Netflix’s 2026 release Taskaree: The Smuggler’s Web, created by Neeraj Pandey and starring Emran Hashmi, revolves around the Mumbai customs department. Through its seven episodes, the series attempts to answer if smuggling can be stopped even if the system is mostly corrupt. Most of the customs officers at the Mumbai airport had an understanding with the regular smugglers; as long as they received their cut, the officers didn’t bother with performing their duties. But things changed when Prakash Kumar was appointed as the assistant commissioner at the Mumbai Airport. With the election at the doorstep, the government expected the customs department to be more vigilant and not allow the opposition any scope to complain.
Prakash Kumar was one of the ‘rare breed’ of honest customs officers, and he planned on completely changing how the department functioned. At first, he ensured that the dishonest officers were suspended, and he was allowed to form a trustworthy team. The team was headed by Arjun Meena, Ravinder Gujjar, and Mitali Kamath, and their objective was simple: to put an end to the Choudhary syndicate headed by Bada Choudhary, who lived in Milan and controlled most of the contraband that entered India. So, was the mission successful? Let’s find out.
Spoiler Alert
Was Ramesh Bhai Murdered?
Ramesh Bhai was an infamous gangster who smuggled drugs from Ethiopia to India. He worked for Bada Choudhary and was responsible for the smooth operation of his drug-related sector. Arjun had a grasp over Ramesh Bhai’s modus operandi, and as soon as he and his team started to crack down on Bada Choudhary’s business, Ramesh was also in serious trouble. During one such critical mission, named Operation Longshot, the Mumbai customs successfully nabbed 1200 crores of smuggled goods. In the process, they tracked down Ramesh Bhai’s warehouse, and with the help of the DRI (Directorate of Revenue Intelligence), Arjun and his team put Ramesh’s gang under arrest. They further interrogated two of Choudhary’s men who were positioned right outside the airport when they were arrested. They initially claimed that they didn’t know any details about the smuggling network, but when Arjun threatened to share a video of their torture session with their relatives, one of the two agreed to speak the truth. He shared whatever little he knew about Choudhary and Ramesh, and Arjun figured it was time that they raided Ramesh’s house. His mother claimed that Ramesh was not home, but they continued with their investigation. They couldn’t find any evidence against Ramesh Bhai, and suddenly, they heard the sound of a gunshot. Arjun discovered that his young colleague, Kulveer, had killed Ramesh.
Kulveer explained that he had been keeping an eye on the prayer room, and he managed to find the secret door that led to the basement where Ramesh had been hiding this whole time. During a brief scuffle, he ended up pulling the trigger on Ramesh, and he regretted his actions. Prakash Kumar wasn’t impressed with how things had gone during his absence. He went for a brief trip to Bangkok, and while he thought he was about to attend a conference, he soon discovered that Bada Choudhary wanted to speak with him. He was ready to pay a price for his silence, but Prakash had rejected the offer. The smuggler who’d confessed was killed by his partner so that the custodial death could be used to frame the officers who were in charge.
While it appeared that Ramesh Bhai was accidentally murdered, we soon discover that Bada Choudhary was responsible for it. They desperately needed a scapegoat whose death would compel the officers to back off, and also they couldn’t afford to have Ramesh Bhai arrested, since he knew too much about the business. So the murder of a potential witness was enough reason for Arjun and his team to consider taking things slow. Moreover, Bada Choudhary had threatened to destroy the officers, and Arjun figured that maybe this time they’d allow his men a pass since they were clearly not prepared to handle the situation. But when the smugglers mocked Gujjar while passing through customs, he couldn’t keep his anger in check. He ended up assaulting the smugglers and publicly declaring what they were up to. Bada Choudhary realized that his threats didn’t work, so to teach Arjun and his team a lesson, Ramesh Bhai’s gang ended up killing Gujjar when he was alone in his apartment. While attending Gujjar’s funeral, Arjun noticed Kulveer talking on the phone, and he had a smile on his face. Arjun figured that he must have been working with Bada Choudhary. Arjun dragged him to a police station, and he had no choice but to confess. He admitted that he was offered 1 crore by Bada Choudhary to execute Ramesh Bhai, and he reasoned that he took the offer because he didn’t mind getting rid of a gangster. Now of course, Kulveer wasn’t so naive as to not realize the damaging effect his decision could have on his team, but he chose to carry out Bada Choudhary’s offer because he got greedy. Kulveer had already made a confession in front of a police officer, so it is likely that he will be charged for murder, and he will have to spend the rest of his youth behind bars.
What was Prakash Kumar’s secret?
In the final episode of Taskaree, it’s finally revealed that assistant commissioner Prakash Kumar was quite the corrupt man. The only difference between him and those officers who were infamous for taking a cut was that he was so smooth that no one ever found out. Prakash was actually glad when Bada Choudhary decided to meet him in Bangkok. He’d been waiting for his moment, and the rampant seizing of contraband was Prakash’s desperate attempt to catch the gangster’s attention. He wanted Bada Choudhary to realize the damage he could cause if he wished, so that he would eventually get a better valuation for his silence and regular insider tips. Bada Choudhary was impressed; the man he thought was incorruptible turned out to be the perfect combination of smart and greedy.
