Hi guys! I am so fond of experimenting with a myriad of colors and hence these different shades every week. I would love feedback from you guys about the color of my blog page (I am going astray from the topic..so here we are all serious now…)
Although this blog is a little different from what I usually write about, but trying new things makes life more exciting and interesting. Doesn’t it? And the series (which I finished binge watching, again, yesterday) I am going to talk about in today’s blog, surely deserves a mention!
So here we begin!
For all my readers who are not familiar with this scenario, here’s a little background guide for you (remembering MUN’s, anyone)?
Kota is a well-established town in the state of Rajasthan, India, which houses a large number of pre- engineering and medical coaching institutes. Students in large numbers from all over the country, flock to this this town in hopes of undergoing extensive training to be granted admission into prestigious colleges. The extreme pressure of performing well, either make diamonds out of coals or break the existing coals. The struggle of a new student of coping with the life away from his comfort zone is depicted in the series.
Creator: Saurabh Khanna
Director: Raghav Subbu
Cast: Mayur More, Ranjan Raj, Alam Khan, Jitendra Kumar, Ahsaas Channa, Revathi Pillai
Streaming on: TVFPlay, Youtube
Plot
In a black-and-white frame, we meet a young, anxious,apprehensive boy, Vaibhav, who has migrated from his hometown to Kota, to get into one of the prestigious coaching institutes. His inability to crack entrance into the best coaching institute lands him in another one where his life changes. New bonds, new friendships, new memories, new romance, new courtships, new lessons, new responsibilities, new life- altering decisions and everlasting impressions are created on the way to fulfilling his dreams…until the fateful day which flips his world upside down.
Review
This is probably the first monochrome web series in the age of fine colors and precise definitions. You begin the series, expecting it to be a portrayal of how a student is crushed and defeated with all the pressure teeming around him, but you would be surprised and satisfied as the drama unfolds.A monologue from a seemingly “old school” professor breaks all stereotypes of orthodox teacher-student relationships and keeps you glued to watch the next episode. Further into the series, you find yourself wanting to envelope the protagonist in a warm, empathetic embrace (wow, I getting better at alliterations!)as he struggles to adjust in his now competitive, hostile and parent-less world. Here as well his teacher comes to his rescue and hence begins a new chapter of a newly made independent Vaibhav. Dealing with academic problems and dallying with an acquaintance(that too, with an academic undercurrent) sums up the latter episodes of the series.
The protagonist’s sidekicks and roommates Uday and Meena show you two different sides of the same world, one struggling to prove your worth to the world and the other, struggling to accept your inability to prove your worth.
The top-notch acting of the (stars-in-the-making studded) cast, strikes the cords of your heart and you start living each characters’ life through your eyes. Each actor displays the nuances of great (no wait, tremendously great) acting skills, but ultimately the adorable and naive Meena steals the limelight.
The writing and story is so bold ,gripping and realistic, you feel like giving the writers and creators a standing ovation. They have beautifully captured the details of everyday life of students and presented them to the world in the form of a cinematic luxury.
I think the black-and-white screen, the aerial shots (pointing to the zenith) are euphemisms for the harsh realities of life of the students. As the end of the series draws near, colors are fused in the screen and you left believing that Vaibhav has finally found a course, a direction and happiness in life.
Small incidents in the series light up your day, like, Meena unburdening his friend from the load of maintaining long-distance friendship, Vaibahv’s mother finally at peace when he adjusts himself aptly in his surrounding, Vaibhav paying gratitude to his teacher and many more. Uday’s portrayal of a boy struggling to fulfill his father’s dreams at the cost of his happiness is commendable.
Kota Factory isn’t just a web series but a cinematic experience that keeps everyone marveling at the creativity of story narration and presentation. There are few glitches that I have with the series. Firstly the creators used to upload one episode in a week and left you at a cliffhanger waiting for the next. And secondly, it ended way too soon. You feel, you just started knowing Vaibhav, learning to grow up in unfamiliar and uncharted surroundings and the next thing you know, you won’t be welcome in his world, until the next season.
This is without doubt, one of the best web series I have seen in a long time, barring Game of Thrones and a few others. So I would rate this series 4.5/5 and suggest everyone to add this to your must watch series. The best thing about this series is that, it provides subtitles for people who face a little trouble understanding Hindi.
Watch these series once and then we will discuss whether the episodes could mellow your heart and convince you to applaud Vaibhav and millions of others who face this struggle.
Before visiting YouTube to binge watch the series, do remember to follow my blog!
Cheers!
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