Emerging as a household name by starring in various daily serials, actor Karthik Raj (Sembaruthi, Office) headlines the cast of the Tamil web series Mugilan, a globetrotting crime drama directed by Sri Ram Ram (who has penned the screenplay). The show is currently streaming on Zee5, OTT platform.

Also starring Ramya Pandian as the female lead, Mughilan captures the rise and fall of its titular gangster (Karthik Raj) within two decades. The supporting cast also includes Aadukalam Naren, choreographer Robert and others.

The plot comes across as a rehash of every gangster film cliché and rarely offers anything new. After a botched assassination, Mugilan flees to Dubai with his family to evade arrest. Accompanying that is the parallel subplot that charts his exploits and his rise from a clerk to a gangster.

The overbearing familiarity of the plot and situations result in a predictable tale, and this issue is evident right from its first episode. Usually, crime-based series bank heavily on the cliffhangers or a climactic twist that create more intrigue with each passing episode. But in Mugilan, the payoffs do not create this lasting impact.

Adding more to the ordinary-ness is the needless subplots and character arcs crammed within a confusing narrative structure. Take Maghie (Ramya Pandiyan), Mugilan's wife, who is touted as a power-hungry femme fatale who manipulates her husband. But the show doesn't use this characterisation to any extent except for an inconsequential scene. The writing also suffers from the ‘soap opera' hangover with its banal use of voice-overs.

Mugilan neither throws any fascinating insight into the underbelly of crime nor does it deliver any entertaining surprises. One of the praiseworthy aspects of the show is its unapologetic portrayal of gangsters. They swear, and they lack honour until it is taken too far and becomes problematic as the show resorts to typecasting (Mugilan's inconsistent Madras Tamil, one of them).

Another redeeming aspect of Mugilan is its protagonist, a ruthless don who is reduced to a lonely, depressed man, burdened by age and responsibilities. Karthik Raj plays the character with aplomb and carries the show on his shoulders. The show's makers deserve some praise for its rich production values as they neatly capture the fugitive state of Mugilan and his family without resorting to visual trickery. Had they focused a bit on creating a convincing narrative, the series would've fared better.