Rating:
/5
Star Cast: Bhumi Pednekar, Aditya Rawal, Chinmay Mandlekar, Sandeep Kulkarni, Samara Tijori
Director: Amrit Raj Gupta
Daldal lands on Prime Video as a crime thriller that aims for social depth and emotional heft. The series follows DCP Rita Ferreira, a troubled Mumbai cop, but its heavy use of flashbacks, familiar tropes and uneven pacing stops the show from becoming the consistently tense drama it first appears. The series tackles gender violence, child abuse and human trafficking with stark detail, while also exploring workplace bias and media pressure. Strong performances, especially from Bhumi Pednekar, anchor this grim world. Yet the investigation sometimes feels buried under repeated trauma scenes and subplots that stretch the story longer than necessary.
Daldal crime thriller plot balances investigation and personal guilt
Director Amrit Raj Gupta places Rita Ferreira, newly appointed as DCP in Mumbai, at the centre. Rita investigates a cold-blooded serial killer while managing an intense media trial and unresolved guilt from earlier cases. The show tracks how police officials juggle dangerous field work with family issues, emotional baggage and fragile public trust.
Daldal crime thriller explores harsh social realities and oppression
Created and written by Suresh Triveni, Daldal focuses on crimes against people with least protection. The seven-episode Prime Video series shows underprivileged communities facing violence, limited access to justice and a weak social safety net. It portrays unchecked gender attacks on minors, the strain of an unreliable system and the long-term marks left by trauma.
The makers handle sensitive subjects such as violence against women and children, sex trafficking, substance abuse and social inequality in blunt fashion. They also attempt something unusual for the genre. The narrative tries to show a humane side to some offenders while tracking a tense investigation into several gruesome murders happening across Mumbai.
Daldal crime thriller struggles with structure and familiar clichés
Despite its ambition, the show often loses rhythm. Rita’s PTSD episodes appear again and again, and her toxic childhood memories replay in long, melodramatic stretches. These scenes, along with a predictable romantic subplot and overused past-reveal devices, distract from the core mystery and create confusion rather than deepening character insight.
The early episodes promise a tight psychological crime thriller, but the momentum slips mid-season. Prolonged flashbacks slow the investigation, and the narrative wanders when sharper editing could have kept tension high. Stereotypical reactions to a woman in a senior cop role also feel dated, reducing the impact of the more nuanced social commentary.
Daldal crime thriller performances lift the tense narrative
Bhumi Pednekar delivers an intense turn as Rita Ferreira, conveying vulnerability, resilience and quiet pain. Rita’s inner conflict stays visible even in silent moments, giving the series its emotional spine. Geeta Agrawal, as Indu Mhatre, commands attention with a controlled, layered performance that brings authority and depth to every shared scene.
Samara Tijori faces one of the toughest parts as Anita Acharya and brings strong emotional range to Daldal’s darker stretches. The supporting cast, including Aditya Rawal, Chinmay Mandlekar, Prateek Pachauri, Sandeep Kulkarni and Sandesh Kulkarni, adds credibility to the world of Mumbai policing. Their work helps ground the narrative in a believable, lived-in environment.
Daldal deserves notice for its honest look at systemic failures, its attempt to humanise both victims and perpetrators, and its willingness to confront distressing realities. The series, streaming on Prime Video, benefits greatly from committed performances. However, repetition, clichés and loose pacing hold it back from achieving the gripping consistency its first episodes suggest.