Netflix’s The Railway Men Review: Touching & engaging performances of Kay Kay Menon, Babil Khan, R Madhavan & Divyenndu

Language: Hindi

Director: Shiv Rawail

Cast: Kay Kay Menon, Babil Khan, R Madhavan, Divyenndu, Juhi Chawla

Netflix’s The Railway Men series is a classic example of how the then government failed the people of Bhopal. A tragedy that could have been avoided had proper steps been taken to not build the Union Carbide Factory in Bhopal. The series shows how a group of railway employees along with a railway bandit saved multiple lives on the night of Bhopal gas tragedy. The people of Bhopal died instantly on the roads when forty tonnes of methyl- isocyanate leaked from the Union Carbide factory.

Produced by Yash Raj films, The Railway Men recreated the devastation of the horrific night in the most sensitive way possible. All the actors starting from Babil Khan, R Madhavan, Kay Kay Menon, Divyenndu, Dibyendu Bhattacharya and even Juhi Chawla gave their best. Kay Kay Menon, known for being one of the most brilliant craftsmen, was one of the brightest in the entire show. His eyes did most of the talking starting from expressing his grief to happiness. A simple, honest station master who is proud of his job takes the responsibility of saving multiple human beings from the tragedy and effort that he puts in to send back the Gorakhpur Express by risking his life shows his dedication towards his job.

Netflix one after the other is bringing out the human stories with so much brilliance. Recently ‘Kala Paani’ and now The Railway Men shows human struggle for survival in the toughest of situations. One of the best depiction of the character was that of Divyenndu’s, a railway bandit and how he transformed himself in the time of crisis. His character shows the different layers and how he kind of became a Man-Friday on that deadly night. We should remember that a thief also has a soul and Divyenndu was able to deliver that bit with honesty towards his craft. Babil Khan who plays the role of a loco pilot in the series, is truly one of the star kids to watch out for. Just like his father he immersed himself into the role.The Railway Men does justice to the return of the horrific memories 1984 Bhopal Gas Tragedy. Not just the four leading men, the station master (Kay Kay Menon), a loco pilot (Babil  Khan) and a bandit in the disguise of a constable (Divyenndu) and R Madhavan who plays the role of a senior railway officer, but everybody did their roles to perfection. The performances of all the actors were compelling and that was the most gripping part of the series. Netflix’s The Railway Men has again proved that you really don’t need big stars to make successful cinema. All you need is good craftsmen and a honest story like the way this show had. The Railway Men shows the untold part of the Bhopal gas tragedy  which we weren't aware of and hence it is a must watch.

The writing of the show was crisp and the backstories were beautifully weaved in. Many may question as to why we need to see this Bhopal tragedy again and how it is relevant in today’s time. But The Railway Men has relevance even today because the way industries are growing, it’s time to pause and think. A gas leakage like this may not happen with science advancing, but one miscalculation, one minor mistake can bring back the doomsday the way it did years back in Bhopal. The city hasn't fully recovered even today. The series shows how the common people of the city became victim to the greedy motives of the US Corporation who owned the pesticide company and how the safety measures of the workers of the company were ignored. After all they were all poor people and after all the White Americans has all the right to rule us and the powerful men of India allowed this to happen.

The show depicts not only what happened on that dreadful night, but also the health impact of industry pollution many years later. The best thing about The Railway Men is that it never loses its track or focus even while showing the side-stories. The realistic depiction with real images will make your heart sink again. It's not a natural disaster, but a human disaster which definitely could have been avoided!