Charlie Chopra & The Mystery of Solang Valley (Season 1): Any adaptation of anything Agatha Christie would always be set in place with fog. It would feature a large estate, desolate moors, dense fog, and all the concerned individuals present on the premises. Sony LIV’s Hindi language adaptation of The Sittaford Mystery is no different. The Desi touch helps, and there is quite an appealing catchphrase to shed light on the detective’s interest. “Tougher the case, the lesser the fees.”
The stellar cast adds to the interest in the six-episode series. Wamiqa Gabbi essays the titular character with Indian acting stalwarts Naseeruddin Shah and Ratna Pathak Shah essaying prominent roles. Their kids, Vivaan Shah and Imamuddin Shah, also feature in this ensemble cast. Besides this, Charlie Chopra & The Mystery of Solang Valley features the likes of Lara Dutta and Gulshan Grover. That’s about as good as it gets, as the series seems confused about its own genre. Sony LIV’s six-episode offering had the potential. Based on the opening episode from three months ago, things looked good. Unfortunately, the long wait, weight of expectations, and comparisons to other Agatha Christie-inspired content may render this one as weak.
If one watches it with an open mind though, things will fall into place. Charlie Chopra & The Mystery of Solang Valley feels like a long movie. With a runtime just shy of four hours, it is so. That’s how long it takes to find out who killed Brigadier Meherbaan Rawat.
Charlie Chopra & The Mystery of Solang Valley (Season 1) Recap:
Episode 1: The Legend of Lady Rose
The story begins at a candlelit house where Mr. Rai is performing a seance as numerous individuals watch him. When one of them makes a joke about the music, Rai gets distracted and warns them that the fun could prove costly. He continues with the process to speak to the spirit of Lady Rose, who embodies Wasima and begins screaming, “Death. I see Death.” Mr. Rai sees Wahima drop a portrait, and after looking at the cracks on a particular side, he learns Brigadier Meherbaan Rawat is dead. He makes an appeal to Lady Rose before wishing peace to Rawat’s soul.
Colonel Barua ignores the adverse weather and goes to check on Brigadier Rawat. However, Miss Bharucha labels it as rubbish. She receives a reminder about Lady Rose forgiving but not forgetting. Barua heads out in the snow, reaches the Brigadier’s house, and learns that the gentleman is not opening his door. The police are summoned and ask questions of Hanif (Rawat’s household help). They learn he visits at noon for lunch and at 9 pm for dinner as Rawat likes hot food. When they break the door, the people discover Brigadier Rawat’s corpse in his study. Charlie is present at a friend’s wedding, where she decides to find the groom’s shoes for a lesser fee than what the bride’s people wanted. She then gets a call and learns her fiancé, Jimmy, is detained at a police station in Old Manali. He is under arrest as the cops found his key at the murder site. They also have an eyewitness, who they say is Charlie herself.
Jimmy confesses his innocence to Charlie, and the audience learns that he is the Brigadier’s nephew. He tells Charlie he returned to Manali just to surprise her with a plot for her organic plant, for which he needed a loan. Rawat turns his nephew out without giving the loan, but Jimmy tells Charlie that he went back to the house as he left his keys. As Jimmy saw his uncle look through the peephole and not open the door, he got upset and left. The press hounds Charlie outside the station, and someone rescues her from there. She spends time with a stranger who offers her a beverage. Charlie then takes the cable car to Rockford Estate. Someone spies on her with binoculars.
Jimmy meets Brigadier Rawat’s brother and his family. Varun, Jimmy’s brother, offers to help Charlie “fight back.” He reveals he heard about the death at the seance. Charlie heads to another house where Rawat’s niece Saloni’s brother Billu accuses everyone of wanting the money. Audiences learn that it is unfounded as the family is well-to-do. Saloni’s husband seems to do well with his books. Charlie offers to stay at an Airbnb and learns she was tricked the previous day. The stranger from the police station was a reporter named Sitaram, who had performed a sting on her.
The entire family gathers to listen to Brigadier Rawat’s will. It sees the assets divided equally between his brother, his niece, and his nephews. He even leaves money to Hanif. The catch is the ski resort will not be sold and managed by Colonel Barua until he can do so or retires. At that moment, advocate Gangaram Arora walks in to serve a notice to all family members on behalf of his client Nicole Morris, i.e., Rawat’s fiancée. It is a stay order on the execution of the will.
