Note: I'm not attempting to compare two shows here. I'm just drawing parallels at certain points during my analysis.
Raghav - Suave, charming, "psychic", has a deep and potentially dark past, and is not one to take credit. This describes Raghav perfectly. And I must say the CVs have done a fine job with changing up a character that they borrowed so heavily from. What I like here is that the potentially dark past is not related to his wife and kid like it was in The Mentalist, but rather they've given him a childhood past. It shows the CVs are not just copying, but really trying to own the concept and are simply adapting a show.
Trisha - Does the fact that her name seem so similar to Teresa bother anyone? It does bother me. But anyways, I like that Trisha is as human as anyone else. Usually in such shows you'll never see a personal side to the cops, but I liked how they started the third episode with Trisha sitting and talking to a potential groom and scaring him away with her rather casual, but planned show of the gun. Well-played. She's a no-nonsense boss who will not bend rules for anyone. And I appreciate that. She isn't playing the woman card though. No siree. She's showing her capabilities and proving them time and time again.
Bikram - What bothers me is that like in The Mentalist they needed to add an Asian character who's closest to Raghav. Please CVs. Couldn't you have done something else instead of copying that one thing directly? Though I'm really loving Bikram. He's quiet, but sharp. He's funny, but serious. He's understanding, but also very thoughtful. I can't wait to see him interrogating someone. I can see the effective way with which he may just get a suspect to accidentally blurt out the truth without realizing it.
Gauri - Finally! Something different! I've always wondered why crime shows have shown women as either really tough like Trisha or really weak. There's never a middle-ground. Gauri fits that middle-ground. She's smart, intelligent, kind, caring, understanding, and a sweet-natured person all around. Yet she's also not someone you can just walk over and think it's fine. She's the behind-the-scenes brain of the team.
Rajbeer - I feel like they haven't really shown Rajbeer to his full potential yet. He's seen following suspects around, making mistakes, and joking around with Raghav and Bikram, but he's still not actually there to understand what type of person he is. They need to show more of Rajbeer in terms of the case and outside the case as well to understand who he really is.
Dilip Chauhan - Well done on this character CVs! He's there, but not there either. He's like you would expect a head to be. Yes he trusts his team, but he's also careful to only accept those cases that show CBI in a good light. And I like how that's played out in his brief scenes. But I don't understand why they're always showing him as sick. Maybe a bit more insight on that CVs.
The cases - I was highly disappointed when I watched the second episode. The second episode and the CVs are already copying. For the uninitiated the second episode was an exact replica of Yakeen, a 2005 film starring Priyanka Chopra and Arjun Rampal. Yes there were some small changes to adapt to the point of the show, but otherwise it was an exact replica. But more than that I'm slightly disappointed with yesterday's episode as well. I expected a bit more mystery surrounding the whodunit, but it was kind of obvious almost from the beginning. Yes there was the twist with the 2 shooters, but I knew somewhere that the minister was involved in everything from the beginning and the guard was quite obvious. Maybe a bit more on the suspense and a bit less on the obviousness would help CVs in keeping the suspense.
The thrill and investigation - Now this is one part that is done well to an extent. I feel that they concentrate too much on actually developing the case and then developing the conclusion versus spending time on the investigation. I watch the episode in 3-part videos online and usually the first part is the development of the case plus how CBI gets on it and the last part is the entire confession/conclusion. That leaves only one part for the investigation and the true thrill of seeing the suspense get unravelled.
The casting - Now this is one place that I'm fully and duly pleased on. Sharad Kelkar as Raghav is a perfect choice. Mahesh Manjrekar has always accepted meaty roles in my view even if they're small so I expect more in the coming days from Dilip Chauhan. Aahaana Kumar was splendid in Yudh (Sony TV show) and I'm loving her as Trisha now. Her and Sharad's pairing will be interesting to see. Dipali Pansare as Gauri was a bit of an iffy for me when I first read it because I wasn't sure how to react, but now I'm glad that she was chosen because she fits in the role well. No comments on Danish Pandor because we haven't seen Rajbir in full force yet so I don't want to comment on someone's potential without seeing the character well. Jason Tham was also chosen really well for the role of Bikram. So all in all nicely done casting directors. And I also like the character cast for each episode. So far so good. Keep going.
Overall - Overall I must say that this is a rather interesting and promising show. Yes it has borrowed heavily from The Mentalist, but I like that this isn't a direct copy either. There are going to be differences and I look forward to seeing those differences. I also look forward to seeing how Raghav's background is unravelled and I seriously, seriously, seriously hope that &TV doesn't follow suit with some other channels who promise new content and never deliver and actually let Agent Raghav run its course.
Vanshaj
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