Delhi Crime is based on the 2012 Delhi gang rape case that took place in the neighbourhood of Munirka, in South Delhi. The Netflix series follows the story in the aftermath of the gang rape, where Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), South Delhi, Chhaya Sharma (Vartika Chaturvedi in the reel) is tasked to find the culprits, responsible for the assaults and death of the female victim. Shefali Shah has performed the role of Chhaya Sharma very well.
Yes, I finally finished watching the series and it is well made. The anthology on the gruesome gang-rape is written and directed by Richie Mehta, Canadian film director and writer. It presents a view-point on different characters from the Delhi Police who were crucial to the investigation.
After hearing constant corruption cases and scams involving politicians from different political parties over the last decade, people were very angry at Central government of 2012. Even I was very outraged at that incident and vented my anger against the establishment in a post 'Dance of Democracy'.
In an Insta-Everything-World, people's expectations from - the government, the police, and the judiciary - are such that we expect cases to be solved and justice delivered instantly. After watching Delhi Crime, the Indian viewer is reminded of the reality of we Indians live and operate. The situation depicted of Delhi Police probably holds good for any state police force across the country - under-staffed, over-worked, paid less, lacks infrastructure, etc. Against all such odds, the Delhi Police team under Chhaya Sharma, DCP South Delhi, did do an impressive job and arresting all the 6 accused in a span of five days, under some tremendous pressure and scrutiny from politicians, media and citizens.
Rapes haven't stopped in Delhi or elsewhere in the country post December 2012. Here's a twitter trail on few of the rapes that I have come across and that's been reported in the media. This is definitely is not complete list, it requires the collective effort from the family and society in the up-bringing of young boys and men.
We the people have very high expectations from our forces while not considering the factors under which they operate. Unfortunately, our country has been run like this for ages, without much accountability from the governments that have ruled from Independence. Wish the young citizens of the country will change that and ask questions to the governments that seek vote every 5 years -
- Why should there be reforms to law, judiciary and governance only when such terrible incidents happen. Why cannot the law-makers, read politicians, work for the betterment of people and forces?
- Where do all the funds for the police forces go and how are they spent?
In retrospect after watching Delhi Crime, I feel the Media could have done much better job instead of bashing the police force for other political agenda. Media plays a very vital role in any democracy. However, in the recent years many journalists, TV and print, instead of reporting they also seem to be involved in doing activism leveraging their reach. Thanks to Social Media which has brought some equilibrium in countering such one-sided activism.
