Paatal Lok

Story:

Avinash Arun and Prosit Roy directed the Indian neo-noir crime thriller television series Paatal Lok (translated as “Netherworld”) on Amazon Prime Video. Sudip Sharma co-wrote the script with Sagar Haveli, Hardik Mehta, and Gunjit Chopra. Jaideep Ahlawat, Gul Panag, Neeraj Kabi, Swastika Mukherjee, Ishwak Singh, Abhishek Banerjee, Niharika Lyra Dutt, and Richa Chaturvedi are among the cast members of the series, which was produced under the name Clean Slate Filmz. The first season, which is loosely based on Tarun Tejpal’s 2010 book The Story of My Assassins, centres on a disillusioned police officer who takes on the case of a botched assassination attempt.

In the second season, which took place amid political unrest in Nagaland, Ahlawat, Singh, and Panag returned to their roles, joined by Tillotama Shome, Jahnu Barua, Nagesh Kukunoor, and Prashant Tamang. The script was written by Sudip Sharma in January 2017, and pre-production and scripting took over a year, Over 110 actual sites are used for filming, with Paatal Lok being the first series to be shot at Chitrakoot.

Avinash Arun and Saurabh Goswami handled the series’ cinematography, while Sanyukta Kaza handled the editing. Benedict Taylor and Naren Chandravarkar collaborated to create the background music. On May 15, 2020, the first season of Paatal Lok debuted on Amazon Prime Video. Critics gave the show excellent reviews, complimenting the acting, plot, writing, and directing.

The Indian Express named the series one of the Top 10 Indian Web Series of 2020. Paatal Lok was named one of the top worldwide TV series of 2020 by Variety. The creators declared in May 2020 that they will begin conceptualising the second season. On January 17, 2025, the second season was made available. At the first Filmfare OTT Awards, Paatal Lok was nominated eight times and took home five titles: Best Actor (Jaideep Ahlawat), Best Series, Best Original Story, Best Screenplay, and Best Direction (Avinash Arun and Prosit Roy).

Hathiram Chowdhary (Jaideep Ahlawat), a cynical police officer assigned to look into a high-profile crime, is the main character of the show. He is pulled into the darker underbelly as he becomes entangled in the investigation. The traditional ideas of Svarga, Dharti, and Paatal (heaven, earth, and the Underworld) served the inspiration for Paatal Lok, which is set in East Delhi, Delhi, and serves as a metaphor for the four estates and the many classes of India.