Netflix’s Hindi original web series, Sacred Games, directed by Anurag Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane and starring Saif Ali Khan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, and Radhika Apte, released on Friday and has left the Indian audience visibly impressed.
For the Indian audience, this is the first time a show has come with an Indian setting, but at par with foreign series. But this is what the foreign media has to say about it:
The New York Times:
Replicating the constant juggle of styles and voices in “Sacred Games,” a feat stretched out over more than 900 pages in Mr. Chandra’s novel, is a major challenge on screen — despite its verve and visual inventiveness, the series feels muddled and a little wearying at times. (And a lot of cultural and historical references will go over the head of non-Indian viewers.) But as Gaitonde says, his story is like a scorpion — once it stings you, you’re done for.
Read the complete review here.
IndieWire:
A majority of this series is people in pursuit of power trading body blows. That’s the backbone of “Sacred Games,” a show that manages to display something massive and sprawling, even without the emotional tether at its center that would add another layer to this bloodshed. It’s a crime epic that wants to consider what the police in a giant city owe to those they serve and the consequences of a cutthroat reputation built on dispatching any challengers at any moment.
Read the complete review here.
Refinery29:
This ambitious series is also an important one. As its first Indian original (several more, including an adaptation of Salman Rushdie’s novel Midnight’s Children, are in the works) Sacred Games is expanding voices of Southeast Asia to a global audience. It may be “just” television, but it’s also pushing forth important representation. TV is going global — and Sacred Games is just one way viewers can expand their worldview.
Read the complete review here.
Decider:
Sacred Games feels like a show that’s on the verge of excellence but isn’t quite there. Khan and Siddiqui’s performances are solid. Khan turns something as simple as talking on the phone into a high-pressure investigation, and Siddiqui’s Gaitonde is constantly unnerving. It’s also a drama that’s well shot and directed. Some of this first episode’s best scenes could stand toe-to-toe to Narcos.
Read the complete review here.
The Hollywood Reporter:
Sacred Games is filled with those aforementioned storytelling quirks that viewers will likely just go with as they are distracted by the enticingly foreign elements that color a familiar story that their brain tries to process, like a simultaneously recognizable but tweaked narrative. Many of Netflix’s most popular international series thrive on this slight disconnect — a story that feels familiar, American even, but is told through a lens that lets the other side of the world in.
Read the complete review here.
Metro:
With criminal kingpins, authority conspiracies and likeable cop duos, it’s tempting to label Sacred Games as the Indian Narcos – but the first four episodes are more concise and stylishly executed than its Colombian rival. If you’re pining for a fresh, addictive thriller bursting with style, Sacred Games is the perfect excuse to shield from the summer heat.
Read the complete review here.
The Review Geek:
Sacred Games is likely to be the Indian series that puts the country on the map. We watched Amazon’s Indian Original Breathe a while back and praised that for its great focus on story and technicality but Sacred Games feels like a step up from that. The exquisite cinematography and well-written story is a joy to watch unfold although the almighty cliffhanger at the end of the final episode is one of the only blemishes on an otherwise impressive series. Incredibly violent and featuring some well fleshed out characters, Sacred Games is a surprisingly endearing series and one of the dark horses of the year for sure.
Read the complete review here.
Are you still waiting for a reason to watch Sacred Games?
All images from Netflix.