Kohrra is a gripping crime drama that chokes the grim reality of life and relationships. “Love is a Bitch” they say; the entire plot of Kohrra somewhat revolves around this four-letter word, LOVE. As we enter the finale, we can conclude that not only “Love is a Bitch” but also “Love Kills.”
Love invokes feelings of belongingness, togetherness, and commitment. Still, if provoked, it can also invoke insecurity, hate, jealousy, betrayal, and revenge. Kohraa has cleverly captivated the negative emotions that come out of love.
Kohraa’s plot in a nutshell:
As NRI Paul’s dead body is found in the field with his neck slit and multiple hemorrhages on his head just before his wedding, two Punjab police cops SI Balbir Singh and his assistant, frequently called by his last name Garundi are tasked to investigate this crime. As the probe widens, it also appears that Paul’s best friend, Liam Murphy, is missing. With the superiors in police wanting to pin it on the drug addict and close the case, SI Balbir Singh’s gut feeling implies otherwise, giving a sense to him there is more weight to this than appears on the surface. As Balbir and Garundi sink deeper while battling their personal life conflicts, they comprehend the consequences of loving someone and losing someone out of love. Love is independent of gender and cuts across multiple dimensions.
Kohrra strives to explore human emotions on a deeper level. It was just there, boiling and wailing to happen; only the fog (Kohrra) made it difficult to see in time. Kohrra is a tale of a son who wants to break free from his father’s dominance, a kid desperately seeking validation from his father, a helpless cop and a father juggling through midlife crises, a daughter who begs her father to consider her needs, a brother and his wife manipulating his blood for the sake of property—a GenZ artist ditched by his girlfriend for a stable life. Kohrra gives you the shock of the reality in this world. It feels so real, as if you’re watching another season of Delhi Crime.
The chain of events restrains you on the edge as the storyline feeds you the reality of relationships, the reality of truly loving someone, the establishment of the system, the rust within the human mind, and the extent it can fulfill its desires.
Director Randeep Jha, who has also directed Halahal, Kartaa, and Trial by Fire, has given a sense of every character he has presented before us, which makes it more relatable. SI Balbir Singh is battling with his crisis from the past that is threatening his present and everyone in his circle. His assistant Garundi feels he needs to be valued as a blood relative. The systematic peeling of layers of these two important characters makes us sympathize with them and stay alongside their journey till the end.
We witness strong performances from Suvinder Vicky as Balbir Singh and Barun Sobti as Amarpal Garundi. Equally accompanied by supporting characters Manish Chaudhari, Varun Badola, Harleen Sethi, Amarinder Pal Singh, and Savrav Khurana. Kohrra also stars Rachel Shelley, who was last seen in Lagaan alongside Aamir Khan. Rachel yet again delivers a compelling performance of a shattered mother awaiting to fetch any news on her missing son.
The series also stokes fun occasionally as Luddite cops deal with the Tech-savvy Gen-z generation high on social media during the investigation. The entire series is in a Punjabi language filled with local slang, a different ball game to understand and digest.
Final Verdict for Kohrra:
Kohrra is an intensely engaging, thought-provoking, and captivating WhoDunIt crime thriller that only extends its horizons with time, giving you a shattering sense of human reality. It drags out the undergoing hassles in families and relationships when choices are only made at one’s convenience.
Simply put, love blurs the line between right and wrong. Kohrra simply highlights the consequences of deliberately not acting on it.
Kohrra is now streaming on Netflix.
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