'Charlie Chopra & The Mystery of Solang Valley' Review: Often Hums; Seldom Sings

Charlie Chopra & The Mystery of Solang Valley opens with a séance, helmed by a broody and mysterious psychic (Naseeruddin Shah). Skeptics and believers alike populate this small get-together in Solang Valley which comes to an abrupt end when it is “revealed” that Brigadier Meherbaan Singh Rawat (Gulshan Grover) might be dead. 

This small sequence is enough to suck you into the narrative, especially since it is peppered with all the Vishal Bhardwaj magic of, say, a Makdee. What follows is an enticing mix of Bhardwaj and Agatha Christie (whose ‘The Sittaford Mystery’ is the source material).

Admittedly, the visual elements Bhardwaj is known for don’t find space here; it feels more like an attempt the director is making to break out of the box. That makes the end product seem a little stylistically shabby; sometimes staged. In the words of the uncompromising critic who inspires Oliver Putnam in the latest season of Only Murders in the Building, "It doesn't sing".

Charlie Chopra, at its essence, is your typical Christie mystery- there’s a murder, a seemingly wrongful arrest, red herrings, and multiple possible suspects who all have convincing motives. The best part about the show is that these suspects are all played by incredible artistes. 

After the initial investment, the show asks the audience for some faith – the pace becomes rather inconsistent and doesn’t have enough agitation for a story like this. But as the amateur sleuth Charulata ‘Charlie’ Chopra (Wamiqa Gabbi) uncovers murkier details, it becomes easier to become invested. 

Gabbi is the show’s focus and that is a daunting task to undertake but the actor doesn’t miss a step. As a sleuth who is breaking the cardinal rule of investigation thrillers of not being emotionally involved in a case, Gabbi’s energy stands in stark contrast to the gloomy setting. This contrast works well, making Chopra stand out like a not-so-sore thumb. 

There’s also the inclusion of the breaking of the fourth wall à la Fleabag. For an investigative thriller, this experiment could work well considering the audience is often busy wondering what the brilliant mind on screen is thinking. It adds a layer of whimsy.

Charlie Chopra’s issue is that it focuses more on this whimsy than the art itself, the breaking of the wall isn’t structured well enough to have the same effect as experiments like Fleabag and Deadpool.

There’s also the matter of overpopulating a narrative. Christie’s stories do rely on this overpopulation, the chaos that rises from one too many motives and shady characters but here, most of the characterisation relegates some of the interesting, zany characters to the sidelines. The main suspect (or scapegoat?) is Jimmy Nautiyal (Vivaan Shah). 

But then there is the victim’s best friend Colonel Anand Barua (Baharul Islam) who is willing to fight a blizzard just to check on his friend, a disgruntled cop Narayan Joshi (Ghanshyam Gard), the mysterious gossip Miss Bharucha (Ratna Pathak Shah), the brigadier’s tenants ‘the Negis’ (Damini Basu and Amitabh Bhattacharjee), his brother Mohan (Lalit Parimoo) and his wife Janki (Neena Gupta) who is a psychoanalyst, and a semi-classical singer (Lara Dutta). 

And this isn’t even the entire list. I am sure there are some characters that have also slipped through the cracks of my memory. 

From the characters at the sidelines, some shine through purely because of their skill. Ratna Pathak Shah slips into an expert Parsi accent, which is just one of the subtleties she adds to her role that make her immensely watchable the entire time. Neena Gupta has her moments, stealing the energy in every scene to focus on her. When she says something, you are compelled to believe it despite being acutely aware of the fact that every character might be fibbing. 

It is a mistake to not have given Lara Dutta more to do. In the very first sequence, Dutta’s reaction makes you watch, and makes you listen. As the episodes roll by, you’re left wondering what this character is hiding under the surface of a watchful mother. The scene-stealer in Charlie Chopra, however, is Priyanshu Painyuli as journalist Sitaram Bisht, who aids Charlie in her investigation. 

The chemistry between a sleuth driven by ambition and armed with amateur tools and a journalist with a knack for investigation is one of the more delightful aspects of the show.

There is no dearth of red herrings and possible twists and turns in Charlie Chopra and yet, it’s disheartening that the ending comes off feeling rather gimmicky. Perhaps I am affected by the brilliance of Kenneth Branaugh’s latest Christie adaptation A Haunting in Venice or the mastery Bhardwaj has earlier exhibited in understanding and exploring literature like Shakespeare’s but Charlie Chopra doesn’t come across as the revelation I thought it would. 

Charlie Chopra & The Mystery of Solang Valley remains, at its essence, a watchable show. Whether you let its flaws outweigh its wins is your decision to make. I came out of the show feeling underwhelmed but with a lingering feeling of satisfaction – maybe the whodunit genre doesn’t have to die a slow death.