Crime Beat Review: Saba Azad, Saqib Saleem's Show Has Strong Performances But Lacks Emotional Depth

Title: Crime Beat

Directors: Sudhir Mishar, Sanjeev Kaul

Cast: Saqib Saleem, Saba Azad, Sai Tamhankar, Rahul Bhat, Adianth Kothare, Danish Hussain, Rajesh Tailang, and others

Where: Streaming on Zee5

Rating: 3 stars

There’s a certain romance to the idea of journalism—truth-seekers battling the odds, exposing corruption, and bringing the powerful to their knees. This series, based on Somnath Batabyal’s book The Price You Pay, latches onto this idealism but tempers it with the grittier reality of power plays, betrayals, and moral ambiguities.

The series, which spans eight episodes, explores Delhi’s crime-riddled underbelly through the lens of ambitious rookie reporter Abhishek Sinha (Saqib Saleem).

Narrated in a non-linear fashion, the series bookends with the assassination of the infamous Binny Chaudhary (Rahul Bhat)—a gangster turned modern-day Robin Hood who, on the day of his surrender, meets a predictably cinematic end.

Through kidnappings, ransom deals, and news exposés, the show attempts to dissect the uneasy alliance between crime, law enforcement, and the media. At its best, the series is a bland exercise in atmosphere—newsrooms buzzing with ambition, police stations reeking of unspoken deals, and television studios where narratives are not just reported but manufactured.

Saqib Saleem plays Abhishek with an earnestness that makes his initial naïveté believable, even if his transformation into a hardened journalist feels slightly undercooked. Danish Husain, ever reliable, brings a world-weariness to Amir Akhtar, the veteran editor who has seen enough to know that idealism doesn’t pay the bills. Rajesh Tailang, as the trigger-happy DCP Uday, is the quintessential ‘Dirty Harry’ of the Delhi police, dispensing justice with a well-placed bullet rather than paperwork. Adinath Kothare as ACP Mayank Sharma and Saba Azad as fellow journalist Maya Mathur add to the ensemble with steady performances.

Meanwhile, Rahul Bhatt, despite moments of brilliance, suffers from inconsistent styling choices (get-up), particularly in episode six. Sai Tamhankar, as Archana Pandey, aka Heroine—the gangster’s moll—delivers a knockout performance, infusing her role with just the right amount of oomph, intrigue, and menace.

Despite these strong performances, the series suffers from a lack of emotional depth. The show never quite succeeds in making us care—neither for its journalists nor the criminals they chase. The series treads familiar ground, reiterating that corruption and opportunism shape crime reportage, but it never offers anything particularly revelatory. Binny Chaudhary’s Robin Hood act—kidnapping Commonwealth contractors’ family members and distributing the ransom to his neighbourhood—is an intriguing thread that remains frustratingly superficial, robbing the character of any real complexity.

Technically, the series is polished, thanks to cinematographers Savita Singh and Arvind Krishnan, who capture the visuals with striking precision. The production design is top-notch, ensuring that the world of Crime Beat feels lived-in and authentic. However, where it falters is in its writing and screenplay—while the narrative is engaging, it never truly elevates itself beyond being a well-produced series.

Overall, the series is competent, well-acted, and atmospheric, but it leaves little lasting impact. It’s an efficient drama but never an urgent one—much like a crime report that you read, nod at, and then forget by morning coffee.