Cat

Another good one by Netflix. It initially starts slow but story picks up midway. The back and forth moving screenplay perfectly unfolds the story and establishes characters, their morality and motives. I watched entire series in Punjabi and it is best seen that way rather than dubbed Hindi version. After a very long time watched a very well written webseries. All performances are top notch and Randeep Hooda my god! What a powerful performer. He portrays immense emotions through even simple actions like cleaning floor and tying turban. He is a gem of an actor and Netflix has capitalized very well on it. Can't wait for next season.

Ironically, CAT the term refreshes the dark & haunting yet gritty memories right off the days of insurgency hit Punjab, which in itself is a far intriguing & sensitising subject to narrate on screen. As far as this series is concerned, whils the title seemed to make sense in the first episode, the plot afterwards is apparently based on the present context of narcotic drugs problem in the state. Ranbir hooda has put in all & done a super awesome job playing the role of a common punjabi/sikh gentleman with utmost perfection. Although a few characters like Madam Aulukh or Pradhan Gaggi sounded a bit off the track, this won't make much difference to non-punjabi audience. Overall its a well directed & gripping drama which'd certainly keep the viewers engaged & at times, at the edges. I'll certainly be looking forward to watch another couple of seasons if the makers have more meat to show on screen.

Randeep Hooda defines the very essence of committing to the role and the art of acting. He deserves the title Mr Perfectionist because of his impeccable performances, be it Sarabjit or now CAT. I am not just throwing this title around without giving it a proper thought, so please read my arguments below. You know a masterpiece has been delivered when an actor loses his identity and transforms to the extent that the actor is no longer recognisable by his real identity during the course of the series. This is exactly what Randeep Hooda has been able to accomplish as Gurnam Singh. Another reason to support my argument is that his appearance and behaviour have been spot on, and moreover, his Punjabi has been flawless. He looks and sounds more Punjabi than a lot of Punjabis I know. His accent does not sound phoney like Aamir's in Laal Singh Chaddha, which I believe was one reason people were unhappy with Aamir. How could Aamir miss such a crucial detail for his character when he had so many years to prepare? Randeep, on the other hand, went into so much detail in preparing for the role without being called Mr perfectionist or making a huge fuss about it. Doesn't Randeep deserve the title of Mr Perfectionist, not only because of his brilliant performance in CAT but because he has been consistently mesmerising with his acting genius?

CAT (2022) - 100%

In The Busy World We Live, It's Quite Rare For Someone To Finish A Show In One Go, But There Are Exceptions Like Balwinder Singh Janjua's "CAT"... It Boldly Sheds Light On The Menace Of Drugs, Terrorism, Gun Culture Without Trying To Be Politically Correct... Randeep Hooda Has Carried The Whole Season On His Shoulders... His Performance, Look, Accent Are Brilliant... He Deserves More Such Good Roles In The Future... Suvinder Vicky Is A Discovery... His Complex Character Will Force You To Think Till The Last Minute... Hasleen Kaur, Pramod Pathak & Other Supporting Actors Have Also Performed Exceptionally Well.

After a long time, Netflix has come with a series which is close to the level of Sacred Games. Barring last two episodes which I couldn't fully digest (which failed to bring everything well together).. the series is brilliantly made.

What's good?

The screenplay is quite tightly written and keeps you hooked throughout. Acting overall is superb. Randeep Hooda especially does an amazing job and gives a fantastic performance. Casting has been great and the supporting actors also play their roles quite effectively. I really enjoyed some plot twists and they have me goosebumps.

Some scenes are so gruesome and shot very well. Amazed with the cinematography.

What could have been better?

Ending was okay but I couldn't digest it properly. They over did certain things. Could have kept it simple as there was no need for shock value towards the end.