Bose: Dead/Alive Review : What Not To Expect

By Deblina Dutta | 1.2k |

"It does not matter who among us will live to see India free. It is enough that India shall be free and that we shall give our all to make her free." - Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose


Born in 1897, this Indian braveheart doesn't need an introduction. As a young leader, his heroism and patriotism was praised and followed by many. A well educated revolutionary, his death has often become the topic for national controversy.
There have been conspiracy theories and long-lasting debates about the fatal plane crash of 1945. There are many who still believe that Bose lived for long after 1945.
< Ekta Kapoor's ALTBalaji and Hansal Mehta came together this time to give life to those historic events. Bose: Dead/Alive written by Reshnu Nath and directed by Pulkit, has been adapted from Anuj Dhar's book titled India's Biggest Cover-up.

The Build-Up

The trailer for this show had garnered a lot of positive reaction and so when a record number of viewers tuned in to watch this show, it was no surprise.
The marketing was done craftily with Rajkumar Rao headlining the stories. The hype was built among the audience and a lot of us were expecting something outstanding. So kudos to ATLBalaji for their choice of promotional strategies.

Series Review

Now the real question is, did they satisfy our expectations? Was it the brilliant show we were all waiting for? Did it do well considering the risk of controversy the show took upon itself?
I wouldn't say so.
I'm not throwing it away completely, no. But there were so many things wrong or overlooked in the series, that if they were taken care of, this could have easily become a must watch for everyone.
1. History isn't Fiction
Their portrayal of some of the events in the show is so clumsy that even someone like me, who has never topped a history class, found them ridiculous. Hitler was more of a caricature and they should have worked on Himmler's role.
In a scene like the one in which a young Subhas stands up for a fellow peer and beats up his professor with a shoe, the abruptness of it hindered with what could have been a historically dramatic moment. In some scenes where reality should have hit us hard, they ruined them with Bollywood styled drama.
Honestly, I'm mostly upset about how they portrayed a war infected Germany. They should have researched a bit more about it.

2. Not the Quality Acting
Rajkumar Rao has become synonymous with nuanced and exceptional acting. But even he couldn't climb up to his glorious peak and that sure is a disappointment.
The cast, including names like Naveen Kasturia, Sanjay Gurbaxani, and Parveena Deshpande, though weren't at their best, yet some of the scenes were really well acted. On a scale of 1 to 5, I'll give them a 2.5 score. Or maybe even a 3.

3. The Ending This show starts with some powerful dialogues and scenes but by the end of the show, we are more confused than ever on the life and death of Netaji.
I understand why it couldn't give us a distinct answer to the title question, but the dreamy Bollywood ending was not what I was expecting.

What did I like about this show?

1. It had a lot of heart and the cinematography is done really well.
2. I'll give it bonus points for selecting such a controversial topic and not offend many people.
3. The makeup department deserves all the credit for the work they have put in.

Finally...

Overall, I hope ALTBalaji learned a lesson from this show and the next time, they would work more on their attention to detail and a proper script.
The outline of this show is clear, but if you look any closer, it is filled with plot holes and unnecessary drama.
It doesn't leave you all that dry and after the first watch, you do feel good. If you want to revisit our history and not take it too seriously, you can always watch this show.
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