RaanBaazaar review: Abhijit Panse’s drama on dirty politics is hard-hitting

Director Abhijit Panse’s Planet Marathi web-series RaanBaazaar was initially titled Raand Baazaar, which translates to whore market. While the sex trade is depicted in the show, it is primarily a political drama. 

In recent years, Marathi cinema has seen its share of political films such as Zenda (2009), Jaundya Na Balasaheb (2016) and Dhurala (2020). But RaanBaazaar is more polished, hard-hitting and bold. Of course, the fact that it is a web-series helps it immensely. 

RaanBaazaar is seen through the eyes of former political journalist Appa Divekar (Makarand Anaspure). This might remind you of Jabbar Patel’s Singhasan (1979) which also unfolds from the point of view of an eminent journalist (Nilu Phule), but the similarities end here. 

One day, two amateur journalists who run an online independent video channel approach Appa. The latter, who now lives in penury, promises to share juicy details about a political scandal that occurred during his time around 15 years ago. 

With state elections on the horizon, the leader of opposition Sayajirao (Mohan Joshi) arrives in Mumbai only to die mysteriously in his hotel room. Joint police commissioner Raosaheb (Anant Jog) and his team realize that the politician had been honey-trapped and the goings-on in his room had been recorded by a spy camera, which is missing. The cause of death given to the media and others is a heart attack. 

At the same time, a sex worker, Ayesha Singh (Tejaswini Pandit), is arrested for providing her services in the hotel though she claims she is a struggling actress. While in prison, she comes across the chirpy and large-hearted prostitute named Ratna (Prajakta Mali), who works at a seedy brothel. By the time the two are released, a bond is formed between them. 

Meanwhile, the cops have reason to believe that Ayesha was in the room with Sayajirao and they try to track her down. Ratna, however, comes to Ayesha's aid and hides her in her brothel. 

Maharashtra chief minister Satish Naik (Mohan Agashe) is shocked to learn of Sayajirao's fate. Despite the deceased being from the opposition, Naik wants to cover up the incident and orders Raosaheb to get hold of the video so that he can destroy it. His aim is to ensure that the reputation of Maharashtra politics isn't besmirched. Raosaheb hands over the task to a suspended cop, Charudutta Mokashi (Panse). 

People are largely aware that politics is a dirty game and that politicians are capable of stooping to any level to satiate their lust for power. Despite this, RaanBaazaar doesn't come across as hackneyed.

Apart from being a political drama, the show also doubles up as a mystery thriller and is consistently intriguing. As a writer, Panse knows when and how much to reveal at a given point. 

One can find novelty even in his presentation. A good degree of authenticity is visible when it comes to the portrayal of politics. This isn’t surprising considering Panse has been a part of politics in real life. Quite a few scenes also stand out for the way they have been shot and the out-of-the-box background score. 

Panse also makes his acting debut in this show. He gives a seasoned and natural performance as a cop who is determined to find out the truth while battling his dark past. 

RaanBaazaar features quality performances from the entire ensemble cast as well. Agashe gets into the skin of an aged but cunning chief minister. His constant face wiping comes across as natural. Makarand Anaspure plays two roles – one in the past and the other in the present – and he excels in both. 

Pandit succeeds in displaying the helplessness of her character. Mali goes completely against her image and gives a great performance as Ratna. Sachin Khedekar also gets to play a different character as the cunning secretary to the CM. Despite limited screen time, his nuanced performance is memorable. Madhuri Pawar, as Sayajirao’s daughter, shows hunger and determination to be a worthy successor. 

Anant Jog, Mohan Joshi, Urmila Kothare, Rohit Kokate and a list of supporting actors also carry out their tasks well.

Your final impression of RaanBaazaar depends on whether you consider the sub-plot of the video to be adequately resolved. This reviewer is satisfied in this regard. And unlike the case with a lot of Hindi web-series, a second season, which is subtly hinted at in the end, appears justified. 

But that doesn’t mean RaanBaazaar is completely flawless. There are some portions, especially at the start, that appear slow-moving and could have been quickened. Some creative liberties are also evident in the narrative. But more importantly, it is perplexing how the amateur journalists were ignorant about political happenings in their state just 15 years ago. 

The plusses, however, outnumber the negatives, and this is enough for you to anticipate the second season of RaanBaazaar. 

RaanBaazaar is currently streaming on Planet Marathi