Mai Review: A story of a mother’s lethal revenge

The series follows three women as they attempt to navigate in a male-dominated world. Sheel is seeking vengeance for the murder of her daughter. Neelam is attempting to become the leader of an underworld mafia. While Supriya, whose murder sets the series in motion, is attempting to uncover the group’s medical scam. But, unfortunately, none of them succeed.

The main idea

The story centers around Sakshi Tanwar, who plays Sheel from Lucknow, a once demure, middle-class mother who moonlights… as a nurse at an old age home. Sheel goes on a quest for truth after her daughter is murdered, which soon turns into a murderous spree, or the calmest, most docile form of it.

The plot

Sheel Chaudhary is an average middle-class woman with a deaf daughter who is a pathology technician. She is shown to be a submissive wife that has given her son up for adoption to her sister-in-law. Her life is turned upside down when she witnessed her daughter being hit by a truck. Soon after, she realized that it wasn’t a mere hit and run case but rather something menacing is at play. Determined to find the truth, Sheel changes into a revenge-hungry psychopath.

On the other side of the city, Farooque Siddiqui (Ankur Ratan), a Special Police Force Officer (SPF), is about to expose the people behind a medical scam and money laundering case. Which is led by Jawahar and his mistress Neelam, who manages the business alongside Raghu, Keshav, Prashant, and Shankar. The series’ characters are either directly or indirectly linked to the mother-daughter duo. Whether it’s Farooque as Supriya’s boyfriend or Sheel as Jawahar’s mother’s caretaker in the old-age home.

The Filmmakers

The filmmakers, Atul Mongia, who is making his directorial debut, and Anshai Lal, who made his directorial debut with ‘Phillauri’ (2017), were able to elicit exceptional performances from the cast. Sheel, who is both sensitive and vulnerable, while being full of revenge as well. Supriya, her mute daughter, manages to express herself, flawlessly on film. The usage of close-up views of the protagonist by the directors adds to the tension. Mongia is the creator-producer and co-writer of this six-part crime drama. Which she co-wrote with Tamal Sen and Amita Vyas, who brings to life the mother-daughter duo’s anguish and suffering on the screen. The drama also delves into human relationships and sacrifices, political scams, money laundering, and so much more.

This series, like many other criminal sagas streaming on OTT, uses Lucknow as a backdrop to highlight the city’s right and wrong behaviors that affect ordinary people’s lives. The first few episodes appear to be going in a great direction. Complemented by Sheel’s amazing emotional outburst. However, the tale quickly begins to sag. The script is well-written in terms of connecting all of the aspects, yet at times it appears too stretched to hold the audience’s interest throughout the episodes.

Array of characters

In a show that is fundamentally a whodunit but deals with a variety of twisted agendas, keeping track of so many characters is challenging. There are too many characters and subplots, and not all of them get enough time to justify their existence.

For instance, Kalpana’s backstory of how she went to prison is rather hazily portrayed. It was unable to connect with the audience and seem sort of like a filler, rather than an integral part of the series.

The cop needs a pat on the back because he, unlike any other cop, doesn’t break laws and goes out of the way to get justice. The SPF officer is a no-nonsense cop who simply knows his job. As a result, in several action scenes, Officer Farooque appears to be an outsider. Prashant effortlessly slips into the role of Jawahar/Mohandas and once again delivers a performance that makes us dislike his character which was the aim right. Neelam is portrayed as a beautiful woman with intelligence, but she has the same blank expression throughout the series. Anant Vidhaat and Vaibhav Raj Gupta play warped characters Prashant and Shankar, respectively.

Sheel Chaudry’s character

I couldn’t process how a meek middle-aged woman, who couldn’t say anything when her husband gave up her son to his childless sibling, could change so drastically. Sheel is a humble creature that has never heard the word “no.” I couldn’t figure out what was bothering her so much that she didn’t notice her daughter having an affair with a married guy. Whereas the father did. Mai’s changes from a 47-year-old housewife to an ice-cold spy who thinks two steps ahead of everyone. Her character appears half-baked since there are so many unsolved questions.

Yes, I do believe that Sheel must avenge her daughter’s murder, and would have accepted it if she had just assassinated the person responsible. But, due to one blunder, she is seen plotting and murdering one person after another without remorse. An avenging mother is cruel, but this modest mother turns into a killing machine is unpalatable.

Instead, Sheel, who works as a nurse/caretaker at an old-age home, embarks on a journey to settle old scores with some dangerous characters. She is left to do all of the hard lifting, and her being at the right time in the right place is just hard to swallow. Wamiqa Gabbi is particularly excellent as a young mute girl who is the series’ victim. Vivek Mushran, who plays Sheel’s husband Yash, is just weird, I mean who couldn’t notice that his wife is out and about almost at all times.

The Cast

The cast selection is just perfect. Sakshi Tanwar is a furious wave of brilliance that the industry has failed to recognize despite her decades in the field. The actor portrays the feelings of guilt, grief, rage, vengeance, and gentleness that come with being the mother of a deceased child. Sheel juggles between the kind trait of a housewife and the fierce lady who knows nothing but her goal to locate her daughter’s killer, and Tanwar does justice to the character.

Wamiqa Gabbi is steller as the brave Supriya. She never overdoses her part, which is possible instead she brings in the much-needed depth. She is supposed to be a mystery that slowly unfolds and is impressive. So is Ankur Ratan, who gets to play a Muslim man stuck between love and a long-dead marriage.

Vaibhav Raj Gupta like always did justice, and Anand Sharma becomes his best better half. Seema Pahwa is finally getting the roles she deserves. She makes a brief cameo as another woman who forcefully broke the glass ceiling. Suffered the consequences, but is also unapologetic. However, I do wish there was some sort of depth in her character.

Final Thoughts

Unfortunately, the film’s sloppy narrative puts your patience to strain as you wait for something significant to happen. The minor twists it creates are shattered by the slow pace. Despite an excellent ensemble, all of the characters are ultimately just outlines with no nuance or depth.

Even with the foundation of sadness and nefarious dealings, Mai remains apathetic. Although there are ample instances of verbal and visual brutality, With its many, many images of spine-tingling torture. The all-important exposes regarding blood relations, extramarital affairs, and sexuality have peculiar randomness to them.

The screenplay is riddled with plot holes and convenient twists. The sudden appearance of a twin of a key character gives the sophisticated series the feel of a standard potboiler. The writers leave too much to chance and Sakshi’s acting talent after a certain point. The way Sheel breaks into a pharmacist shop before the ending is unconvincing. As is the eventual outcome of a well-choreographed shootout.