Review: 'The Trial' is carried on by a towering act from Kajol inspite of the loopholes

The Trial

The tagline for The Trial that says 'Pyaar, Kanoon, Dhoka' should have had you known that in some way, the show is indeed going to be about - love, law and betrayal. And while the amalgamation of these three sound just as delicious as it should, what one did not see coming that one out of these three aspects would somehow dominate a lot more than the others and hamper the story and your viewing experience. 

Nevertheless, The Trial on Disney+ Hotstar, an adaptation of the long-running American drama, The Good Wife has actor Kajol making her web series debut in the titular role as faces an unprecedented situation. With her husband, a high-profiled judge, Rajeev (Jishu Sengupta) being held guilty in a sex scandal and arrested, she now has to tackle life at its worst while tackling a return to being a lawyer and working along with taking care of her two teenage daughters. Having had the chance to see the entire series beforehand, here is what I thought about it-

The Good Aspects

Before anything else, we need to applaud 'the good' aspects. The strongest thread of the show is undoubtedly the internal family equation that involves two teenage daughters and a mother, who is taking on the world in all ways possible as she tries to move on from her disgraced husband. Every scene involving the two daughters is pretty much a knockout as director Suparn Verma makes sure to treat it with empathy but with a dose of practicality, reality but with its own sense of hope and wondering. 

Special mentions to teenage actors, Shruti Bisht and Suhani Juneja, who play the elder and younger daughter respectively for giving a fantastic performance consistently throughout all the episodes. The idea of two young girls being incredibly affected by their father being involved in a sex scandal. their struggles with the same at school, them having to 'grow up' way sooner and way faster than other kids do and most importantly, their bond with their mother - all these factors are the best moments in the show and make you feel every emotion that is intended.

The Loopholes, Dramatization & Convenience

For a show that is centred around law and a new case each in the first few episodes, The Trial chooses the route to keep things simple in trying to present a courtroom drama at every instance. However, in doing so, it chooses the way of convenience rather than subtlety and intelligence. While Noyonika (Kajol) is indeed facing huge odds at her workplace as established, the perks that her character are given are used as a tool to have her win every case almost too easily. There always are helpers for Noyonika in one way or another, which becomes rather underwhelming. And right from the get-go, the dramatization of several scenes is almost too much as the music and background score arrives too frequently and too imposingly - with Noyonika mouthing philosophical lines every time. 

It is fascinating how Kajol's Noyonika has you feeling for her due to the immense odds she is facing as she becomes the quintessential working mother but the ease with how her cases are solved, and in her favor (more often than not) - leads you to question if the legal system is indeed this quick and this easy (which it obviously isn't). For instance, the show pretty much takes place across six to eight months and in that span, she and the firm have managed to crack some of the most high-profile cases rather quickly.

Kajol - Finally!

Kajol has been an actor, who, while successful, never quite was applauded for her versatility owing to her choice of and portrayal of characters. But it seems that now, in her later years, like so many other female actors past their 40s - she is feeling liberated and clear with her choices. 

After a long time, Kajol gets a character where she needs to be subtle, subdued and still make an impact in the best way while making you feel for her. And that she does. As Noyonika, her struggles with an array of things ranging from work to family to society that includes sexism, friendships, favors etc. - are finely played out by Kajol. It is her performance where even the lesser impactful scenes still make for engaging viewing.

The 'Pyaar' Angle & Ensemble Cast

As I mentioned right at the beginning of this piece that little did I know that I was signing up for The Trial having the 'pyaar' reining supreme over 'kanoon' and 'dhoka' and not metaphorically but overwhelmingly. Without spoiling it for you, what I can touch upon is how the complicated dynamics of love that Noyonika finds herself immersed in somehow get center stage in the dying minutes of the finale which isn't a problem per se. But the cliched and formulaic treatment of this just somehow takes away from the essence of what the entire season stood for.

And coming to the ensemble cast - the likes of Sheeba Chadha, Aamir Ali and Kiran Kumar are as good as they can be but they get rather unimpressive character arcs. However, with more screentime and more complete developments, the likes of Kubbra Sait, Alyy Khan and Gaurav Pandey are standouts. With Sait, it is so refreshing to see her get a character to perform that has meat and she is fantastic; with Khan - it was such a delight to even see him in a presentation after such a long time and his subtle performance and baritone voice is brilliant and finally, Pandey - who also gets to be a young intern with his sense of 'youth' factor attached along with some heavier scenes to play with - does a great job.

The Verdict

The Trial - Pyaar, Kanoon, Dhoka is just the kind of show that invites you in as a viewer almost instantly owing to the intriguing premise in hand and even juggles around with other aspects in a satisfying manner. But soon enough, it takes the path of convenience and lethargy to make it a lot less impactful than it could have been. With a towering performance from Kajol and some impressive play with family dynamics, The Trial is still a decent and engaging watch.

Rating - *** (3/5)