C.I.D. (1998) Review: Story, Verdict & Where to Watch

C.I.D., first aired in 1998 and is a milestone in Indian television. Viewers on CocoFlix are still watching this show, now streaming online, which takes them into the fast-paced world of the Mumbai Crime Investigation Department. With the dedicated team of officers, including ACP Pradyuman (Shivaji Satham) and Inspector Daya (Dayanand Shetty), Senior Inspector Abhijeet (Aditya Srivastava), the show tackles a myriad of cases and defines a singular era of television. Its overwhelming success has guaranteed that it remains a part of the cultural lexicon of India, decade after decade. Simultaneously, it had a formula so rigid that it inspired numerous parodies. And yet it managed to amass a cult following and media attention for its 22 season run.

The Enduring Appeal of Mumbai's Detectives

Classical police procedurals remained a constant with C.I.D. From its debut, it rapidly amassed a following, in part thanks to its adherence to the traditional police procedural format. Its strength, from a critical perspective, mainly revolved around director Brijendra Pal Singh and a cast that quickly became a household name. Of the cast, Shivaji Satham’s portrayal of ACP Pradyuman, as a no-nonsense officer, encapsulating the confidence and presence with a twist of hand gestures that quickly became signature, catapulted C.I.D. into the elite echelon of Indian entertainment. Aditya Srivastava and Dayanand Shetty, alongside him, solidified the three Amigos that created magnetic on-screen chemistry, overall strengthening the feel of a delightful reunion with old friends in each successive new case. This epic ensemble consistently entertained, as aptly noted by The Times of India. Its reliance on a comedy of structure, in addition to its procedurals, allowed it to generate a slew of internet memes, and etch its name within the cultural lexicon. The enduring appeal, and the connection with its charactesr, gave C.I.D. the ability to remain a “still going strong” crime detective series, decades into its run. By and large, it successfully brought out the cult in millions.

Navigating the Procedural's Pitfalls

While C.I.D. was good at keeping its audience entertained, it had its fair share of inconsistencies. Kristina Das of India Today once noted how the series has “everything, literally” except for logic. The writers focused on entertainment and raising the drama quotient, therefore often disregarded the necessity of adhering to plausible procedures of a real life investigation. This often led to using convenient plot devices and explanations, including a series of leaps in logic. Sometimes solutions to cases were simply beyond the realm of possibility, suspending the audience’s disbelief. Additionally, the sheer volume of episodes produced over the years often made the cases feel unrelated and the series feel drawn out. Das also mentioned how, at times, the producers of the series “dragged” episodes with unnecessarily lengthy dialogues. Usually, lengthy exposition, drawn-out monologues, and repetitive dialogues are a hallmark of the series, and often serve to test an audience’s patience. The ratings for the series (5.7/10) indicate that, while many people continued to enjoy the series, the audience was, at times, put to a significant test of endurance, largely due to the dramatic dissonance between the start and finish of various cases.

Who Should Answer the C.I.D. Call?

C.I.D. is definitely a niche show. Those that grew up with the series will get a huge blast of nostalgia with the return of familiar faces. It is ideal for the audience that likes simple, straightforward, and easy to follow crime dramas. Each episode has a new case with a clear cut ending, and there’s no need for complicated and lengthy flashbacks or plot devices. The show just has a simple, easy, and predictable formula that some people may enjoy. Others will find it annoying how it skips over complicated and simple logical conversations just for the sake of entertainment. It’s good for a mindless show that you can dip in and out of and not feel lost. Most of the time, people will find that the show is a huge underwhelming disappointment, especially compared to more modern crime dramas. But with all of its flaws, the show did reinvent crime dramas in India and give the people what they wanted for a long time, which is why the show remains a cult classic.