Taskaree

Synopsis

Set at Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, the story follows suspended customs officer Superintendent Arjun Meena, who is reinstated to lead a special task force against an international smuggling syndicate. The team, appointed by Assistant Commissioner Prakash Kumar, includes officers previously sidelined for refusing corruption. They confront smuggler Bada Choudhary and face deep-rooted corruption and political interference. The narrative builds toward a gold-smuggling operation under diplomatic cover, with the task force succeeding at a personal cost.

Production

The series draws from real events, with writers Neeraj Pandey and Vipul K. Rawal meeting both retired and active smugglers through a customs officer serving as the show’s consultant. Director Raghav M Jairath found Sharad Kelkar an obvious pick for the villain because of his commanding presence. Amruta Khanvilkar first auditioned for a small part that went to Anuja Sathe, but later was asked to try out for the role of Mitali.

Nitin Rao, who had worked with the production on Kaun Pravin Tambe?, said this part let him show a completely new side of his acting. Mohammed Al Fahad, playing a police officer, became the first Bahraini actor in a major Bollywood project. Filming took place in Mumbai, Goa, Delhi, Milan, Bangkok, Abu Dhabi, Al-Dera'a, Addis Ababa, and Bahrain.

The crew nicknamed Emraan Hashmi, Amruta Khanvilkar, and Nandish Sandhu the “Trimurti” because of their on-screen chemistry. Khanvilkar hurt her hand during an action scene, and the swelling lasted about a month. Cyril Raffaelli served as one of the stunt coordinators.

Reception

Taskaree became the first Indian series to reach number one on Netflix's global non-English TV list. In its debut week, it recorded 5.4 million views and 29.4 million hours of watch time, finishing ahead of the Korean romantic comedy Can This Love Be Translated? In the second week, it added 3.9 million views and 21.2 million hours, ranking third globally. Within 12 days, it crossed 9.3 million views and accumulated over 50.6 million total hours watched.

Zoya Afroz, Amruta Khanvilkar, Anurag Sinha, and Emraan Hashmi ranked first, second, third, and sixth on IMDb's Popular Indian Celebrities list. Risha Ganguly of Times Now rated it 3.5 out of 5, praising realism and performances but noting lack of narrative surprises. Titas Chowdhury of News 18 also gave 3.5 stars, finding Hashmi's performance intense but Kelkar's portrayal bland.