Yogendra
First publised on 2021-04-02 08:12:12
About the Author
Yogendra is freelance writer
View all posts by this Author
Taking two contemporary subjects as threads Project 9191, the new show on Sony LIV, weaves several stories in seven episodes and tries to prove that a special department of the police force can stop crimes from happening by intercepting random messages and snooping on social media, a thing which is actually illegal in India as of now.
Some time back, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) had drawn up a programme to have citizen volunteers who would scan the internet and report suspicious activity to the police or any special department set up for this purpose in a bid to stop crimes. Project 9191 draws on this theme and the special department of Mumbai Police plasters the city with 9191 boards for citizens to report crimes. After a few false alarms, and a dressing down from the minister, JCP Avinash Verma (Satyajit Sharma) gets things rolling.
There is a hacker in the team who was a 'criminal' in the past and aspires to be a policeman. One of the officers is facing an inquiry for a fake encounter and considers all reported information as fake. There is another officer who only thinks of making money out of any given situation. There is a lady officer whose husband was killed in a trap and she is dedicated in tackling crime. So is another officer whose daughter is an oil-attack survivor with a scarred face. This rag-tag team picks up on information supplied by citizens to track down people who might commit crime.
Across the seven episodes, while crimes get solved, a running thread is about 'love jihad' and a couple trying to avoid arrest. But when the same couple surrenders, it is found that they are victims. The girl's father, a bahubali from the mainland, wants them dead and is willing to pay any amount to get it done. Several issues then come up and everyone's morality is put to test. The series also shows how politics in the police force makes officers blackmail each other with even the smallest piece of incriminating information. But when the couple is actually killed in a police operation, JCP Verma is left wondering who leaked the information about their whereabouts and who sold his soul for a few pieces of gold.
The breakneck speed at which the series moves keeps the viewer engaged despite some of the stories not seeming plausible. The acting is good across the board and all actors play their part well. Satyajit Sharma has a towering personality and is blessed with a good voice which he uses to excellent effect. Trishna Mukherejee is excellent as upright officer Deepa while Vaibhav Tatwawaadi as Pankaj, the corrupt officer who pursues her, is suitably impressive in his bindaas role.
