User reviews

Shiksha Mandal is a well-intentioned thriller that deals with a sensitive issue but fails to make an impact as the execution is not up to the mark. The series revolves around Aditya Rai (Gulshan Devaiah), who runs a training/coaching institute for medical aspirants. He shares a strong bond with his students and strives to highlight that education is not a business. Aditya's world is turned upside down when his sister 'disappears' shortly before he learns a dark secret about her. This leads to a series of events that expose a sinister scam.

Shiksha Mandal begins with a scene in which a young student gears up to write an examination. The staging of this sequence is quite good. It hits the right notes with its organic intensity. The focus soon shifts to Gulshan Devaiah's character. This, unfortunately, is where the problems begin. The writers try to project Aditya as a layered individual who has a lot going on in his life. They, sadly, fail to explore these aspects properly. Take his bond with his 'maa', for instance. This subplot had the potential to be Shiksha Mandal's emotional fulcrum but it ends up, making a limited impact. Things would have been different had the makers added a few more scenes between these characters.

Most of the other characters too haven't been fleshed out properly. There are twists here and there, but most of them fail to pack a punch as they are predictable to the extent of being obvious. To make matters worse, the silences don't really speak in most of the scenes, which further waters down their impact.

That said, Shiksha Mandal is not a wasted effort by any stretch of the imagination. Gulshan Devaiah tries to salvage the show by giving it his all. The actor does a decent job of bringing out his character's vulnerabilities, especially in the emotional scenes. Shiksha Mandal could have been a real game-changer for him had the script done justice to his abilities.

Gauahar Khan is sincere in a character that had tremendous potential, She gets the body language right and tries to rise above the mediocre writing. Pavan Malhotra, unsurprisingly, proves to be the show-stealer. The actor, who received praise for his work in Tabbar and Grahan, delivers a great performance to cover up the shallow screenplay. His silence and menacing eyes do all the talking. Pavan Malhotra is particularly good in a scene in which he bashes up an unsuspecting victim.

The supporting cast serves its purpose. The editing could have been tighter as some of the scenes dragged. The background score doesn't elevate the reel action's impact. The other technical aspects are up to the mark.

Shiksha Mandal is a lost opportunity given the potential it displayed.

It starts off really well but slowly they keep on adding more and more characters. Soon you will loose track of others except main characters.

I really wish they would have sticked to main story, finished it off and don't confuse audience.

First few episodes were good, later the story becomes very very slow and lots of additional characters confused audience. Looks like director / producer tried to make everyone happy by giving them chance / role... Even small characters get to speak for few mins which could have been easily avoided...

Summary : Good beginning, weak screenplay, too many characters.

This web series is an extended version of a Crime Patrol episode of the same education scam. Unlike Crime Patrol, the acting of some of the main and supporting characters did not rise to the occasion. Gulshan Devaiah and Gauhar Khan underwhelmed. Gulshan came across as robotic during most of the scenes. His dialogue delivery, body language and expressions were awkward at best.

Pawan Malhotra is one of the very few who did justice to his role. My expectations from senior director Prakash Jha was also a lot so it felt a bit of a let down with the end result. The subject was there to exploit, but due to poor execution of the plot, by episode 5 starts to flatline. It felt like the director was just going to the motions with nothing unique to offer. I wouldn't call this web series a must watch, just a last resort entertainment option.

I would like to keep it as simple as I can, Except for the three lead actors Gauhar Khan, Pavan Malhotra, and Gulshan Devaiah, and one more Puneet Kumar Mishra, almost everyone was super low in the show. The actors like small screen time were far better than those who were in the main lead, Iram Badar Khan was also decent as Vidya in the show.

Gulshan looks amazing in his role, he fits into it again, From Durango to this, He nailed it everywhere, Guahar Khan looks terrific in the role and she brings charm and confidence to the character, Pavan Malhotra as Dhasu Yadav was excellent, it looks like the role was for him. Rest there was no one who put any impact on the series with the Performance.

So Authentic, Real, intriguing, Well acted, tight screenplay, edge of the seat narrative, brutal scenes, intelligent writing and splendid camerawork. What more can you ask for from a web series. Great work SYED AHMED AFZAL I know we have seen a content like this before but trust me shiksha mandal is beyond everything what we have seen , about education scams .

Great work from the team - all departments are working in sync with the overall vision of delivering a creative, entertaining web series that keeps the viewer engaged.

ACTORS - The actors are well-chosen and it's great to see GAUHAR with this new look, GULSHAN as always shocked everyone with his performance and what to say about PAVAN MALHOTRA he did a fabulous job as 'dhansu yadav also the supporting actors with dhansu that transgender was exceptionally well NAVDEEP SINGH as 'akhtari' gave the impactful and brilliant performance with such limited screentime. Also actors like KUMAR SAURABH as 'nanhe' did a decent job , the one with the speech deficiency , was also quite good as well..

It is okishh series. Like the director was in a hurry and the producer was on a village panchayat budget. Lots of editing mistakes. Like for example the gun fight scene between STF and dhasu scene. Wow. That shed must be build by some divine material that even after such massive assault rifle gun fight those bullets didn't even put a single dent. Than ministers son is dead and not a single update on it or some kind of revelation that he was dead coz of a mistake.

Than how can someone run an education centre so easily among such corrupt, hostile and corrupt people.

