9 Hours - V View Reviews #72

9 Hours is a series in Telugu which is dubbed in other languages like Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada and Marathi. Regionalism is Nationalism. With the option of many languages series on OTT, the audience is blessed by choices and OTT is richer.

9 Hours is a series based on Telugu Novel Tommidi Gantalu', written decades ago by Malladi Venkata Krishna Murthy.

The story is set in 1985 and it revolves around three prisoners who escaped from the Central jail and plan a bank robbery. The twist in the story is that these three prisoners need to be back in prison after 9 hours by evening roll call. They intend to rob 3 branches of the Deccan Imperial Bank. Robberies in 2 banks were as per plan but in one branch, things turned complicated. Simple robbery turns into a hostage situation. The bank doors have been shut by the robbers.

Tarak Ratna is in the role of a short-tempered inspector Pratap who happens to be in the bank's locality to nab a video shop owner as he makes porn film. When the inspector discovers that the bank is under siege by the robbers, he enters the scene and wants to save the hostages.

The first episode starts with the introduction of each complex character. First the inspector, then his estranged wife( Madhu Shalini)who is a journalist. The bank manager( Suresh Kumar) is serving his last day in the bank before his retirement. A recruit (Preeti Asrani) joins the bank and it's her first day. Then we have Nandu(Ankith Koyya) an engineer. Then we are introduced to a women employee of the bank Girija, who lost her husband and is sexually harassed by her colleague(Venkata Giridhar). Then we have Saguna who is a prostitute and one of the robber's girlfriends. Then Chandrashekhar is in the bank who happens to be a movie star. Backstories of the people in the bank and the subplots expose the relationship dynamics, gender sensitivity, greed and power games.

Multiple tracks are narrated in a gripping manner and one incident leads us to another till we reach and see how everything unfolds. As the story progresses we discover why the robber is compelled to commit the crime, what happens during negotiations between the robbers and the police, and how the show ends with a small twist. All the twists and turns happen in a nine-episode corresponding to nine hours between the escape and return to the cell before the roll call. The series could have easily been trimmed to seven episodes as there were unnecessary back stories of the characters.

The cast has done a good job in portraying their character. Tarak Ratna shines as the short-tempered cop. Ajay plays an important role and his motive becomes clear only at the end. Madhu Shalini is good as a journalist and estranged wife of the cop. Ravi Verma stands out as an aggressive gangster. Then we have Preeti Asrani, Vinod Kumar, Aniketh Koyya, Jwala Koti, and Monica Reddy and the ensemble were all apt in their role. Production quality is good and keeps the audience engaged. Camera work and visuals appeared realistic, mainly shot in two locations, a bank and a jail. It successfully captures 80s culture. The storyline is well-written and gripping. The background music blends with the show. It is directed by Niranjan Kaushik and Jacob Verghese.  Krish Jagarlamudi has adapted the novel in the best possible way and produced it. Broadcasted on 2nd June 2022, 9 hours is streaming on the platform Disney+ Hotstar.