Story: Khoj: Parchaiyo Ke Uss Paar – starring Sharib Hashmi and Anupriya Goenka – follows the twisted tale of a man whose wife suddenly goes missing. But as soon as she comes back, he starts questioning his whole life as he realises that she is not the person he married. Furthermore, he finds himself on the verge of insanity when the whole world, including his daughter, goes against his beliefs.
Review: The latest ZEE5 original series initially grabs your attention with the introduction to a twisted story. After filing a missing report, Ved (Sharib) gets a call from the cop that they have found his wife. However, as soon as he sees Meera (Anupriya), he refuses to accept her as his spouse and informs the police officer that she is not who she is claiming to be. To his surprise, all the basic shreds of evidence that could prove him right go against him, including the photographs on his phone.
At first, Khoj appears to be going in a singular direction to find Ved’s real wife and bust the fake Meera. However, soon after establishing the preface, the show goes haywire. Instead of finding his missing partner, the lead actor gets on a mission to prove that the woman living in his house is a stranger. On the other hand, Inspector Amol Sathe (Aamir Dalvi) appears to be a little too sympathetic for someone he has just met. He also agrees to help him find his ‘real’ wife, even after seeing all the evidence going against Ved.
Filmmaker Prabal Baruah – who is known for his work in popular shows like C.I.D., Adaalat and Gutur Gu – tries to inculcate a style of storytelling that may work well for television serials but not as much for OTT shows. Due to a rather convoluted screenplay, Khoj loses the interest of viewers within the first few episodes, and becomes quite jarring and way too puzzling for a show that claims to be a whodunnit. Among the other areas that needed a bit more attention in the seven-episode series include the sequences of evidence finding and the manipulation of the key characters.
Even a talented cast – led by Sharib and Anupriya – get little or no opportunity to showcase their craft in a genre where they have already garnered praise in the past. Meanwhile, the supporting cast – including Aamir as a police officer and Kriti Garg as Meera’s sister – play their part well, but are incapable of doing much to lift the jarring series due to its laidback writing. On the other hand, a few characters get introduced in the middle of the show just for the sake of it. They seem to be easily replaceable and forgettable at the same time.
Verdict: The somewhat ‘surprising’ climax surely makes the mystery thriller series come full circle. Yet, it doesn’t make up for the unimpressive dialogues and peculiar character presence. At the same time, the bizarre screenplay hinders skilled actors like Sharib and Anupriya from shining through the show.