She informs the family that she was to marry Rawat in two weeks and would have been the sole heir. Nicole also drops another bomb, revealing she is pregnant. The group consults with their lawyer and learns that a DNA and paternity test is possible at six months, with proof being enough to make an unborn child the sole heir. Marriage is not necessary.
Episode 2: Sansani
The episode begins with a flashback from Meherbaan Rawat’s birthday party. It is a painting, which comes as news to the younger members of the family. The family touches on him being single and asks why he didn’t tie the knot. Nicole phones at the moment, and then all look shocked to know that Rawat is finally thinking of taking a wife. The family is not enthusiastic to see her.
In the present day, the family is at the last rites, where Hanif tells Charles that Meherbaan’s decision to get married killed him. Miss Bharucha is spying on the ceremony from a bridge. Nicole, clad in white, appears at the ceremony with reporters following in her wake. Charlie sees Sitaram and gets her revenge; she tosses his phone into the river. Later, she gets dirt on Meherbaan Rawat and learns he was heartless, and no one mourned his demise except for Colonel Barua. In the flashback, Mr. Rai has an exchange with Meherbaan Rawat. He claims he is trying to save the Brigadier. Sitaram is staying in the same Airbnb as Charlie. She tries to get the post-mortem report from him, but he shuts the door in her face. It’s not unexpected when a phone is treated that way.
Charlie, through conversation, hears that Rawat’s brother was in Manali on that night. She goes to another door and hears Miss Bharucha ringing a bell to summon her. Charlie receives a clue – a tag of a flight from Lucknow to Delhi. Lucknow is crucial to the story. Miss Bharucha shares that Negi’s Airbnb presented competition to Meherbaan, especially with the ski championships in motion. Rawat threatened Negi and his wife, demanding his share in 30 days as they were tenants of his tenants. Bharucha tells Charlie the 30th day was the night of the murder.
Charlie takes her multiple-person motive theory to the cops, who brush her aside. Inspector Narayan Joshi shows her their investigation checks. Charlie asks whether they cross-checked the information, but they say his fingerprints were on the bottle. She explains the fingerprints and says innocent until proven guilty. Joshi promises Charlie’s lover will pay. Hanif informs Joshi that Meherbaan Rawat’s shoes are missing. He says the shoes were exactly like the ones the police were wearing. They identify the make and tell him half of Himachal wears snow shoes. Charlie watches a broadcast where the post-mortem claims the spirit of Lady Rose was present. Dr. Rai plays a recording of the scene, but someone snatches Charlie’s phone. Sitaram’s boss orders him not to leave and find ‘manufacture’ more suspects. Charlie hears that and tries to join forces by helping him talk to the locals, but she wants the post-mortem report, seance recording, and an apology. Charlie visits Solang ski resort and chats with Barua. He sheds light on how Brigadier Rawat helped him after his early retirement. A professional skier takes to the slopes and suffers a fatal fall.
Episode 3: Keh Do Ki Yeh Jooth Hai
Inspector Narayan passes off Nikki’s death as an incident, but Charlie refuses to accept that. She calls for it to be a crime scene and reveals the sabotage as Nikki was a professional skier. The ski resort employee claims Nikki was going over the speed limit. Charlie touches a nerve and earns a night stay in the lockup, but Barua steps in to save her.
Sitaram and Charlie discuss Negi as a potential killer. She decides not to trust the police or the press and dons her investigative garb. Charlie sets up a process to check the testimonies of the opportunities, and she believes everyone has a motive (for money). On that day, Mohan was watching Teesri Manzil. This was quite near Rawat’s house. They discuss Saloni and Manas as ‘touchy-feely’- the latter was supposedly having dinner with his publisher. Billu was in Kanpur. To find the killer, Charlie has to explore potential killers in Solang and Manali. She feels the key lies through Lady Rose.
Charlie goes to meet Wasima and Wilayat and asks her a few questions. She casually brings up Lucknow and provides an excuse for the same. Colonel Barua drops in to give Wasima her monthly medicines. Chopra speaks with Barua about how people would travel from Solang to Manali before the cable car. He replies that people used horses or traveled on foot. She asks him how long it took him on the night Meherbaan Rawat died. Barua reveals that it felt never-ending. Charlie sneaks back into the house and hears Wasima getting admonished for letting Jimmy’s fiancée in to hunt for clues.
