Director: Randeep Jha and Prashant Nair
Cast: Ashish Vidyarthi, Rajshri Deshpande, Abhay Deol
Rating: 4/5
A heartbreaking real-life story waiting to be published for over two decades is now available on Netflix as a show produced by Prashant Nair and Randeep Jha.
Storyline
Trial by Fire is a compelling and eye-opening story of a calamity that Delhi will never forget. The programme benefits from the sharp script, unfussy yet efficient production, and outstanding performances from the leading players.
The seven-part tv show captures, discreetly and piercingly, the trauma of a hard and resolute Delhi couple who ended up losing their two kids in the Uphaar movie theatre fire on June 13 in the year 1997, and then ended up fighting tooth and nail with the help of legal professionals and family members of those who died that unfortunate afternoon, to bring those personally liable for the tragic event to justice.
The show focuses on the long and gruelling battle that Neelam and Shekhar Krishnamoorthy conducted to guarantee that the real estate magnates who owned the cinema hall were penalised for their blatant disregard for safety standards. It portrays a bleak story of loss and grit without resorting to excessively dramatic techniques. The continuous restraint adds great emotion to the story.
The incident happened 26 years ago, and the accompanying judicial processes have made periodic headlines. Trial by Fire, an Endemol Shine India production in collaboration with House of Talkies, must face the possibility of not being able to bring anything new to the ongoing debate.
However, regarding form, content, and method, Trial by Fire combines elements that give the story universal meaning that extends beyond one instance and transforms it into a timeless cautionary tale. It reflects the awful attitude of insensitivity and impunity permeating how public facilities are frequently administered in this billion-plus-person country.
It’s not unexpected that Neelam and Shekhar’s fight for justice is far from ended. But they have never been plagued by the desire to give up. The series highlights their outstanding resiliency. It illustrates the difficulties the duo has had to confront due to a lax court system that favours those with the power and riches to crush all opposition.
Trial by Fire is an intimate dramatisation of the conditions surrounding the unfortunate incident, as well as an insightful characterisation of the victims’ reaction, helmed by the Krishnamoorthys and of the influential owners of the cinema hall’s conjunction of legal delaying tactics, baseless accusations, financial enticements, and evidence tampering to safeguard their skins.
Screenplay
The screenplay maintains a melancholy tone throughout to emphasise the severity of Krishnamoorthy’s loss and sadness. The effect is multiplied by Rajshri Deshpande’s portrayal as Neelam, who has been at the forefront of the battle to prohibit authority misuse and avoid accountability.
Abhay Deol’s performance as Shekhar is also excellent. Still, the effect of Deshpande’s scathing representation of a devastated mother’s pain and tenacity in the face of an unjust, flaw-ridden system dwarfs almost everything else in Trial by Fire. She expresses various emotions, from astonishment and anguish to fury and grit, without saying a single word. Deshpande’s face is frequently focused, mapping both wounded mourning and bristling wrath with equal power.
