There is something so irresistible about the idea of a hard-boiled investigator fighting against all odds to solve a case. Even more so when he has an everyman quality, whose struggles resonate with most people, and when the filmmaking is characterised by a raw and gritty style.
Paatal Lok's hero, Hathiram Chaudhary, is a prime example of a brilliant investigator untainted by corruption. The one who refuses to be swayed by more comfortable, well-paying prospects. The one who doesn't rely on shortcuts or tricks to climb the ladder. The one who is a "permanent resident of the underworld (paatal lok)."
Men like Hathiram, played by an excellent Jaideep Ahlawat, are a rare breed. While watching the terrific new season of Paatal Lok, memories of other equally entertaining, thought-provoking and benchmark-setting examples of films and characters from world cinema that are spiritually similar came to mind. Here's a list:
Chinatown (1974)
Directed by Roman Polanski, the film's protagonist, Jake Gittes, a cop-turned-private detective, is the closest to Hathiram in temperament and work ethic. The film's cynical, haunting tone is similar to Paatal Lok's. However, unlike the Avinash Arun-directed, Sudip Sharma-written series, Chinatown doesn't end on a slightly hopeful note; it leaves you with an overwhelming sense of hopelessness and powerlessness, as Jack Nicholson's character does. The 'Chinatown' in the iconic line "Forget it, Jake, It's Chinatown" alludes to a harsh world where the rules of the law don't apply to some and the pointlessness and futility of honest work.
Mississippi Burning (1988)
Alan Parker's film has Gene Hackman and Willem Dafoe playing tough-as-nails FBI agents tasked to investigate the murders of three civil rights activists. Based on the real-life murders of James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner that occurred in 1964, one can draw parallels to the world of Paatal Lok and the chillingly hostile atmosphere of Mississippi Buring, most notably when Hackman and Dafoe confront members of the white supremacist group Ku Klux Klan suspected of the murders. And Hackman's portrayal of the unorthodox, no-nonsense, and fearless FBI agent is similar to Jaideep Ahlawat's Hathiram.
Serpico (1973)
Sidney Lumet's critically acclaimed film boasts one of Al Pacino's greatest performances as the real-life Frank Serpico, a New York-based cop who witnesses rampant corruption in the police department and finds himself in grave danger when he refuses to play by the rules of his bent colleagues. The film is based on Peter Maas' book Serpico: The Cop Who Defied the System. I remembered Serpico during two instances of Paatal Lok Season 2. One, when Hathiram realises that some cops are working for a shady figure. Two, when he is reminded by a senior officer why Hathiram never got ahead like the others.
The French Connection (1971)
William Freidkin's seminal police drama has Gene Hackman as "Popeye" Doyle, an unlikeable but dedicated cop willing to get down to the level of — and speak the language of — the drug pushers and thugs. The film is renowned for its strikingly gritty aesthetic and more realistic, less-glamorous depiction of police officers who engage in taxing surveillance operations in extreme weather, sometimes going without sleep to bring down a thriving drug operation and the mastermind behind it. The film has an unresolved and open ending that brings the morality of Hackman's character into question and keeps a sequel possibility (John Frankenheimer's French Connection-II) open.
Dirty Harry film series (1971-1988)
Clint Eastwood's iconic character Harry Callahan, or "Dirty Harry", shares the fiercely rebellious, uncompromising streak with Hathiram. The iconic character that spawned five films saw him dealing with anyone from a nasty serial killer (based on the 'Zodiac') to a vigilante group inside the police force, and much more. In more than one instance, Harry has to deal with a superior with opposing viewpoints, and the junior officers assigned to work under him run the risk of getting killed in action.
The Long Goodbye (1973)
Robert Altman's adaptation of Raymond Chandler's novel of the same name is marked by a heavy degree of cynicism that makes you mistrust even those close to you. As in Paatal Lok, especially Season 2, The Long Goodbye unravels a complex web of deceit and messed up interpersonal connections as its hero, Philip Marlowe, the hard-nosed protagonist of several mystery books authored by Chandler and their film adaptations, pursues various leads and encounters all kinds of strange characters.
Black Rain (1989)
Ridley Scott's minimalist action thriller revolved around Michael Douglas' morally conflicted cop, Nick, travelling to Japan to apprehend a fugitive gangster who wreaked havoc in his home turf and later killed one of his own. During his investigation, Nick befriends a Japanese cop (Ken Takakura) who is initially apprehensive of his American counterpart. Nick also seeks the help of the yakuza to capture their common enemy. In Paatal Lok, when Hathiram goes to Nagaland and becomes embroiled in a complicated manhunt in addition to a man-missing case, I couldn't help but think of Black Rain.
Year of the Dragon (1985)
In the Michael Cimino film, Mickey Rourke demonstrates one of his best and most underrated characters — a racist but determined police captain, Stanley White, who is still grappling with the traumatic after-effects of his stint in the army during the Vietnam War. Like Black Rain, the film is an East-meets-West story, only here, the Chinese triad members that Rourke deals with are from the actual neighbourhood in New York called Chinatown (the metaphor applies here too). The high-intensity thriller moves at a furious pace, and among the problems Stanley creates is a neglected wife.