The reporter learns Manas did not go to meet his publisher. Charlie says they should be investigating him. The duo is sitting outside Wilayat’s house, watching and listening to her sing. He suggests they record the session. At that moment, he spots a figure in the dark. Charlie runs, and he follows. The figure stops and stares at the mother-daughter duo through that very window. They do not tremble in fear. Charlie and Sitaram tail ‘touchy-feely’ to a bank, but she says he has an account in another bank. The conclusion is a double account. She bribes a thief to snatch the bag from Manas. The duo spots Manas investing money regularly after examining his bank passbook. Charlie finds a paper that proves Manas mortgaged his home for shares. She says the bigger question is not how he gambled but how he lost the gamble.
They go to talk to him, and he says Saloni tried to stop him. He also knew that the particular company was shady but invested there because of Billu. He shares that after the publisher refused his novel, he tried to kill himself. He stopped and remained seated in his car as Saloni informed him of Rawat’s death. This renders his alibi on the night of the murder null, as there was no dinner. Mohan reveals Varun joined the army as he looked up to Brigadier Rawat. He claims he wanted his son to join the National School of Drama. Charlie talks about Teen Manzil, the film Mohan said he went to watch that night. His reply proves he did not watch the movie. Charlie tails Mohan scales a wall, and gains entry to the location he is visiting. She sees him meet Janki and comment on the quality of weed.
Episode 4: Organic Honey
A flashback shows Jimmy meeting Charlie for the first time. She offers to invest if the pitch is good. He makes the speech, and she advises him. She says people invest in people’s stories, not their businesses. Charlie sees Miss Bharucha walking, or does she? Yes, she does. Miss Bharucha looks shocked when she learns her secret is discovered. In their conversation, she sits on the bed while Charlie Chopra occupies the wheelchair and smokes. Bharucha reveals she did not marry to retain independence but relied on insurance that would kick in if she became an invalid.
Sitaram’s report comes in naming Manas Dabral. Mohan, Varun, and Janki are disappointed and ask Charlie to leave as Saloni breaks down. Sitaram later explains this was their only option to shake the police department, and it worked. He claims he did it for her and to save Jimmy from the gallows. The family is sitting in the station. Charlie is also invited. Inspector Joshi informs the group he has to investigate all of them carefully, so they need to think before making any statement. The media released a new clip to share the motive for the murder. The accused needed money to pay his blackmailer. It shows Jimmy having sex with someone, which in this case is…
Charlie sits on a bench in the snow-covered hills and snips off portions of her hair. She heads home with a completely new look and calls Dolly Chopra, who is not around. Charlie spends the next day evening out of her haphazard haircut. People look through the peephole, and she sees the light. Charlie returns to Manali, asks to meet Jimmy, and questions him about how he knew Brigadier Rawat was present in the house. Jimmy replies he saw his uncle through the keyhole; Charlie counters that he saw the killer and not his uncle. She proceeds to the murder scene to carry out her investigation. Billu walks in with prospective buyers, and Charlie looks for a safe place to hide. She sneaks into a storeroom and finds a snow boot. He walks in there with his clients but does not find Charlie.
Charlie asks Barua if he felt someone was in Rawat’s house that night. The Colonel names Hanif, who becomes the subject of Charlie’s next interrogation. Hanif narrates his story of being a child of a refugee and how Brigadier Rawat employed him without knowing the truth. Hanif tells Charlie and Barua that he confessed to Rawat, promising to accept whatever was decided. Charlie tells him not to abscond. He also shares what he told the cops in episode 3. The killer stole Meherbaan Rawat’s shoes. Negi’s wife tells Charlie that she will be going out for the day and asks her to take care of the house. After Charlie shuts the door, she whispers, “And yourself too.”
Episode 5: Main Phuddu Aan
A flashback shows a young Charlie Chopra with Dolly Chopra. They discuss an investigative scenario, and audiences learn Charlie copied her mother’s talking style and catchphrase. After a bet that sees Dolly run, Charlie realizes she was fooled. Dolly got into a car and left. Colonel Barua visits Charlie in a hospital bed. She is there because she shut the window while the fire was on. Mohan saved her life. Janki and Mohan tell Charlie the latter was at Negi’s house to tell the truth- the weed plants grow in their house, and they run a business. It is this weed delivery that Mohan uses the films to hide. The client could not come, leaving Mohan without an alibi. Charlie tells the couple that she left her window open and whoever shut it attempted to murder her.
