Farzi Season 1
Farzi (transl. Fake) is an Indian Hindi-language black comedy crime thriller television series created, produced and directed by Raj & DK, who also co-wrote the series with Sita Menon and Suman Kumar. It stars Shahid Kapoor, Vijay Sethupathi, Kay Kay Menon, Raashii Khanna and Bhuvan Arora, and tells the story of a disillusioned artist who decides to make counterfeit money.
Initially conceived as a film in 2014, Farzi was expanded into a television series by 2019. Principal photography began in Mumbai in July 2021. Filming also took place in Alibaug, Goa, Nepal, and Jordan. Sachin–Jigar and Tanishk Bagchi composed the songs, while Ketan Sodha provided the score. The series shares continuity with Raj & DK’s spy series The Family Man.
The eight-episode series was released on Amazon Prime Video on 10 February 2023. Farzi received positive reviews, and emerged as the most-watched Indian streaming series. By the end of February 2023, Kapoor confirmed that the show would return for a second season.
Farzi Season 1
STORY
Episodes 01
“Artist”
Sunny is a poor artist, who assists his grandfather Madhav in running an idealistic printing press, alongside his best friend Firoz. Trouble arises when their business is at the risk of bankruptcy. Disillusioned, Sunny and Firoz decide to print counterfeit 500-rupee notes. Initially unsuccessful, their second attempt pays off. Meanwhile, a determined officer, Michael, captures his nemesis, counterfeiting kingpin Mansoor Dalal, in Nepal. However Mansoor escapes. Later, Mansoor kidnaps Sunny and Firoz.
Episodes 02
“Social Service”
Episodes 03
“CCFART”
Michael sets up the Counterfeiting and Currency Fraud Analysis and Research Team (CCFART), the task force he wanted through Gahlot’s help. He shares a troubled relationship with his ex-wife, Rekha, and son. Megha, dissatisfied with her job at the RBI, joins Michael’s team. She soon gets in trouble when she defies Michael to investigate the “artist” whose fake note she had found, and almost busts their operation. Meanwhile, Sunny and Firoz get hired to print fake money for a politician and end up delivering a ₹20 crore shipment to Surat themselves.
Episodes 04
“Dhanrakshak”
Rekha sends Michael divorce papers. Megha’s fake note scanner, Dhanrakshak, is launched by Gahlot, who believes the media attention will help him win the election. Meanwhile, Madhav suffers from dementia. Mansoor is rattled by the arrests due to Dhanrakshak. Impressed by Sunny’s artistry (Dhanrakshak cannot detect his notes), Mansoor kidnaps him and Firoz and makes Sunny an offer to work for his crime organization.
Episodes 05
“Second Oldest Profession”
Sunny agrees to start working for Mansoor and produces a fake 2000-rupee note at his lab in Jordan. Mansoor arranges a neuro specialist and pays for Madhav’s surgery. In Bangladesh, Mansoor’s henchman Bilal is caught by Michael and the team. Michael threatens Bilal and turns him into an informant. Back in Mumbai, Sunny is asked by Mansoor to infiltrate CCFART. He stages a meeting with Megha and manages to hack into her phone.
Episodes 06
“Cat and Mouse”
Sunny spies on CCFART’s plans through Megha’s phone. Michael gets information from Bilal, and another mole in Mansoor’s organization. Following a cat-and-mouse game between the two organizations, Mansoor suggests a “Trojan Horse” plan to smuggle ₹12,000 crores in counterfeit notes into India. With help from a Russian boat crew, Sunny manages to trick Michael, successfully smuggling the cash.
Episodes 07
“Supernote”
Sunny and Firoz enjoy their wealth and move into plush flats. Sunny finds himself falling for Megha and removes the tracker from her phone. Megha discovers that the “artist” is leaving his signature (‘S’) in the fake notes. Mansoor is desperate to get the fake cash into the market and urges Sunny to act quickly. Michael devises a plan to lure the “artist”.
Episodes 08
“Crash and Burn”
Sunny and Firoz almost get caught, but Michael manages to see their faces. To escape from the cops during a chase, Sunny and Firoz scatter the fake cash into the streets. Displeased by this, Mansoor orders them to be killed, but Sunny uses the help of his friends to escape. Mansoor sets fire to Madhav’s printing press, seemingly killing him. Angered, Sunny goes on a rampage — he kills many of Mansoor’s men and sets fire to the cash, promising Mansoor that he will be back for more. Meanwhile, Michael and Rekha get divorced. Megha is close to uncovering Sunny’s identity.
CAST
- Shahid Kapoor as Sandeep “Sunny”, a disillusioned artist
- Vijay Sethupathi as Michael Vedanayagam IPS, a Special Task Force officer and head of the Counterfeiting & Currency Fraud Analysis & Research Team (CCFART)
- Kay Kay Menon as Mansoor Dalal, a criminal mastermind who heads the counterfeit network in India, based out of Jordan
- Raashii Khanna as Megha Vyas, an officer for the Reserve Bank of India, who later joins CCFART
- Bhuvan Arora as Firoz, Sunny’s best friend and partner
- Chittaranjan Giri as Yasir, an employee at Kranti Patrika
- Zakir Hussain as Finance Minister Pawan Gahlot
- Jaswant Singh Dalal as Shekhar Ahlawat, a member of CCFART
- Amol Palekar as Madhav, Sunny’s grandfather and owner of Kranti Patrika
- Kubbra Sait as Saira, Mansoor’s superior
- Regina Cassandra as Rekha Rao, Michael’s ex-wife
PRODUCTION
Farzi was first conceived as a film by Raj & DK with Shahid Kapoor and Nawazuddin Siddiqui in 2014. Kriti Sanon joined the cast by the end of the year. By 2019, it was expanded into a television series with Kapoor still attached. In January 2021, Kapoor confirmed that Raashii Khanna had joined the project. In September 2021, Bhuvan Arora said that he was working on the series. Raj & DK offered a part to Vijay Sethupathi when they were in Chennai filming The Family Man; he joined the production 40 days after they began filming. He credited his co-star Raashii Khanna, with whom he had worked before in Tamil films, for making him comfortable on set.
Principal photography began at Film City, Mumbai in July 2021. Filming also took place in Goa, Alibaug, Nepal, and Jordan. Pankaj Kumar served as the cinematographer.
The series was officially announced by Amazon on 28 April 2022, during the launch exhibit of 40 Indian projects sanctioned by the company. Kapoor, Sethupathi, Khanna, Kay Kay Menon, Regina Cassandra, Zakir Hussain, Bhuvan Arora, Amol Palekar, and Kubbra Sait were all announced to star.
Writer Sita Menon stated that a scene indicating a crossover with Raj & DK’s show The Family Man was not pre-planned and that the idea came to Raj on the day of the shoot. DK later confirmed the crossover, stating the worlds in the two series “run parallel to each other”.
RELEASE
10 February 2023
