The Night Manager review: Anil Kapoor, Aditya Roy Kapur's show is good, OTT platform's strategy is not

The Night Manager review: I have to be honest, I am not a fan of remakes because they can never really match up to the original. When one remakes a hit film/series, comparisons are inevitable and it poses a big challenge to keep the audience engaged with an already-known story. So what works for Disney+Hostar's latest show The Night Manager? Its ability to stay true to the original and yet find its own voice, coupled with stellar performances from its lead cast.

Originally based on a book by John le Carre which was later turned into a British miniseries that featured Tom Hiddleston, Hugh Laurie, Olivia Colman and Elizabeth Debicki, the Indian version, created by Sandeep Modi features Aditya Roy Kapur, Ali Kapoor, Tillotama Shome and Sobhita Dhulipala. Spanned over a few years, The Night Manager takes its time to establish the plot, and breaks the series into two parts but still makes for a compelling watch.

The series has Roy Kapur playing Shaan Sengupta, a former Navy man, who is now serving in the hospitality industry. He is the Night Manager of a five-star hotel in Dhaka. His life takes a dramatic turn when he witnesses the murder of a teenage girl in the hotel, who just a day earlier had sought help from him to flee to India. The death shakes up Shaan and he goes underground (which we later find out was a planned move). Two years later, he comes face to face with businessman Shelly Rungta, a man who Shaan knows was responsible for killing the young girl. Rungta who travels with his entourage everywhere claims to be a tycoon of a shipping business but actually is an arms dealer, and often termed as 'the merchant of death'. Rungta has been on the radar of Indian intelligence for years, who due to lack of evidence have never been able to nab him.

Enter the Intelligence officer Lipika Saikia Rao, who convinces Shaan to spy on Rungta, get into his inner circle, and collect evidence against him. An alibi is created and Shaan soon finds himself in the sprawling estate.

Set in South Asia, the series ably incorporates the local political unrest into the narrative. So there is the mention of the Rohingyas, a mention of the Dhaka protest, and the political relations between India, Sri Lanka, and Uzbekistan. While writers, Shridhar Raghavan (fresh from the success of Pathaan) and Modi get the political background well, they also excel at making The Night Manager a very human story. At the core is a man who agrees to become a spy for RAW, jeopardizing his whole life, to get redemption. Two years down the line, the death of the young girl still haunts him and it is for this reason that he agrees to do the unthinkable.

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Roy Kapur plays his part well and with conviction. He looks like a man who could have been in the armed forces, he is a loner and minds his business until the fatal incident happens. And even though he gets anxious seeing Rungta, he treads on a dangerous path to get close to him, he remains a softy to his sonTaha, who plays a key role in bringing him to Rungta's sprawling estate. Roy Kapur emotes with his eyes, certain shots have him depicting the mental havoc he is going through even though he appears calm and composed on the outside.

Anil Kapoor a veteran, breezes through his part. He has played over-the-top characters in his recent screen outings and his portrayal of Rungta is dramatically different. He is cool, calculated and sharp. He only lets Shaan in after he saves his son in a staged (we know, Rungta doesn't) kidnapping incident.

The star of The Night Manager, however, is the supremely talented Tillotama Shome, who brings in her charisma to play the almost mundane but sharp RAW officer Lipika Saikia Rao. Shome, who proved her mettle in so many projects, shines once again in her role as the RAW handler who knows her appearance confuses people for whom she is. In the original, the character was played by Olvia Colman and Shome fits in her big shoes in the remake well making Lipika your regular government officer, who has so much more in her than what the state restricts her from doing.

Sobhita Dhulipala, who is to date remembered for her strong performance in Made In Heavenfeels underutilized. So far she has just added glamour to the mundane frames and hasn't been given much scope to show her talent.

The other actor who shines is Saswata Chatterjee as BJ - Rungta's oldest aide and an openly gay man. It's always a delight to watch the actor, who has in his career played myriad characters and The Night Manager is no different. He brings in a fun element to his character even though loyal fans of the original series would know how his character plays a key role in the narrative.

The only problem with The Night Manager is that it breaks the story into two parts. With just four episodes out, of which three were just to establish the plot- the break feels abrupt. The second part of the series is set to be out in June 2023 which may not be a very good move considering the original is still available online and a lot of people are aware of the story.

If one considers The Night Manager as a stand-alone show, ignoring the fact that it's a remake, it is a credible show with good writing and great performances.

The Night Manager is out on Disney+Hotstar.