Farzi Review - Shahid Kapoor's Anti-Con Performance Rules Raj & DK's Trademark Thriller

Raj & DK are back with another thriller, Farzi, starring Shahid Kapoor, Vijay Sethupathi, Kay Kay Menon, and Raashii Khanna. A webseries is a long format despite the fact that the story hardly runs for 3 hours, so it is more like extending a small story into a long format. It becomes more difficult in the thriller genre because one has to have a gripping narrative there. Farzi has a bit of that, but like I said, with the long format and all.. it doesn't quite fit in every frame. No webseries ever does. It's all about making things a bit interesting, and who knows that better than Raj & DK, who have delivered one of the most popular thriller series, The Family Man? The duo does it again, but this time it's Shahid Kapoor, who shines like a pro artist.Farzi is about Sunny (Shahid Kapoor), an orphan boy abandoned by his father, who is now living with his grandfather (Amol Palekar). He runs a press called "Kranti," but Sunny is always behind making quick money, even if it's the wrong way. Sunny and his childhood buddy, Firoz (Bhuvan Arora), start making counterfeit notes to earn black money, and they are brilliant at their work. Michael (Vijay Sethupathi), a cop, and Megha (Raashii Khanna), an RBI officer, team up to find the artist behind the supernote that is not even traceable for their advanced machine. Then there is Mansoor (Kay Kay Menon), a big-time smuggler of counterfeit notes and illegal businesses, who enters the picture to make this interesting. Who will win this cat-and-mouse game? Raj & DK have some surprising answers for you in Farzi.Farzi is a con-drama with an anti-conning script. There are several moments that are too smart, while others still follow run-of-the-mill segments. Sunny's character has no flaws until the romantic angle appears. But why? Why are we still going on with old-school romances that have been used again and again over the years? Don't the writers feel bored? Then there's a family issue with the cop, again, a corny thing. Almost every cop drama has this thing. Even recently, Rudra had it. After all these things, there is a predictable ending with typical revenge and betrayals. So overall, Farzi isn't a full-proof script (which film or series are nowadays), but it is made interesting and a bit thrilling too. The screenplay is better comparatively, as it proves some cliches wrong and brings something new to the table. Having its own highs and lows is so common nowadays, so who's complaining?Farzi introduces us to an all-new Shahid Kapoor. He has played a con man in Badmaash Company, but Sunny in Farzi is much better. Shahid plays a con, but he does not con his fans. It's an anti-con performance (using a new term for a new Shahid). Vijay Sethupathi's accent did not suit me, but he is a freaking amazing actor at whatever he does. Give him any role; he has his way of carrying it. Raashii Khanna's passionate officer is indeed lovable, but her looks add more to it. Halfway through, you don't even know that she is going to have a sweet romantic side, but when she enters it, she rules. It. There is some charisma in Bhuvan Arora's character, and he is the only reason behind it. Every single gaali and philosophical quote from his mouth feels real and raw. Almost every character has gaalis, but Bhuvan's dialect is bang on. Kay Kay Menon has a degree in such roles. He is the king of D-Day-style roles, and Farzi is no different. Amol Palekar, Chittaranjan Giri, Regina Cassandra, Zakir Hussain, and Jaswant Singh Dalal's support is excellent.

Farzi is an 8-episode series, with every episode being an hour long (except for 2 episodes in the middle), which is a bit too much. Or have we become habitual binge-watchers in the last 3 years? Decide for yourself. But I still think a 45- to 50-minute runtime is a standard for a webseries. Here, the editor could have been finer. Nevertheless, it's con-drama with a lot of money in it, so you don't feel bored at all. The locations are good, and the camerawork is decent. Raj & DK are at a stage where even a slight bit of mediocrity sounds terrible. Farzi is a victim of those enormous expectations. You want them to deliver something new and out of this world every time, which is humanly impossible.Farzi has a few scenes, such as Sunny's rich girlfriend humiliating him indirectly, his constant endeavour to find respect in others' eyes or that pub visit scene, his grandpa's typical disease, Michael's wife, Megha's mother's calls, and Mansoor's cliched tricks, etc. Farzi couldn't drop itself out of the old college of con-dramas. It's too mainstream to have the hero making counterfeit notes of Rs. 500 and Rs. 2000, when he knows that those are the notes that are usually scrutinized by the RBI and cops. One could have easily made fake notes of Rs. 50 and Rs. 100 and I guarantee you that the chances of getting caught or being watched are less than the earlier case. Why don't our genius filmmakers think about it? But like they say, money is not God, but it isn't smaller than God either. God never asked for it, but we do. Let's watch Farzi for the sake of our outdated human nature, and believe me, Raj & DK have another fine series for you. Overall, a con-drama that does not con the honest fans of the genre.