Of all the streaming platforms available in India, Netflix has arguably been the frontrunner when it comes to delivering gripping content based on true crimes. Delhi Crime, The Indian Predator series, House of Secrets: The Burari Deaths, The Hunt for Veerappan, and Crime Stories: India Detectives are some of their most popular shows, which tapped the Indian audience's collective interest in examining spine-chilling real-life crimes.
In Curry & Cyanide: The Jolly Joseph Case, the camera trains towards Kerala, a state known for its supreme quality of life and high literacy rate, but home to one of the most gruesome murder series that ever occurred in the country.
The centre of focus is Koodathayi, an idyllic town in the northern part of Kerala, where, over 14 years, six family members, including a two-year-old, get killed. And the suspect, an unassuming middle-aged woman named Jolly Joseph. She is alleged to have poisoned and killed both her in-laws, her first husband, the wife of her second husband, and his younger daughter.
Curry & Cyanide, directed by National award winner Christo Tomy, comes at a time when the case is sub judice, and naturally, there are restrictions in bringing to light a lot of details. The show features fair accounts from retired cop KG Simon, who headed the investigation, Jolly's son Remo, her brother-in-law Rojo, sister-in-law Renji, her advocate BA Aloor, a journalist, social activist, psychology expert, and a toxicologist.
Like in any crime, we need to know the who, why, and how. With all of them except advocate Aloor being sure of 'who' committed the killings, the show's focus is mostly on explaining 'how' it happened. Unfortunately, there is also a vague attempt to impart sense to the most important question, 'why'.
While most of Netflix's true-crime-based shows follow an episodic format, Curry & Cyanide is cramped into a feature-film duration of just 1.30 hours, which is a strange choice considering the case traverses a lengthy period of almost 20 years. As a result, the makers are unable to get into minute details, which leaves us pondering over a lot of questions, besides diluting the gruesomeness of the crimes.
In comparison, Spotify's podcast series Death, Lies & Cyanides, also based on the same serial killings, has a more detailed and tense narrative but is mostly based on the police charge sheet.
Generally, what makes such shows popular is how they explore a criminal's background, and psyche and showcase multiple perspectives on the case. In Curry & Cyanide, we're told Jolly belongs to an agricultural family from the high ranges, who later gets married to the affluent Ponnamattam family. It is also said that she was an expert at deception, which is evident in how she forged her degree certificates—the starting point of all crimes to follow.
But one cannot help but wish there was at least one credible version, probably from a childhood friend or family member to help us understand Jolly and the root cause of her criminal tendencies better. The show would've immensely benefited from such information and authentic narratives from Kattappana, where Jolly spent her early life.
Though the show fails to dig deep into Jolly's psyche, it's accurate with the depiction of the pain endured by the remaining members of the Ponnamattam family, particularly her two children, Rojo and Renji. Remo, the elder son, hardly addresses Jolly as mom, and prefers calling her 'kakshi' or 'vyakthi'. It is truly admirable how the young man stayed strong through such unimaginably tough times. As he says, it wouldn't have been possible if not for his 'kunjaunty' Renji, who took the two kids under her wings and showered the motherly affection that they always longed for. Renji, in a way, is also the show's true hero. She was the first to sense foul play in the murders; seek legal route despite resistance from all corners and fought valiantly for the victims. She's mostly teary-eyed while recalling the horrific times, but one can sense her contentment in saving her brother's children from further suffering.
By the end of it all, Curry & Cyanide might not help in an insightful understanding of Jolly, the serial killer, but it gives an idea of how even a supposedly progressive society like Kerala reacts to such crimes. When Jolly is taken for evidence gathering, the men catcall and resort to slut-shaming, and the media are busy spinning scandalous narratives. One can also perceive how a false sense of pride and reputation stopped the family and community members from allowing postmortems when suspicions were raised initially. If not for anything else, we need such shows to help quell these misconceptions and initiate conversations towards creating safer spaces for everyone... even if it is within families.
Director: Christo Tomy
Streamer: Netflix