As it turned out, Prakash was the one who’d advised Bada Choudhary to contact Kulveer and offer him one crore to take down Ramesh Bhai. He knew Kulveer was desperate and needy and would readily agree to the deal. The plan worked out just fine, but for Prakash, the biggest roadblock was now Arjun. The honest customs officer refused to rest, especially after the death of his best friend. He felt the desperate urgency to do something that would immediately bring Bada Choudhary down, but Prakash made it clear that he wanted Arjun and his team to take a step back. He used Mukim’s custodial death and Gujjar and Ramesh’s murders as the reason behind his decision to transfer Arjun and his team back to desk duty. He didn’t want Arjun to think that he’d given up on them, so he asked him to use the time to come up with a better plan to catch the gangster. While Bada Choudhary was under the impression that undercover informer Priya was the one who’d exposed his gold, drugs, and watch smuggling business, Prakash figured that Priya only knew about gold and drugs, so there was another infiltrator in Choudhary’s business who had been supplying information to customs. Since Arjun trusted Prakash, he’d disclosed that Superintendent Srikant Saxena’s informer, Zubair, aka Suresh Kaka, had been indirectly helping them. Suresh worked closely with Anna, who headed the gold smuggling side of Choudhary’s business. He’d proposed that they transfer 2 tonnes of gold in coffins, and Choudhary had approved of the plan, but that was before Prakash found out Suresh’s secret. Choudhary immediately pivoted and decided to smuggle the gold inside diplomatic furniture. Prakash took it upon himself to ensure that the transfer was smooth; meanwhile, Arjun and his team focused on scanning coffins, only to realize they didn’t have any gold in them.
How did Priya help Arjun expose the Choudhary syndicate?
Priya and Arjun developed a romantic relationship during the time they tried to bring down a corrupt pilot together. Priya used to be a stewardess, and she had fallen in love with Shubham Kapoor, a pilot. He’d convinced her that they would soon get married, and in order to buy a place for themselves, they had to consider smuggling gold just so they could pay the deposit. Arjun had been keeping an eye on the pilot for some time. Later, he confronted Priya, and she broke down, explaining that she had been forced by her fiancé to do the dirty work. Arjun soon revealed to Priya that Shubham was already married and had a family. This was reason enough for Priya to decide that she wanted revenge, and she agreed to work for Arjun as an informant, and eventually they had Shubham arrested.
Priya readily agreed to continue working for Arjun, but this time she had to befriend Anna’s son and find out more about their gold smuggling business. She was brilliant as an undercover informant, and she soon won Rahul’s (Anna’s nephew) trust and played a key role in executing Operation Longshot. Arjun safely brought her back to Mumbai, but she had to continue living in a safe house because Choudhary’s men were still out there, and after what Priya had pulled, they wanted to punish her.
During Taskaree’s ending, we find out that Arjun had sent Priya back to Anna’s den. Honestly, I don’t know what made Anna or even Choudhary trust Priya, considering she’d betrayed them before. But apparently Priya had promised that she knew a way to make Suresh confess, and Choudhary and associates figured they might as well give her technique a try. She didn’t really have a technique up her sleeve; she simply lied to convey the message that help was on the way for Zubair. Priya had been wearing a tracking device, and soon, armed forces broke into the building in Al Dirah and held Choudhary and his associates at gunpoint. Meanwhile, the external agencies of the customs department shared the intelligence they’d gathered about the Choudhary Syndicate with other foreign intelligence that ultimately resulted in the raid and arrest of Choudhary’s warehouses spread across countries. The Choudhary Syndicate was finally exposed, and considering their business was spread all across the globe, there is no way that Bada Choudhary will manage to escape, even with all his wealth and influence.
Did Arjun find the 2 tons of gold?
Arjun was disappointed when his team didn’t find any gold in the coffins. But then when he thought about it, he figured that there was no reason for Choudhary to stick to the plan Suresh had proposed after he’d already figured out he was a mole. Srikant Saxena had found out that his informant had been compromised, and he’d told Arjun about it, and he expected the officer to find a way to bring the informer back home. Meanwhile, Arjun noticed that there was another aircraft that had landed somewhat at the same time. He discovered that diplomatic furniture had arrived on the flight, and it had already been sent to a warehouse for scanning. Prakash had to personally clear the valuable consignment to win Choudhary’s trust, and he had almost succeeded. But his only mistake was choosing Arjun for his team. He thought he could outwit the young officer, but Arjun ended up at the right place at the right time. When he noticed Arjun there, he casually stated that the diplomatic furniture was safe and there was no need to scan it. But Arjun was persistent, and even though Prakash assertively stated that the cargo didn’t need to be checked, Arjun refused to listen. He intentionally dropped the diplomatic cargo that was hanging from a crane, and as soon as it hit the floor, there were gold biscuits all around.
In Taskaree’s ending, Prakash was finally exposed in front of his team, all thanks to Arjun. He tried to come up with an excuse, but he couldn’t. He tried to belittle the group of honest officers by calling them ‘immature,’ but after Mitali slapped him in the face, he chose to remain quiet. This wasn’t Arjun’s first rodeo; in his line of work, he’d probably seen many like Prakash, who pretended to be honest and fair, but their honesty always had a price. So, although Arjun respected Prakash, he prioritized his duty, and when Prakash attempted to stop him from doing his job, he had the conviction to disregard him completely.
What does the future have in store for Arjun and his team?
Arjun and his team’s relentless effort to bring down the Choudhary Syndicate had made it to the headlines. The media and common people wrote extensively about how Mumbai customs had ‘struck gold.’ After such a massive global-level exposé, it can be assumed that Arjun will be promoted to assistant commissioner. Prakash Kumar must have been suspended, or maybe he even faced trial for conspiring with smugglers. Hopefully, this marked the end of his career! Taskaree: The Smuggler’s Web establishes how corruption runs deep in India and how even the most honest officer can turn out to be untrustworthy. So, even if Arjun gets promoted and tries his best to minimize the smuggling of contraband in Mumbai airport, there will always be corrupt men (like the chief commissioner) in influential positions, who might as well nudge honest officers to take a bribe once in a while. Eradicating corruption from customs might be a dream too big for Arjun and his small team to achieve, but even with their limitations, hopefully they will continue to take down men like Choudhary and set an example in the department.
