Sacred Games (Indian TV series)

Overview

Sacred Games is an Indian Hindi-language crime thriller streaming television series, notable as the first Indian original production for the streaming service Netflix. The series is based on the 2006 novel of the same name by Indian author Vikram Chandra. It premiered in July 2018 and concluded with its second season in August 2019. The show is set primarily in Mumbai and follows a Mumbai Police officer who receives a cryptic phone call from a fugitive gangster, drawing him into a sprawling investigation that intersects with decades of crime, politics, and religious tension in India.

Key facts

Background

Vikram Chandra's novel Sacred Games, published in 2006, is a lengthy work of literary fiction blending the police procedural with a panoramic study of Mumbai's underworld and modern Indian history. Netflix selected the novel as the basis for its first Indian original series as part of its expansion into original content production in India. The adaptation was developed by Phantom Films, the production company co-founded by filmmakers Anurag Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane, among others.

Cast and characters

• Saif Ali Khan as Sartaj Singh, a troubled Mumbai Police inspector.
• Nawazuddin Siddiqui as Ganesh Gaitonde, a feared gangster whose voice-over narration drives much of the story.
• Radhika Apte as Anjali Mathur, a Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) officer.
• Pankaj Tripathi as Guruji, a spiritual leader introduced as a central figure in the second season.
• Kalki Koechlin as Batya Abelman, introduced in season two.
• Jatin Sarna as Bunty, a key associate of Gaitonde.
• Surveen Chawla as Jojo Mascarenhas.
• Neeraj Kabi as Parulkar, a senior police officer.

Production and direction

The series was directed by Anurag Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane in its first season, with Motwane also serving as showrunner. For the second season, Neeraj Ghaywan joined Kashyap as a co-director, with Ghaywan directing the segments centred on Sartaj Singh's storyline. The screenplay was developed by a team including Varun Grover, Smita Singh, and Vasant Nath. Music for the series was composed by Alokananda Dasgupta.

Plot

Set in Mumbai, the narrative alternates between two timelines. In the present day, Inspector Sartaj Singh receives a phone call from the long-missing gangster Ganesh Gaitonde, who warns him that the city has only twenty-five days left before a major catastrophe. The investigation leads Singh into a maze involving organised crime, intelligence agencies, communal politics, and a religious cult. In parallel, flashbacks trace Gaitonde's rise from poverty to dominance over Mumbai's underworld, his rivalries with rival gangs, and his entanglement with politicians and godmen. The second season expands the story to include international locations, including Kenya, and explores the doomsday plot at the centre of the mystery.

Release and reception

Season one premiered on 6 July 2018 with eight episodes and was released simultaneously in over 190 countries on Netflix. The first season was widely praised by critics for its writing, performances, cinematography, and ambition, and is regarded as a landmark in Indian streaming television for its mature themes, scale, and willingness to depict violence, sexuality, and political subject matter without the constraints typical of Indian broadcast television. Season two, released on 15 August 2019, also comprising eight episodes, received a more mixed critical response, though performances by Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Pankaj Tripathi continued to draw praise.

Controversies

The series attracted legal complaints over its content, including a complaint filed in connection with a dialogue referencing former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi during the first season. The matter was contested in Indian courts. The show also drew commentary for its frank depiction of communal violence, sexuality, and politics, and contributed to ongoing debates in India about regulation of streaming content.

Significance

As Netflix's first Indian original series, Sacred Games is widely credited with accelerating the growth of long-form, high-budget streaming drama in India and demonstrating an international audience for Hindi-language serialised storytelling. It opened the way for further Indian originals on Netflix and competing platforms, and influenced the production aesthetics and narrative ambition of subsequent Indian web series. The show also brought renewed attention to Vikram Chandra's source novel and to the careers of its lead actors in streaming formats.

Related topics

• Vikram Chandra
• Anurag Kashyap
• Vikramaditya Motwane
• Nawazuddin Siddiqui
• Saif Ali Khan
• Pankaj Tripathi
• Phantom Films
• Netflix in India
• Indian web series
• Mumbai underworld

References

• Chandra, Vikram. Sacred Games. HarperCollins, 2006.
• Netflix India official series page for Sacred Games.
• Contemporary reviews and reporting in Indian publications including The Hindu, The Indian Express, Hindustan Times, and Mint.