Matka King Review: Vijay Varma’s ‘royal’ performance in a battle of power, risk and loyalty

‘Matka King’ is a gritty period crime drama that brings to life the bookmaking world of 1960s Mumbai. Director Nagaraj Poptrao Manjule weaves this tale of greed, honesty and decadence with great seriousness. Vijay Varma once again proves his mettle as ‘Brij Bhatti’ – his journey from an ordinary mill manager to the undisputed king of the gambling world is a thrilling one. Actors like Sai Tamhankar, Kritika Kamra and Gulshan Grover have also given strong performances. Although there are technical and VFX flaws at some places, the series keeps the audience hooked till the end thanks to its suspense and wonderful characters. If you are fond of thrillers and stories of old Bombay, then this series is a good choice for you.

Vijay Varma plays the role of Brij Bhatti, a cotton merchant who lives in a rice paddy in Mumbai with his pregnant wife Barkha (Sai ​​Tamhankar) and younger brother Lacchu (Bhupendra Jadwat). He works as a manager in a cotton mill and, with the help of his boss, also runs a card-based betting game (Satta), in which people bet on numbers from 0 to 9. Winners are paid based on New York cotton exchange rates. However, his boss, Laljibhai (Gulshan Grover), is unscrupulous and instead of playing honestly with the bettors, he manipulates the results by changing the winning numbers several times to increase his profits.

More details about Brij Bhatti’s character will be revealed soon. Things get worse when they get into trouble with a financier because of their brother’s gambling addiction. Bridge promised to double the amount within ten days to save him. Finding no help from his boss – who in turn humiliates him – Bridge decides to walk away and start something new on his own. Thus begins his own version of the ‘Matka’ game based on the same principle: honesty. To see how an ordinary cotton mill manager becomes one of the most powerful businessmen, and how success gradually changes his life, you have to watch ‘Matka King’.

 

Director Nagaraj Poptrao Manjule has done a wonderful job in his work. Overall the ‘Matka King’ series seems to be weaving very well; Most of the episodes move at a brisk pace, except for a few moments where the story feels a bit slow and sluggish. Action scenes also look very impressive on screen. At times it felt like some characters’ arcs weren’t fully formed, and their stories lacked depth. However, only time will tell if this is intentional or not.

The musicians have also done a great job; Along with the use of Kishore Kumar’s song ‘Zindagi Ek Safar’, other songs like the title track composed by Ajay Jayanti cannot be ignored as they go perfectly with the theme of the series. The sound department has also done a good job. Action scenes feel real and natural, not fake or forced.

‘Matka King’ is interesting, has a great cast, and can be watched in its entirety in one sitting. The costumes are great, perfectly capturing the atmosphere of 1960s Bombay. The makers have also tried to connect the end of the story with the opening scene, making the story come full circle. This keeps the audience intrigued from the very beginning and slowly they get to know how Vijay Varma’s character reached that position.

There were also a few moments where I felt the makers should have used shots of actual cars instead of shooting on green screen. In some scenes the car appeared to be standing still with the background moving; It is clearly visible and distracts the audience.

Vijay Varma has played his role of ‘Brij Bhatti’ very well in this period drama and gambling story. Be it serious and intense moments, emotional scenes, or pivotal scenes, he has shown his full potential as an actor and delivered a powerful performance.

Along with him, Kritika Kamra anchors the story with her performance as ‘Gulrukh Dubash’. Sai Tamhankar, as Barkha Bhatti, plays the role of a supportive wife very well; She does everything for her family, but also wants to make her mark—including finishing her college degree and speaking up for her rights.

On the other hand, Siddharth Jadhav, as Dagdu Vishke, is a perfect choice for a Marathi character; He plays his role with full dedication. Bhupendra Jadwat plays a prominent role as ‘Lachu’, Brij Bhatti’s younger brother; He shows different aspects of his character, as he is cunning and greedy at the same time. And finally, Gulshan Grover as Lalji Bhai – who runs a cotton mill – plays a negative role and does what he does best.

The supporting cast includes honest inspector sub-inspector Eknath Tumbade as Bharat Jadhav, investigative journalist T.P. Girish Kulkarni as D’Souza, Jamie Lever as Sulbha, Kishore Kadam as politician, Cyrus Sahukar as actor Maqsood, Arpita Sethi as Vasudha, Sambhaji Tangde as mill worker, Ishtiaq Khan as financier Jinu Master, Sanjeev Jotangia and Bhai Simran as the editor of the newspaper tell it all. the story I put my life into it.

Overall ‘Matka King’ is a watchable series. It’s full of thrills and suspense, and the show is scripted in such a way that with each passing episode, you’ll want to watch it all at once – thanks to its cliffhangers. The character of ‘Brij Bhatti’ is played so well by Vijay Varma, as if the role was made for him.

The series also features great actors like Kritika Kamra, Sai Tamhankar, Siddharth Jadhav, Bhupendra Jadwat and Gulshan Grover, who together make the story even more powerful. Although it has some flaws — like technical and pacing issues — but if you love Vijay Varma and interesting shows, you won’t be disappointed.

‘Matka King’ deserves 3.5 out of 5 stars.