JioHotstar’s Search: The Naina Murder Case suffers greatly from weak writing and shallow characterization. It’s one of those series that seems to draw its inspiration more from other crime dramas than from real-life experiences, which makes it feel disconnected from reality. The dialogue is quite superficial, and it lacks depth, while the characters come across more as exaggerated caricatures. Because of the poor writing, even the commendable performances by actors like Konkona Sen Sharma and Shraddha Das end up feeling wasted. Both actors possess a strong screen presence and the potential to leave a lasting impact through their roles, but the screenplay gives them very little to work with. Had the writing been more layered and nuanced, their performances could have truly elevated the series and left a lasting impact. In the end, Search: The Naina Murder Case feels like a missed opportunity, a show with talented performers and a potentially gripping premise let down by uninspired storytelling and underdeveloped characters. So let’s find out what happened in the series and who killed Naina.
Spoiler Alert
What happened to Naina?
Naina, the daughter of Payal and Uddhav, was found murdered, her body discovered inside the trunk of a car that had been dumped in a lake. Sanyukta Das, who was planning to leave the crime cell and move to Ahmedabad since her husband had relocated there, was assigned to handle the case. Though Sanyukta was reluctant to take it up, as she was set to leave the next day, she had no choice—her boss insisted that she lead the investigation. Jai Kanwal, her replacement, had already joined and wasn’t pleased that his superior didn’t trust him with the case. However, he too had little choice, and despite his displeasure, he had to cooperate with Sanyukta on the investigation. The car in which the dead body was found belonged to a local leader named Tushar Surve. It was one of the campaign cars that was used by his party workers. Tushar told Sanyukta that he didn’t know Naina, which was a lie, and that at the time of the murder he was with his campaign manager, Raksha. Tushar was in a relationship with Raksha, which was why she vouched for him at that moment, though she didn’t know where Tushar was that night. Ninba’s parents were distraught after they got to know what had happened to their daughter. Payal, who was a very strict mother, was just not able to accept that their daughter had met such a tragic end. Naina hid a lot of things from her mother, because of which she didn’t have a clue what was happening in her daughter’s life. Uddhav, on the other hand, was much more aware of what Naina was up to. He knew that she occasionally consumed alcohol and that she had a boyfriend. Sanyukta’s boss publicly announced that she would be the one who handled the case, and that’s when she realized that she was going to disappoint her husband once again.
What happened between Sanyukta and Bheesham?
Sanyukta was a decorated officer, but all that acclamation came at a cost. Bheesham wanted his wife to be there for him. He understood that Sanyukta was piled up with work, but it had become her identity. She spent all her time at the station, and she didn’t even have any time for her daughter. The decision to move to Ahmedabad was a very difficult one for Sanyukta. But she had decided that she would join the cyber cell and give whatever time she could to her family. But then Naina’s murder case arrived, and Sanyukta was given a choice to leave the case behind and take the flight to Ahmedabad. Bheesham was very disappointed in her, and he told her that he didn’t know what to expect from her. Sanyukta’s daughter also suffered in the process, and at times she too lost her temper at her mother. Sanyukta’s personal life was a mess, and though she wanted to prioritize her husband and her kid, she was just not able to do that. She wanted Bheesham and her daughter to understand her situation, but they didn’t. I don’t think that anybody was at fault here, and it was just a case of two people having different priorities in life. It didn’t mean that Sanyukta loved her husband or her daughter any less, but her work was a big part of her life. It was what made her who she was. She couldn’t have left that investigation behind when she knew that she was the only one who could uncover the truth.
Who were the suspects in the murder case?
There were many suspects in the Naina murder case who Sanyukta and Jai believed could have killed the poor girl. Naina’s friends Lavanya, Ojas, and Aarav became the first ones to be put under scrutiny. Ojas was Naina’s boyfriend, and just a month before the murder, he had broken up with her. Lavanya had a crush on Ojas, and they had ended up getting intimate with each other. Aarav had recorded them in the act and then swapped Lavanya’s face with that of Naina. That video was then circulated, and people believed that it was Naina in the recording. Lavanya didn’t say anything about it when Sanyukta first investigated her. The friends were involved in shady things, but ultimately Sanyukta came to the conclusion that they did not murder Naina. After the friends, Naina’s teacher, Randhir Jha, who shared a very good relationship with the politician Tushar Surve, became the next suspect. He was somebody who talked to Naina quite often and was apparently quite close to her. Naina even went to his house a couple of times, but he too had an alibi, which proved that he was not the one who had murdered Naina. Vinayak More, a man who worked for Naina’s father, became the next suspect. He was apparently in love with Naina, and he even wrote her a love letter. Jai believed that his one-sided love made him act out, and he eventually ended up taking her life when he realized that she didn’t reciprocate his feelings. In fact, Naina’s father also shared the same sentiment. He had found Naina’s pictures at Vinayak’s house, and he believed that Vinayak was the one who had killed her. Uddhav tortured Vinayak to make him confess to his crimes, but he told him that he was not the one who had murdered his daughter. Vinayak admitted that he loved Naina, but he had nothing to do with her murder. Before Uddhav could ask him anything else, Jai arrived at the palace where Uddhav had held Vinayaka captive. Jai killed Vinayak, and that dragged the investigation in a new direction. Jai killed Vinayak because there were probably things that he didn’t want to come to light.
Did Tushar Surve kill Naina?
Tushar became the final suspect in the Naina murder case, as he had hidden facts that were crucial to the case. On the night the murder had happened, nobody knew where Tushar was. Also, Tushar knew Naina from before, something that he’d lied about during the initial phases of investigation. Tushar’s good friend, Sahil, was also a part of his team. Sahil didn’t like Raksha as a person, but he knew that she was good at what she did, which was why he put up with her. At the end of the series, Raksha asked Sahil if Tushar had ever cheated on him, after Tushar fired her from her position. Sahil, in a very cryptic manner, told her that Tushar was only loyal to his work. Raksha, at that moment, realized that Tushar probably had something to do with Naina’s murder case. It was Raksha who informed Sanyukta that Tushar was not with her, as she had stated earlier, on the night when Naina was killed. Sanyukta was just about to leave for Ahmedabad, and I believe she will stay back and not go with her family. That will definitely disappoint her husband, but she knows that she has a responsibility to find the truth. Moreover, there was another revelation made at the end of the series: Jai, who was a part of the investigation, was the one who was leaking information. I guess he was working for Tushar, a fact that he had concealed from everybody. He might be on the politicians’ payroll, which is why he was trying to mislead the investigation. Moreover, there was another man who was messaging Naina, who at one point in time had some feelings for her. Naina’s father had found out what he was up to, back in the day, and he had threatened him to stay away from his daughter. As of now it is not certain who Naina’s killer is. Yes, obviously Tushar is the probable suspect as of now, but I don’t think that he would have murdered her. Maybe he was having an affair with Naina, a fact that he didn’t tell anybody about, but I don’t believe that he could have killed her. Tushar’s campaign will surely take a hit in season 2 because the moment his association with Naina comes to light, his image will be tarnished. I think Naina’s murderer is somebody whom Sanyukta hasn’t questioned as of now or who hasn’t been under suspicion. It could be possible that Naina’s father had something to do with the murder. But we will have to wait for season 2 to find out who the killer was and why he killed the innocent girl.
