‘ATM’, created by Harish Shankar and bankrolled by Dil Raju Productions, is the new Hyderabad-grown web series in the town. It is currently streaming on ZEE5.
What is the web series about? Jagan, Karthik, Abhay and Harsha (played by VJ Sunny, Krishna, Raviraj and Roiel Shree) are slum-dwellers who execute trivial crimes to get by in life. They have no intention to go for a major heist but that’s what life has in store for them.
A local smuggler loses ten crores worth of diamonds when one of them sells a car containing precious diamonds. The four individuals discover that they are facing existential crisis now. They must earn crores of rupees within ten days and they have no option but to dig into their wickedness.
Writer-director Chandra Mohan must be applauded for deftly telling a story that slowly acquires critical mass as it progresses from a low-stakes plot to a high-stakes game of survival involving an ATM heist, a power-hungry politician named Gajendra (Prudhvi), and an unforgiving cop named Hegde (Subbaraju). The characters discuss critical matters over a cup of chai or a plate of Mysore Bonda. Scratch the surface, their lives are not as easy-breezy as they appear to be.
There is a clever presentation of ATM as well. The title doesn’t just relate to the face of today’s banking system but also the power that the unity between the four protagonists brings in its wake: All Together Mighty. It’s a hint that they can’t be taken lightly, for their planning doesnt end with Plan B. Jagan and Co. has everything rolled up right up to Plan Z.
Neat performances are a big asset of this series. Throughout the eight episodes, the actors manage to sustain the tension, thanks to their sincere dialogue delivery and earnest expressions. Even relatively small players like Divi, Dayanand Reddy and the curious female cop played by Divya Vani are enjoyable.
The music by Prashanth R Vihari offers snatches of stylized score. The cinematography and editing are apt.
On the downside, the series should have played up the politician and smuggler tracks without regular tropes. A little more effort on the pacing side would have reduced the running time by 15-20 minutes over all.
The season will be followed by ‘ATM 2’. The lead up to the season has been established in the final episode.
CLICK HERE!! to stream “ATM” on ZEE5 Telugu.
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