Criminal Justice: A Family Matter

At the heart of Criminal Justice Season 4: A Family Matter is indeed a family matter, and that of the affluent Nagpal family. Raj Nagpal (Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub) and his estranged wife Anju Nagpal (Surveen Chawla) live in the same building, but in different apartments. They share a teenage daughter, Ira, who suffers from Asperger’s syndrome. Then there’s Raj’s mother, Gurmeet, and his girlfriend Roshni Saluja (Asha Negi), who is also Ira’s nurse. It’s a modern family, and everyone seems to have come to terms with the arrangement. All seems well until one day, their shared househelp Kamala walks in to see a dead Roshni lying in a pool of blood in Raj’s arms. Her cry for help reaches Anju, who rushes from next door, and immediately calls up the police. Raj is now the prime suspect in the police investigation and Anju reaches out to lawyer Madhav Mishra (Pankaj Tripathi) for help. What follows is a taut murder investigation - with the angles of police interrogation, courtroom drama and a parallel media trial.

Raj Nagpal, a revered medico, finds himself on the brink of divorce. Despite their differences, Raj and his wife, Anju, are committed to co-parenting their daughter, Ira, who has Asperger’s syndrome. Amidst the domestic trouble, Raj falls for Roshni, a nurse at his hospital. While the trio initially maintains cordiality, their peace shatters with Roshni’s shocking murder. Raj is taken into police custody, and lawyer Madhav Mishra is out to secure his release. Pankaj Tripathi’s ability to bring grounded-ness and believability to his roles across genres has kept him in good standing for many years now. While the laid-back persona and subtle humour continue to remain the USPs of his performance in project after project, it’s surprising how the petrol in his tank never dries up. Criminal Justice Season 4 is another terrific proof of his talent.

There is comfort in watching characters we know go through a new story arc, a mix that allows for both familiarity and freshness. The fourth season of Criminal Justice re-unites us with the core team of Madhav Mishra, played by the affable Pankaj Tripathi, his perky wife Ratna (Khushboo Atre), her eager-beaver brother Deep (Aatm Prakash Mishra), and the immaculately-turned out Shivani Mathur (Barkha Singh), which is plunged into a roiling family affair featuring murder and mayhem. Only three episodes of the eight are streaming currently, in which we are introduced to the prime suspects of a murder most foul in a fancy Mumbai high-rise. A domestic help arrives in a flat in the morning and sees a woman, all bloodied, being cradled by a man, who appears to be distraught. Another woman is present, who has already called the cops.

JioHotstar’s Criminal Justice series, which is adapted from BBC Studio’s British series of the same name, revolves around lawyer Madhav Mishra (Pankaj Tripathi) and the cases he takes upon, which are considered impossible to crack. Criminal Justice: A Family Matter, the fourth season in the series, revolves around another case taken by him. But by now, Madhav has established himself as a force to reckon with. The law circles are now pretty much taking him seriously. He is joined by his brother-in-law Deep (Aatm Prakash Mishra), Shivani Mathur (Barkha Singh) and his wife Ratna (Khushboo Atre). This time, it’s the story of well-known surgeon Dr Raj Nagpal (Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub), who has separated from his wife and lawyer Anju (Surveen Chawla) but they haven’t divorced. She lives just next door because she wants to be there for their daughter Ira (Khushi Bhardwaj), who is suffering from Asperger’s Syndrome. Raj has hired a full time nurse Roshni (Asha Negi) to take special care of Ira. After some time, Raj and Roshni become close and fall in love. Anju is fine with it while Ira considers Roshni as her best friend.

It’s a cosy situation for surgeon Dr Raj Nagpal (Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub) with separated wife Anju (Surveen Chawla) in the apartment across the floor and girlfriend-cum-nurse Roshni Saluja (Asha Negi) in his house to take care of fragile daughter Ira who suffers from Aspergers Syndrome. His mom Gurmeet (Sohaila Kapur) is around too, happy to go along with Raj’s unconventional arrangement. After an eventful 13th birthday party for Ira, the idyllic world is shattered when the housemaid walks in to find Raj holding the bloodied dead body of Roshni in his arms. One scream from the maid and Anju from across the floor comes rushing in. Whodunnit and why?

कोर्ट-कचहरी से यूं तो आम आदमी दूर ही रहना पसंद करता है, मगर इंसाफ के इस गलियारे की कहानियां अगर ढंग से कही जाए, तो लोग बड़े चाव से देखते-सुनते हैं। यही वजह है कि OTT पर लीगल सिस्टम पर आधारित ‘इलीगल’, ‘मामला लीगल है’, ‘गिल्टी माइंड्स’ जैसी वेब सीरीज काफी पसंद की गई। लेकिन इन सबमें बाजी मारी ‘क्रिमिनल जस्टिस’ ने। पंकज त्रिपाठी स्टारर यह कोर्टरूम ड्रामा उन चंद कामयाब शोज में से है, जो चौथे सीजन तक पहुंचा है। इससे पहले यह कमाल सिर्फ ‘गुल्लक’ ही कर पाई है। अब अपने चौथे सीजन ‘क्रिमिनल जस्टिस: ए फैमिली मैटर’ में भी वकील माधव मिश्रा (पंकज त्रिपाठी) एक ऐसा जटिल हाई प्रोफाइल केस लड़ते हैं, जो ना केवल अंत तक बांधे रखता है, बल्कि इमोशनल भी करता है।

The genial but crafty lawyer Madhav Mishra, played by Pankaj Tripathi, is back for yet another legal conundrum that doesn’t test much of his intelligence. Instead, this new murder involving a couple and a mistress has many confounding twists that don’t leave the desired impact. Directed by Rohan Sippy, the crime thriller Criminal Justice - A Family Matter will keep you interested in the final outcome, but the excitement levels have dimmed with the formulaic treatment of the show. The fourth season is focused on the Nagpals, a separated husband and wife couple, Raj (Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub) and Anju (Surveen Chawla). Raj is accused of murdering Roshni Saluja (Asha Negi), the caretaker of their 13-year-old daughter Ira (Khushi Bhardwaj), and later Anju is roped in as a potential suspect. It’s up to Madhav Mishra and his ace team to stop his client from spending their life in jail. Will the defence be able to prove their case over the police and prosecutor’s evidence? The answers seem pretty obvious.

The crime scene: an upscale Bandra apartment. The crime: famous surgeon Raj Nagpal (Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub) is found holding the dead body of his girlfriend, Roshni Saluja (Asha Negi). The social angle: the person who finds Raj in this position is none other than his separated wife, Anju (Surveen Chawla), who lives next door. The dysfunctional-family quirk: Roshni was the nurse and caregiver of Raj and Anju’s neurodivergent 13-year-old daughter (Khushi Bhardwaj). The lawyer(s): working-class hero Madhav Mishra (Pankaj Tripathi) defends prime suspect Raj against old foe and public prosecutor Lekha Agastya (Shweta Basu Prasad). Other characters who may or may not matter: a shaken housemaid, two police investigators (also a divorced couple), Roshni’s ex-boyfriend, Raj’s bitchy friends, Anju’s jaded face, and the public spat that Raj and Roshni had at the daughter’s birthday party the night before.