Sitaram presents Charlie with a major breakthrough. His search discovers Wilayat and Wasima’s real names are Bunty and Pinky Aftab. They are fugitives accused of murdering Ajay Thakur, i.e., the owner of the place Manas invested in. Charlie and Sitaram tail the duo while a hooded figure observes them. This individual stops in their path, revealing himself as Billu. He draws a knife and goes to stand Sitaram, who stumbles. Charlie feebly hits him with a stick and falls as she tries to back away. Wilayat and Wasima stop Billu just as he is about to stab Charlie Chopra. Wilayat speaks about her life. She became a widow at a young age, and her first song recording was her last. She moved in with Ajay Thakur, who wished she only sang for him. One day, he saw Pinky singing on TV. This led him to strike Wasima, leading Bunty to kill him.
Billu hid them in Solang Valley. He admits he wanted to send his uncle packing and he needed money for the passports, but someone else beat him to the first aim. He reveals himself as the hooded figure at Wasima’s house. Wasima reveals the possession in episode 1 was not a trick. She says it was not a ghost and confesses about her schizophrenia. Charlie admits she knew it as she read the prescription. Wasima requests they keep the story safe. Inspector Joshi arrives to mend fences with Charlie Chopra. He says the killer is the same one who tried to murder her. Per Joshi, the killer is Billu. Charlie gives him Wasima’s medicines to test. Later, Charlie pieces things together from Sitaram’s remark and understands the murder took place after the warning. She rushes to the police station, eats Wasima’s medicines, and confirms they are candies. She knows the killer. The police enter Barua’s house and see him dead via poison.
Episode 6: Look Within
The episode begins with a flashback to Barua and Meherbaan on the battlefield. The latter asks the former to burn his painting and painting things if he dies. The former says if they don’t die, he would like a portrait of himself painted. Barua confesses to killing Meherbaan Rawat. He shares how the Brigadier helped him and gave him a reason to live until Meherbaan’s marriage would see the ski resort be shared with Nicole. The Brigadier mentions he is sick of his family and well-wishers. Barua speaks about his soul being sold, and Meherbaan says that’s how it is. On that day, he waited for Dr. Rai’s seance and used Wasima’s illness to his advantage.
The press met the cops to understand how Barua is the killer if he has an alibi and cannot reach the destination in under two hours. Sitaram tells them Barua used skis to reach Manali. He has a drink with Meherbaan, who asks what Lady Rose said at the seance. Barua hits Meherbaan with a bottle twice and then proceeds to take his shoes. When Nicole ruined it with her court order, Barua killed her as well. He, however, just wanted a miscarriage. Barua praises Charlie Chopra in his note and confesses he shut the window for her to suffocate. When she escaped, he realized the end was near and accepted it, as per his mentor’s saying.
Charlie knows there is a murderer’s murderer. She wonders how the killer knew Lady Rose would appear at that moment. Jimmy comes to meet Charlie and extends an olive branch to the family. She asks him who leaked the video and even offers that Maya, the blackmailer, did not do it. When Jimmy insists she did, Charlie asks him to be honest. Varun leaked the video, or rather, it was leaked from his phone. At night, the family and their guests applaud Charlie when she walks into Mohan’s house with Sitaram. Mohan thanks Charlie for her efforts, but she apologizes for not saving Barua. Charlie tells Miss Bharucha someone killed Barua, and the murderer is present in the room. She doesn’t know who it is but asks Dr. Rai to summon Lady Rose again.
All the individuals refuse, but Wasima is keen to help if this is the only way to solve the case. Charlie is responsible for a whistling noise (something she hears from the séance recording Sitaram gave her), and Wasima gets possessed again. The sleuth apologizes to the people behind the fourth wall, sits, lights a cigar, and stares at one character. That individual whistles and calms Wasima down. It is revealed as a hypnotic trigger. Dr. Rai marches out in anger. Mohan asks Charlie why she is putting the blame on that particular family member. It also ties back to something from episode 1. The killer is someone who was spying on Charlie walking into the courtyard.
