Delhi Crime Season 2: Tillotama Shome Kills It As Karishma!

Delhi Crime season 2 offered some brilliant actors and a gripping plot, but the presence of Tillotama Shome as Karishma steals the show. The multiple layers of Karishma have bound people to think deep into her narrative of the story. This time the show tries to portray the psyche of the criminals and questions where the predatory instinct in the society roots from.

The first season of Delhi Crime was a tribute to the 2012 horror of the gangrape of Nirbhaya. DCP Vartika Chaturvedi along with her team gets hold of the rapists and how. The show was not just successful in India but bagged the award for 'Best Drama Series' at the 48th International Emmy Awards. This time in the new season, the show delves into a series of brutal murders by a gang called the Kachcha Baniyan Gang. Read more about the history of the gang here.

Spoiler Alert: Delhi Crime season 2 Tillotama Shome

After long days of investigation, DCP Vartika finds a common link between the brutal murders happening in the capital city. And going forward with the search, they found it could be the beauty parlour that the murder victims visited. But to pinpoint the exact person behind the crimes is tough. The Modus Operandi of the gang is to murder rich South Delhi old couples during the night, that you must have figured from the trailer.

As a viewer, the revelation that Karishma, a  girl who worked as a beautician in one of the parlours of South Delhi was one of the murderers along with two other men challenges our general perception of crime thrillers. Post the revelation everything in the story shifts from being about the crime and more about unfurling the character of Karishma.

Karishma, a multi-layered character

In a short, but powerful scene Karishma is shown looking for an apartment to set up her own beauty parlour. She confirms the down payment of the place on a call and it is the first time we realise that she is not "pagal" but ambitious. Someone who chose the wrong way to achieve her dreams someone who wants a good life and wants it quickly. Someone who has stopped caring about society and family because in the first place they never did.

The aim of the group is to make enough money to start their lives afresh until there is a clash among them. The conflict, brings out the other side of Karishma, a cold-blooded woman who can do anything to achieve her dreams and freedom. As the police dig up her past we find Karishma aka Lata Solanki lived in Ghaziabad with her family. The police and the viewers are shocked that she not just left her husband high and dry but a four-year-old son too. In this, the show challenges the archetypical characterisation of "mothers" who can never cut the umbilical cord with their child.

When the police finally got hold of Karishma and DCP Vartika speaks to Karishma she does not make a lot of sense, yet every word makes a lot of sense when seen through her eyes. Karishma or Lata Solanki was a girl with a lot of ambition but very limited opportunities. It is heartbreaking when she says, "Kisi ne pucha mujh kya chahiye?" Karishma felt suffocated and wanted to do something for herself when she moved out. She mingled with the rich women and visited their houses for appointments and shared her story with them. But who pays attention to the dreams of a woman from an unknown background?

According to Karishma, they promised her help but later on mocked her dreams which angered her.

Was Karishma relatable?

There are plenty of Karishmas who are trapped in unhappy marriages and forced motherhood and still dream of a bigger life. Some try to get their way without giving up, some try to balance with family commitments and mostly give up trying.

Women are always boxed into several commitments, but does everyone turn into a criminal? No.

Karishma became a victim of her ambition. One can draw a similarity to Lady Macbeth whose ambition drove the criminal in her husband King Macbeth. Tilottama Shome has done brilliant work portraying the character of Karishma and capturing her emotions well. It wasn't a character with scenes spread throughout the show but she made her mark. A strong-headed woman who is often underestimated for being a woman proved to be stronger both mentally and physically than the men, of course her morals cannot be excused. But as far as storytelling goes Karshima needs to be celebrated for breaking out of the stereotypical moulds of the mother, the beloved and the wife.

The views expressed are author's own.