This is an intense, wonderfully constructed series that pulls no punches.
Kaala Paani is the smartest and most intense reflection on what happened during the Covid-epimedic with people and those that carry the responsibility to govern them. The story centers around the outbreak of a deadly infection that happens on the Andaman and Nicobar islands, which are a part of India.
The story follows characters on all levels of society. Tourists, that are caught unaware by the epidemic. Doctors that try to fight it. Public officials who try to manage the situation or try to exploit it for their own gains. Corporate executives who try to cover up their role in spreading the disease. A group of natives who play a very special role in fighting the disease.
The writers of Kaala Paani created wonderfully rich and layered characters, each of them with their own meaningful challenges, flaws and abilities. And as a viewer, I was heavily invested and interested in their individual fates.
Kaala Paani has a meta-theme that glues together all these story elements. A meta theme that is introduced with a little side story at the beginning of the second episode: Which decision will you take if there are only bad solutions, you have the power to choose between those bad solutions and whatever you choose, the result of your decision will be the loss of life (the "trolley problem").
Most of the characters we follow - whether they are people in power or everyday people - are confronted at some point in time with such a decision, some of them even more than once. And in Kaala Paani those decisions have stark consequences. People we viewers might assume are "save", because they are essential for the story will die. The actions of seemingly unimportant side characters might have ripple effects that can change the whole scenario.
In short: Wonderful story telling :-)
Side note: As someone who has never been in India, I highly enjoyed this small window into Indian culture and society that is given by this series. Thanks a lot to the creators and writers of this story.
Final Verdict: Watch this series if you enjoy intense and gripping character drama that centers around the outbreak of a deadly disease and is set up on a beautiful island archipelago.