Charlie Chopra & The Mystery Of Solang Valley (Season 1) Ending Explained:
Who helped Colonel Barua kill Brigadier Meherbaan Rawat?
Although Colonel Barua dealt the fatal blow, it was Janki who orchestrated the entire thing. However, she was not free of blood from her hands.
How did Janki kill Colonel Barua?
Janki poisoned Colonel Barua to ensure someone else took the fall for her carefully laid plans.
What gives Janki away?
Colonel Barua’s suicide note contains a little discrepancy. When he refers to Brigadier Meherbaan Rawat, he does not use the word Brigadier. Instead, he used Meherbaan. This is something unique to just one person, i.e., Janki.
Why did Janki leak Jimmy’s video?
Janki leaked Jimmy’s video from Varun’s phone. She did so to ensure Charlie went away from Solang Valley and dropped her pursuit of the truth.
Who is the subject of the painting?
Janki is the subject of Meherbaan Rawat’s painting. She tells the room she is Rawat’s old flame and was pregnant with his child. He did not want to marry or have a child as he had no money at that time. She, however, did not want to abort and married Mohan Rawat.
How did Charlie identify Janki in the painting?
Charlie looked at a few old pictures of Jimmy and observed Janki’s presence in them. Her focus was on the earrings that were present in the paintings.
Why did Janki kill Meherbaan?
Janki says she wants independence but needs Meherbaan’s help to find Varun’s transplant. Meherbaan replies he will need to consult Nicole. This upsets Janki. Rawat replies they should not get personal as she made the choice about their child. As Janki feels insulted and is tired of begging, she devises a plan to kill Rawat. She hypnotized Barua and planted a trigger on Wasima. This trigger got the Lady Rose and “I see death” chants activated, allowing things to proceed.
What does Lady Rose tell Charlie?
When Charlie leaves Solang Valley, she sees a figure in red and hears a voice. Lady Rose tells Charlie that her mother is not buried and asks her to “Look Within.”
Charlie Chopra & The Mystery Of Solang Valley (Season 1) Review:
Vishal Bharadwaj’s directorial is positioned as dark and has the classic Agatha Christie hallmarks. This is expected as it is an official adaptation produced by Agatha Christie Limited. Too dreary for some? The writing infuses elements of humor, which emanate through Wamika Gabbi’s stereotypical Punjabi demeanor. Her rather frank ways of speaking and catchphrases bring Charlie Chopra’s distinctive style to life. The English subtitles put her catchphrase as “Fuck a duck.” That is something quite unique. Is Charlie Chopra memorable? Yes, but only when clad in that hat, overcoat, and sunglasses. Chopra, even though she frequently breaks the fourth wall, is not a character that would stand out. That honor falls to Priyanshu Painruli’s Sitaram.
He is the typical sleazeball while working as a journalist (for the clicks) with a heart. That comes later, but to my dismay, the series never once positioned him as the person of interest. While he serves as an outlet for the infusion of lightheartedness to the procedural proceedings in snow-clad, fog-covered Solang, it is Inspector Joshi who is amusing. His timing and seriousness may make audiences smile and shake their heads when they least expect it. The play on ACP Pradyuman’s dialogue (Kuch na kuch) in the opening episode is a novel touch as it eliminates audiences pondering over other fictional Indian investigators. Special mention to Tassaduq Hussain’s cinematography. He captures the snow setting to really bring the cold into the story. More scenes in the storm to actually show Barua skiing to Rawat’s house could have showcased his determination to make the kill no matter what. Hussain also uses the lingering camera trick quite well. The anticipation build-up from years of thriller shows conditions audiences to wait for someone to show up. Will it happen? Won’t it happen?
Every show’s music makes or breaks it. The music isn’t really memorable here. As I write this copy, all I remember is the introduction song and the haunting music when the hooded figure/Lady Rose appears. Speaking of the introduction song, the mural accompanying it caught my eye. Another thing that may catch people’s attention is the underuse of Naseeruddin and Ratna Pathak Shah. They play supporting characters (not part of Rawat’s relatives) and are grossly underused. Miss Bharucha’s character’s absence may not have been felt in Charlie Chopra & The Mystery of Solang Valley. And finally, a sincere advice would be to disable your subtitles before watching it. The Punjabi phrases in English are quite clearly not that.
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