Avinash Tiwary and Kay Kay Menon in ‘Bambai Meri Jaan’
Kay Kay Menon and Avinash Tiwary play father and son on opposite ends of the law in Amazon Prime Video’s new period crime drama series, Mumbai Meri Jaan.
Produced by Farhan Akhtar-led Excel Entertainment, the 10-part series is based on a story by crime writer S. Hussain Zaidi. Set in Mumbai in the 1960s and 70s, it tracks the rise of Dara Kadri (Tiwary), a determined young boy earning his spurs in the criminal underworld. Dara’s father, Ismail (Menon), is a poor but honest cop committed to cleaning up the city. “I was upright but my son hungry,” he says.
As Dara strays from the path and becomes an enforcer for local gangs, Ismail finds his family and world falling apart.
Mumbai Meri Jaan is created by Rensil D’Silva and Shujaat Saudagar and directed by Shujaat Saudagar.
The cast also features Saurabh Sachdeva, Kritika Kamra and Nivedita Bhattacharya and Amyra Dastur in key roles.
Talking about his turn in the series, Kay Kay Menon said in a statement, “My character Ismail Kadri is multi-layered and complex. He is an honest cop and a doting father who isn’t perfect. On one hand, he is deeply committed to cleaning the city of Bambai of all crime, on the other, to save his family, he is forced to become a pawn to the city’s crime syndicate.”
Avinash Tiwary said he was both awestruck and hesitant when he read the script of BMJ.
“The character I play in Mumbai Meri Jaan is something that very few actors get an opportunity to sink their teeth into, this early in their career. The way I saw it, there are villains and then there is Dara, a dynamic young man who believes that honest hard work won’t get you money and power,” the actor said.
Mumbai Meri Jaan streams on Prime Video from September 14.
