Daldal Review
Director: Amrit Raj Gupta
Date Created: 2026-01-30 22:28
2.5
Daldal Review: Created by Suresh Triveni and directed by Amrit Raj Gupta, the Prime Video seven-episode crime thriller is adapted from Vish Dhamija’s novel Bhendi Bazaar. Each episode runs for roughly 40 minutes, making it a relatively compact binge. The series is led by Bhumi Satish Pednekkar as newly appointed Mumbai DCP Rita Ferreira, supported by actors including Geeta Agrawal Sharma, Aditya Rawal, Samara Tijori, Chinmay Mandlekar and others.
Daldal Review
Prime Video’s Daldal follows Rita as she starts a job that is really tough. She has to deal with some bad murders that feel very personal to her. The show takes us on a journey where Rita has to handle people at work who do not want to help her, and some murders that happen because people have been very hurt in their past. The city she is in is also not helping because people are staying quiet, and some people are using their power to be cruel. All of these factors, of course, are naturally conducive to tension and urgency.
The series also chooses early on to prioritise motive over mystery, meaning that it spends less time on the question of who is doing the murders and more on the question of why. Although the choice does not create issues for the story, it fundamentally transforms how viewers experience suspense throughout the show. The Daldal series often puts us one step ahead of the protagonist.
The setup creates a pattern where Rita’s progress determines tension because the audience must wait for her to reach new information rather than discovering it together with her. The situation develops into a major issue. The investigation flows through its events, which follow an unchanging rhythm, while the shocking moments and revealing facts lose their impact. The genre dedicated to escalating tension between rivals fails to deliver sufficient emotional and narrative peaks according to its requirements.
The series Daldal shows its ambitious nature when it combines personal trauma with systemic failure through its storytelling methods. Rita’s past trauma and the weight of expectations represent her independent demons, which she must fight against in order to solve the many crimes that are a result of her violent past. Various themes are explored throughout the series regarding cycles of abuse through illustrating how violence impacts individuals and the way in which society treats its most vulnerable members. Although the themes are meant to be genuine in purpose, their disturbing qualities produce feelings of discomfort due to the execution being somewhat heavy-handed.
Daldal has some wobbles in terms of acting. Bhumi Satish Pednekkar’s Rita Ferreira is well-contained and cautious, an officer who will not reveal more than she must. This is a good policy, but it tends to fall into a lack of depth too often. The conflict within is hammered home through dialogue and flashbacks, but Pednekkar’s face is too often a mask that makes it difficult to go along for the ride in terms of her character’s emotional arc. There are moments of vulnerability, but these are too infrequent to carry the weight of what the story requires. For a protagonist whose conflict is supposed to propel the series, a lack of expressive depth is noticeable over seven episodes.
However, the secondary cast tends to provide meaningful support to the narrative. Samara Tijori appears as a very private, deep and complicated person. Geeta Agrawal Sharma displays warmth and steadfastness when portraying Rita’s staff member. Aditya Rawal is a necessary addition of toughness, although his storyline leaves much to be desired. Many supporting characters portray family dysfunction and moral compromise, and they will remain with you after the central mystery has been solved, which could indicate that Daldal works better as individual components than as an entire piece.
The series establishes its visual elements through a persistent dark atmosphere. Mumbai is shown as a city that hides its true nature through its concealed faults and unfeeling attitude. The themes of decay and moral ambiguity receive proper treatment through this element. The execution of the show fails to reach any higher standard than basic proficiency in show execution. The story progresses according to an expected pattern, and the way it is presented fails to create any new suspense or significance which already exists.
The pacing problems of Daldal are the primary examples of its poor execution. Due to the length of its episodes, the series lacks a defined sense of time and develops into a long series of episodes with no sense of resolution. There are repeated emotional scenes and other subplots, but they fail to add to the experience of the series. The show is over-the-top in trying to explain the emotional and psychological issues behind the criminal acts depicted in the show. Instead of utilising more subtle methods of storytelling, it explains everything in detail to provide a complete understanding of the effects of a particular action on another action.
When Daldal ends, it does not provide the audience with an emotional release; rather, it provides closure. It answers the overall questions posed by the series and provides a resolution for every plot line while establishing a moral of the story. Consequently, the concluding episodes do not provide a powerful or memorable experience; therefore, they do not have the potential to provide the viewer with a lasting impact, although viewers will feel emotions and potentially think about them as a result of viewing the series.
Prime Video Daldal Review: Summing Up
Ultimately, Daldal is not a bad series; its themes are relevant, which connect to authentic human experience through its acting and genuine artistic goals. The show fails to create an intense viewing experience because it lacks essential elements which build suspense. The movie fails to make an impact because it depends too much on common plot devices, which make it similar to other series in the highly competitive crime-thriller market.
Also Read: A Letter To My Youth Review: Tender Coming-of-Age Drama That Leans on Familiar Emotions
