Netflix is bringing us a new Punjabi-Hindi series, and it stars Randeep Hooda as Gurnam. “CAT” is an upcoming series that will show us the dark side of Punjab. Punjab, on the outside, is very beautiful, with farms all around. But what happens behind these farms? Well, we will get to witness it in the series. Netflix has so far released three teasers and one trailer for the upcoming thriller drama. Even though Punjabi series are not explored much by the mainstream audience, with “CAT,” that may change. Randeep Hooda, with his versatility, looks amazing in the trailer. We also have Suvinder Vicky in the series, who was seen in the 2020 movie “Milestone” (Meel Patthar). Anyhow, from the looks of it, the series could be exciting. Read on to learn more about ‘CAT,’ which is releasing on the 9th of December.
The Trailer
In the trailer, we see Randeep Hooda working as a mechanic, with a person talking about Punjab and terrorism in the background. We get to witness different sides of Punjab in the trailer. We see mainly drugs, parties, concerts, and prostitution. Well, the plot of the series is pretty common: Gurnam (Randeep Hooda) joins the government as an informant to help his brother, who is caught selling drugs.
In the series, Randeep Hooda will be seen as a CAT agent. A CAT agent is basically a person who helps the government by working as a spy. Netflix also released three teasers for “CAT,” and by having a look at those, we get the idea that Randeep Hooda was already a CAT agent in the past but maybe left the job to lead a normal life. However, when his younger brother gets caught selling drugs to get him out of trouble, Randeep Hooda is once again asked to become a CAT agent.
In one of the teasers, a policeman is seen describing what a CAT agent does; he says one needs to be as alert as a “cat” and work in their (the drug mafia’s) space, get information, and pass it on to the government, and that is exactly what Gurnam does. In the other teaser, we also see that Gurnam is asked to kill the drug dealers one by one. We then see him with a gun, killing people and wiping blood from his face. Also, there are parallels where his younger self is shown covered in blood. According to the trailer, there is going to be a backstory about his past and his connections to the world of terrorism in Punjab. So, there will be two timelines in the series: one will cover his past, and one will be set in the present, where Randeep Hooda’s character will be seen as a CAT agent in our era.
Two Timelines
Since there are two timelines in the series, let’s further have them explained. Well, we see the policeman in the trailer saying that the police force, with great difficulties, helped Punjab’s people leave terrorism behind. We all know about the insurgency in Punjab in the mid-1980s, don’t we? I think the series will cover Gurnam’s past during that era of revolution when we saw a lot of riots happening all over Punjab. It was a very dark time, and since the show’s second half is clearly set in a modern era, we can safely say the series will cover some part of the campaign by Sikh militants in Punjab in its first timeline. During these riots, a lot of political and social changes took place in Punjab, and we might get to witness some of them in the series too. The second timeline looks modern—the Gen-Z era, we can say. We see concerts, parties, and prostitution in the modern setting of the series. So, it will explore our generation’s drug problems and how politics plays a tremendous part in the same.
The Drug Problem
The main themes of the series, as seen in the trailer, are politics, drugs, and prostitution. At times, the trailer looks like the series is going to be a little like “Udta Punjab,” a movie that starred Shahid Kapoor. However, the series might have more gore and action than the movie. Nonetheless, the drug problem in Punjab is now worsening, and we see that the writers are trying to shed some light on these important social issues. We see a little political drama too, and this is also one aspect that we are going to witness in this upcoming thriller drama.
We see that Gurnam is also working for a particular political party and its leader. I hope we will also witness the dirty side of politics and how these parties are also involved in some of the drug scandals. Let’s also hope they do not glorify any political party (fingers crossed!). Anyway, coming back to the problem of drugs in Punjab, we know the problem of drug abuse is getting worse in Punjab day by day. It’s not like the problem only applies to Punjab, but it is highlighted for a reason. Politics play a huge role in this, and that is what the series will be covering in detail. It’s good that the Punjabi industry is bringing light to such topics for its people. There are some aspects of prostitution also covered in the trailer. The creators have focused on cocaine in the trailer a lot, calling it “white clouds.” We will also see how students go to concerts and take drugs, thinking it’s cool. Gurnam’s younger brother Sunny is seen getting arrested in the series for being a drug dealer, and we see Gurnam asking the police to let him go because he is a student. So, we will get to witness how these young students get into the business of selling drugs.
The series does feel like it is going to be a “series version” of “Udta Punjab,” but we can’t say much before the series comes out. We see Gurnam going to different dangerous places in search of information for the government. We also see him fighting drug mafias in the teasers! It is always refreshing to see Randeep Hooda in an action role, and here he will also be speaking Punjabi. It is commendable how Randeep Hooda plays different roles so smoothly. We are very excited to witness a Punjabi series on a serious topic like this. Mark your calendars if you are excited about the series too!
