From the house of ZEE5, here comes another star-studded and content driven saga about real-life incident, web series ‘State of Siege: 26/11’ starring Arjan Bajwa, Arjun Bijlani, Vivek Dahiya, and Mukul Dev among others is based on the horrifying terror attacks of 26th November 2008, in Mumbai.
Inspired by Sandeel Unnithan’s book, ‘Black Tornado: The Three Sieges of Mumbai 26/11’, directed by Hollywood director, Matthew Leutwyler.
Ten fully armed and highly trained misguided youth caused havoc in the financial capital of India, Mumbai. Entering the city via Arabian Sea, these terrorists randomly gunned down innocent people down in the name of ‘Jihad’.
These Pakistani Mujahideen terrorists, hailed from the city of Lahore. Their sole aim was to terrorise people and kill a number of expats in lieu of annexing Kashmir into Pakistan. This real-life saga is told from the NSG point of view. The much-awaited ‘State of Siege’ is now streaming on the platform since the 20th of March 2020.
Actor Arjan Bajwa plays the part of Col. Suneel Sheron, a no-nonsense officer nicknamed as bullet thatcher. Leads the operations at the Taj, where the terrorist took their last stand. He is part of the 51 special Action group.
Dapper Vivek Dhaiya as Rohit Bagga, a young officer stationed at Chabad House (Nariman House). Actor Arjun Bijlani plays the role of Nikhil Manikrishnan.
The background score is remarkable. The editing was clean and takes the viewers through all the sieges with zero ambiguity. The production did display some eminent flaws. They haven’t paid attention to detail.
Overall the series is remarkable and address the real life situation with finesse and precision. Though there are flaws but then again one need to understand it’s a reconstruction of a real-life situation, which is a difficult task and the makers have done a great job doing so.
Some of the noteworthy back-stories pertaining the siege have been artfully woven into the series. The names have been fictionalized, but every Mumbaikar, who can recollect the minute-by minute account as it was being portrayed by the media, will relate to every incident and brave sole connected to the instances shown.
