Critics Review:
There are stories that entertain, and then there are stories that unsettle. Daldal, directed by Amrit Raj Gupta, belongs firmly to the latter. It does not seek comfort. It does not offer escape. Instead, it pulls the viewer into a psychological swamp where trauma, power, guilt, and survival coexist in disturbing proximity. What begins as a crime investigation slowly reveals itself as an autopsy of the human mind and the society that shapes it.
Starring Bhumi Pednekar, Samaira Tijori, Aditya Rawal, Saurabh Goyal, Chinmay Mandlekar, and Geeta Aggarwal Sharma, the series positions its protagonist not as a heroic saviour but as a deeply fractured woman. A cop fighting criminals outside, and demons within.
A World Where Innocence is a Casualty
The universe of Daldal is not constructed for comfort. It is steeped in prostitution, child abuse, drug dependency, suppressed rage, and psychological instability. The series does not sensationalise these realities. It treats them as symptoms of a society that has quietly normalised violence and emotional neglect.
Every crime scene feels less like a puzzle and more like a filthy showcase. Not just of the killer, but of a system that failed long before the first blood was spilled. The show suggests that criminals are not born in isolation. They are cultivated through silence, neglect, and distorted power structures.
Rita Ferreira: Strength Wrapped in Fragility
At the centre of this chaos stands Rita Ferreira, portrayed with striking restraint by Bhumi Pednekar. A newly promoted Deputy Commissioner of Police, Rita is also the youngest woman to hold this position. On the surface, her life looks enviable. Authority. Respect. Recognition.
But Daldal is not interested in surfaces; in reality she fights a thousand battles within herself. Rita’s success is not a reward. It is a burden she never chose. Her profession is inherited expectation rather than personal desire. Beneath the uniform lies a woman still carrying the scars of childhood trauma, battling misogyny, self doubt, and an identity crisis she does not know how to name.
Her personality is described as “coconut-like” tough on the outside, fragile within. She is still a young girl who never made her mother proud, she carries the guilt of keeping her unhappy while she lived because all Rita wanted to do was to be like her father and not like her mother. This emotional duality makes it difficult for her to connect with others, both personally and professionally. She is admired, but not understood. Respected, but never truly seen.
Crime as a Mirror of the Self
What sets Daldal apart from conventional crime thrillers is its introspective lens. Rita does not simply chase criminals. She recognises herself in them. In the killer, she sees her suppressed anger. In her mother, she sees inherited pain. In society, she sees a machine that manufactures broken people.
Her investigation becomes a psychological dialogue rather than a procedural task. She is willing to step beyond traditional methods, trusting her instincts and emotional intelligence as much as evidence. Yet, even as she fights for justice, she grapples with her own coping mechanisms, including marijuana abuse, a silent response to internal chaos. This vulnerability does not weaken her character. It humanises her.
A Satire on Systems That Fail
Daldal operates as a quiet satire on upbringing, authority, and moral hypocrisy. It questions how a society obsessed with control continues to abandon its most vulnerable. It exposes how institutions ofien punish symptoms while protecting the disease.
The series suggests that when children grow up unseen, unheard, and unloved, they do not disappear. They return, shaped into something dangerous. Children who grow experiencing drug abuse, sexual abuse, power abuse, and feeling unloved ofien lose their moral compass. While some are able to recover through love and care, others shut their system down and unleash a beast within that doesn’t trust or listen to anyone. Such criminals are the toughest to correct.
An Ending That Offers Breath, Not Peace
The conclusion does not resolve every question. Instead, it offers Rita a partial closure. A moment where the noise in her head sofiens. Where she understands that healing is not erasure, but acceptance. Her victory is not over crime. It is over the illusion that she must remain invulnerable.
Final Word
Daldal is not an easy watch. It is layered, uncomfortable, and emotionally demanding. But it is also honest. It dares to explore the cost of silence, the weight of expectation, and the invisible wars women fight every day.
This is not just a story of crime. It is a reflection of how deeply society can scar those who try to protect it.
Overall Rating: 3 out of 5
By: Anushka Singhal
