Ranneeti Balakot and Beyond review: Jimmy Sheirgill, Lara Dutta show drowns in predictability, deafening background music

Nine episodes are spent in building the ‘narrative’– a word that this show is very fond of, given the number of times so many of its characters use it — of that tragic 2019 day in Kashmir when a busload of CRPF officials were killed in a blast. Since then, that event and its aftermath have become part of so many films and series that just the thought of yet another take on Pulwama is tiring.

Nothing about ‘Ranneeti’, drowning in deafening background music, dispels that fatigue. Not the plotline, which stretches interminably over nine episodes, averaging 35-45 minutes. Not the performances, which are as obvious as the writing. How far ‘beyond Balakot’ and ‘ghar mein ghusna’ is this going to go?

Jimmy Sheirgill plays Kashyap, a disgraced RAW agent, spending his time pushing files and eating ‘khichdi’. A tough spy with a liking for this ubiquitous dal-chawal mix, and sniffling into his handkerchief, should have been a fun story. But that little spark dies down soon enough when Kashyap is resurrected by his boss (Ashish Vidyarthi) post the Pulwama attack, and charged with creating a plan to hit back at the ‘aatankwaadis’ nestling in Pakistan. As well as the country itself, which is still, of course, our Enemy Number One.

Lara Dutta shows up as a canny media manager, barking orders at her underlings to shift the ‘narrative’ (that word again): isko hatao! Isko trend kawaao! And Ashutosh Rana takes charge as the go-to Pakistani across the border, kitted out in trench coats and snark. Not one of these worthies is painful to watch, but when they are given such dialogues as: ‘asli jung zehan mein ladi jaati hai, sarhad par nahin’; ‘ya toh hum shaheed honge ya woh halaal’, and this one, my favourite, ‘Hindustani fighter jet nahin, champagne udaate hain’, then all you can do is groan.

Much time is spent in aerial dog-fighting, and war-room posturing, with our brave boys shooting down Pakistani planes. There’s a crash-and-capture, putting into motion a sub-plot of a courageous Indian pilot’s release from captivity. Another cross-border sub-plot featuring a couple of undercover agents has car chases, and shoot-outs, and fireworks. This ratchets the temperature a little, which overall remains tepid, and predictable.

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