Right from the opening minutes of the first episode of ZEE5 Global’s new series “Paruvu,” the audience is immersed in a tense atmosphere. We witness an unnamed girl escape her house and then immediately the scene changes. This is when we meet our protagonists Dolly and Sudheer, played by Nivetha Pethuraj and Naresh Agastya respectively. The bulk of the plot of the first episode revolves around Dolly and Sudheer returning to Dolly’s hometown because of a death in the family. They are escorted by one of Dolly’s family member, who is a suspicious fellow. Clearly something has happened between Dolly and her family. That’s when we learn that Dolly and her husband eloped against her family’s wishes, as they are from different casts. Afraid of being the targets of an honor killing, as Dolly’s family seems to be connected to some nefarious activities, the couple incapacitates their driver and is now on the run.
Coming in at around half an hour, the first episode drops the audience right into the thick of the action. No time is wasted as we are immediately introduced to our characters and the sticky situation they find themselves in. It is clear from the start that the stakes are life and death. Additionally, Dolly is pregnant which elevates even further the urgency of the protagonists’ situation. The theme of honor killings is something that has been explored before in Indian cinema and television, most famously perhaps in the Marathi film “Sairat.” Although the first episode mainly establishes the atmosphere and conflict of the series it will be interesting to see the direction the series will take, as there is so much one can do with a topic as sensitive and complex as this one.
Though the episode wastes no time in setting up the conflict, the pace can be overwhelmingly fast at times. The audience is presented with a lot of information upfront, it will now be up to the remaining episodes to flesh out all the questions presented. The conflict is clear, the stakes are high, now what is left to be seen is how this situation will play out.
“Paruvu” is now streaming on ZEE5 Global
