HIGH (Season 1) - Review : An Engaging Show inspired from Breaking Bad!!!

High is an Indian Crime Thriller series directed by Nikhil Rao, written by Nikhil Rao, Nishant Goyal, and Emil Thomas. It stars Akshay Oberoi, Shweta Basu Prasad, Ranvir Shorey, Mrinmayee Godbole, Prakash Belawadi, Kunal Naik, Nakul Bhalla, Mantra Mugdh and Padmavati Rao   in main roles. 

The story starts with Shiv Mathur, played by Akshay Oberoi, a drug addict, who after a drug overdose, wakes up in a rehab facility the next day. The Rehab is run by Dr. Shridhar Roy, played by Prakash Belawadi, Dr. Shweta played by Shweta Basu Prasad and Dr. Nakul played by Nakul Bhalla. One day when Shiv was craving for some "maal", Dr. Shweta gave him a powdery like, a mysterious substance, and after consuming it Shiv felt like never before. After getting the news that Dr. Shridhar is in debt and has to pay Rs. 27Cr for saving the Rehab, Shiv comes up with a plan to sell these drugs in the open market. They start selling it and named it, the "Magic" pill. The trouble starts now when a drug lord Munna, played by Kunal Naik, and a Pharmaceutical Company CEO, played by Padmavati Rao, without even wasting a time, decides to kill all four of them. To know what happens next, go and stream it in MX Player for free. 

The story and screenplay have been written by Nikhil Rao, Emil Thomas, and Nishant Goyal. The story seems to be inspired by "Breaking Bad" and there's nothing wrong with that. The screenplay is very engaging, you'll get hooked from the first scene. The series is very well structured, there is a different but relevant story, at the beginning of every episode, shot in black and white, which shows some researchers and scientists in 1970, are in the search of a mysterious herb, Marithima Nefrulia, which has the properties of curing many irremediable diseases, from Cancer to Alzheimer. It's been used as a prologue for every episode so that you won't feel bored watching a black and white story in one go. The screenplay scores full marks for showcasing the corruption among the government officials, the truth behind every news channel, and the politics of the pharmaceutical company pleading to the state every time to ban every herbs and medicine that could have been used to cure many incurable diseases. The characters are well developed. The story mainly revolves around Shiv and there are other parallel tracks also, there is of Munna Bhai, a drug lord, a very well etched character, then there's Ashima, a fierce News Reporter, and of Jackson Lakda, a hitman who is in medications, suffering from traumas from his past. 

Some of the scenes have been shamelessly copied from Breaking Bad. Two of which I remember, one is the scene in which, Jimmy beats up Shiv when he asks for money in return for drugs. That scene reminded me of Jesse Pinkman got assaulted by Tuco in the first season. The second which I remember is the scene when Munna cuts the throat of DJ, just to prove a point, which reminds me of Gus killing his man in front of Jesse and Walter for the same reason. Apart from that, High never bores you as it's well-executed and delivers you the thrills, and shocks you briskly.

Akshay Oberoi is good as Shiv. Shweta Basu Prasad is stellar as Shweta. Prakash Belawadi, and Nakul Bhalla has also done a fine job. Mrinmayee Godbole is fierce and confident as Ashima. Ranvir Shorey surprises again as Jackson, a hitman. He gave a spine chilling performance. Padmavati Rao as the CEO of a Pharmaceutical company is effective and Mantra Mugdh as DJ has also lent good support.

High directed by Nikhil Rao, is edgy and interesting and engulfs you from the start. It successfully tries to uncover the truth of the pharmaceutical companies banning medical herbs which could have been a game-changer. The dynamics between the characters are not well established, but the screenplay moves so smoothly that you don't really care about it. The cinematography by K.U.Mohanan and John Jacob Payyapalli is exceptional,  supported by a brilliant and haunting background score and real dialogues. The series ends in a cliffhanger creating more suspense for the next season. It's available on MX Player for free, and it's highly recommended. 

Rating:- 3.5/5

Now streaming on MX Player.