Twitter
Advertisement

'Bard of Blood' Review: Emraan 'underplays emotions' unconditionally in this slightly predictable, binge-worthy series

'Bard of Blood' Shah Rukh Khan's Red Chillies Entertainment and directed by Ribhu Dasgupta stars Emraan Hashmi, Viineet Kumar, Sobhita Dhulipala, Jaideep Ahlawat, Kirti Kulhari, Sohum Shah, Rajit Kapur, Danish Hussain.

Latest News
article-main
FacebookTwitterWhatsappLinkedin

Show: Bard of Blood
Cast: Emraan Hashmi, Viineet Kumar, Sobhita Dhulipala, Jaideep Ahlawat, Kirti Kulhari, Sohum Shah, Rajit Kapur, Danish Hussain
Director: Ribhu Dasgupta 
Genre: Thriller
Duration: 7 episodes
Critic's rating: 3.5/5

"Why dig up old graves, Kabir?" and bang comes the reply, "To bury my past once and for all". This one dialogue from the trailer of Bard of Blood stuck with me and I knew that this is what the premise of the story. But it wasn't just that! I heard a lot about the book Bard of Blood, a fictional espionage thriller novel written by a 20-year-old Bilaal Siddiqi. Although I haven't read the book yet, I had a basic idea of the storyline back then and when I read about it, it intrigued me a lot and was taken aback by the fact that a 20-year-old guy wrote something so edgy and gritty. 

Cut to the show! I think adapting this book to a Netflix original was the perfect launchpad for Shah Rukh Khan's production Red Chillies Entertainment in the digital space. The cherry on top is Emraan Hashmi playing the lead character as Kabir Anand, an Indian spy who also goes by the name Adonis. The first episode is titled 'What's past is prologue' and it even gives a glimpse of that in the very first scene. Kabir's past hasn't stopped giving him sleepless nights and nightmares cause he hasn't been able to bury it yet. 

Kabir and his colleague Vikramjeet were set up (as told by him) which lead to the death of the latter in Balochistan. This makes the official discharged Kabir dishonourably from all his duties as the Indian spy. Kabir stays away from the chaos from thereon living with his dark past which continues to haunt him. But he takes up his job as a Shakespeare professor in a college. Interestingly if you see titles of a couple of episodes, it's taken from the dialogues of Shakesperean play Hamlet - 'When sorrows come, they come not in single spies, but in battalions' and My stronger guilt defeats my strong intent'

But things take an ugly turn once again forcing Kabir to come back as an Indian spy. He is told by his mentor Sadiq Sheikh (Rajit Kapur) that four of Indian agents are captured by Talibani in Balochistan and he has to go on a secret mission to rescue them. Initially, Kabir refuses but he is left with no option as another personal tragedy takes place in his life. Thereon he is joined on the mission from Delhi to Kandahar to the ultimate destination by Isha Khanna (Sobhita Dhulipala). 

Isha has always been waiting for an opportunity to do fieldwork but the male-dominated agency never allowed her. Sadiq who trusted her blindly help her fulfil her ambition but the constant question of 'What's a woman doing in a mission?' constantly comes up. When she is about to leave her house, Isha tells her mom that she is going on a holiday in Goa but she knows anything can happen to her. Thus she hugs her mom and tells her that she loves her which she doesn't say often.

Kabir and Isha are then joined by Veer (Viineet Kumar), who is already stationed in Balochistan as a secret agent. After doing his duty for a very long time, he is waiting to go home but Isha promises him he can go only after this mission is completed. Though his initial motive was to just get them a gateway pass to Balochistan and head home, he finally learns that it's not a cakewalk as he thinks. 

The no protocol mission shows no unity between Kabir, Isha and Veer but eventually, they learn that to be home safely they have to fight together. It's learnt that Kabir knows Balochistan well and also a woman Jannat, who lends a helping hand. Jannat's character played by Kirti Kulhari was not a part of the book but she fits as a perfect piece in the puzzle on the show. A Balochistan woman, who is well-educated and an artiste are something rare to hear but it has been shown that woman are making their mark every nook and corner of the world despite being dominated by males all over. 

The main antagonist, very important! It's played by Jaideep Ahlawat, who plays a notorious guy on his way to marking his territory all over Balochistan. With his every performance, the actor packs a punch and how!

Bard of Blood is binge-worthy and that's what I did, sacrificed my sleep to watch the show, though last 15-20 mins were kind of predictable for me. Emraan as he earlier said that is comfortable in 'underplaying emotions and being less dramatic' as done that with his heart and soul. As a team leader who wants to bury his past once for all will make you hook on to the show no matter what. For Sobhita this is her second outing in the digital space and she knows what she has signed up for. From her unsteady hand, while shooting a gun, being called a weakling to become the bravest, she has done it convincingly. Viineet is also shown as an agent who is emotional but also fearless at the same time. We all know he is such an incredible actor! Kirti's character had no reference in the book but seems like Jannat was tailor-made for her, indeed! 

Verdict: Don't forget to binge-watch it!

Find your daily dose of news & explainers in your WhatsApp. Stay updated, Stay informed-  Follow DNA on WhatsApp.
Advertisement

Live tv

Advertisement
Advertisement