Overall it was kind of ok. If this series was released 5 years a go than it would have been good back than.

Sameer lodaya

The series is missing the required punch of scam

The content is about the medical scam and as usual how politicians and goons are involved..the same content you can see in WHISTLE BLOWER and the thumping punch they have created was absolutely amazing ..the thrill is completely lost here as the story moves in circle of murders, investigations ,love stories, corruption, and all the other common factors but they were not presented in the required way...sorry gauhar was not a strong cop nor was Pawan a dangerous goon and Gulshan was so sad..

The series is long of 9 episodes with the dragged content whereas action and other scenes does not give a dark effect

Let's see how DAHAN comes up this weekend.

The unbelievable truth of life. We often put our trust in Doctors, lawyers, teachers n other professionals, thinking they our out there to help us. Let's face it, there are many of them who actually ruin our lives in some way or the other. I am a Spiritual believer and belive there are exception to the rules. And yes, there are God fearing and good people too, all ready to help. Shiksha Mandal will make a person think beyond the face vale of facts, ie a degree or a person holding a degree, is not all. Often we fall victim because of circumstances beyond our control. Shiksha Mandal is interesting and holds the viewers attention, what's next.

It's a gripping and takes you through the end. It was so gripping that I finished it in 10hours. And it does deserve it. The people who like thriller, action,dramas, you guys have a lot to watch for. A super strong star cast with superb performances, specifically pavan malhotra aka 'dhansu' and his gang with 'akhtari' aka navdeep singh did a fabulous characterization thier accent 'bundeli' was natural and made me like the villian even more than the heroes , gauhar did a fine job being a policeman, gulshan is also one of the finest actors in the industry did his role quite good Kumar saurabh aka 'nanhe' scene was amazing to watch... must watch .. Finally mx came up with this beauty revealing the indian education scams what we very often see in the newspapers but never get to see and feel like this.

First of all I would like to request that don't make the next season like this. The story of this series is very good, and the topic is also appealing. But the director and the screenplay made it the wasteful content, they know very well how to ruin a good content. I am really disappointed after watching this series. Whenever the story in this series took nice rhythm they have spoiled it with unnecessary drama and stupid comedy. There was no need for such unnecessary personal life expansion and very stupid comedies.

Really wasteful content in recent days. The direction and the screenplay should be ashamed to make such a content out of this type of strong topic.

Shiksha mandal Adopts a different Approach. It makes the Audience identify with reality and makes familiar with the characters that 'are' around him.

The series has penetrating dialogues, harsh naked truth characters and language well done syed ahmed afzal The best mesmerizing moment in the film was when gauhar khan as 'anuradha' chase pavan malhotra 'dhansu yadav' in the forest and the conflict in which navdeep singh as 'akhtari ' has to sacrifice herself for dhansu vision of opening a university... That scene was commendable gauhar was shooting like a pro cop and 'akhtari' character was damm intense , purely justifies the emotion akhtari and dhansu shares together... Great work done by the team and excellent work by the director.

Shiksha mandal was intense and action-packed but less on the engaging screenplay, some episodes are slow-paced. The dialogues are sharp, heavy, and impactful. The background score is brilliant, editing is fine and cinematography is quite ably.

The series has a strong cast that continues to deliver flawless performances . Pavan malhotra continues to lead the show with his impeccable expressions and outstanding performance. Gauhar khan as anuradha played a brilliant role as a super cop, gulshan as teacher fits so well and gave a impactful performance as a school teacher searching for his sister Every character in the show has a nice curve to them where they're shown developing throughout the show as they make a decision that affects them permanently like rajendra sethi as 'sho jungle' ends up loosing his whole family , kumar saurabh as 'nanhe' killing his own boss and puneet Kumar mishra as 'swadesh ' got suspended The one character amazed me the most was the transgender 'akhtari' played by navdeep singh .. We have seen big actors performing transgender roles ends up being gimmick but the character of akhtari was realistic and believable , great to see newbies doing a excellent characterization...

Watched all episodes, Shiksha Mandal is simply an amazing web series of our times. Amazing performances by the lead cast. Support cast also delivered their best. Once you start to watch it's full of surprises and twists. This gripping tale of education is not easy to make into a web series. This show has made us feel how powerful people trick the public for their benefits in the education sector. I congratulate everyone who is a part of this amazing piece of work. Keep bringing such stories to the public domain. We need such kind of storytelling. Another gem of work by Syed Ahmad Afzal. Everyone should watch this work.

Specially in the initial chunk when he runs out of the class, fear is literally dripping from his face. Secondly, when he was running in the park before his murder by slitting his throat it all looks like realistic to be precise that slowmo run. Moreover, it's all about team work which i have seen in this series like in music, scenes and in the Direction. Also, congratulations to team shiksha mandal for exposing this amazing education scam in a beautiful way that opened eyes of millions. And character of Dansu Yadav, Dr. Nanhe , Qasim is amazing in the last I would like to say that

SALA EDUCATION KO DHANDHA BANA KAR RAKHA HAI!!

With such a level of competition let me put it very clear, the story line is very good, but the way it was planned and presented its disappointing.

No good dialogues, Not well planned, Not well presented and neither actor or director put efforts to improvise at any instance.

If it would have well directed then it would have given goose bumps to viewers. The actors are presenting as if they have to read out few lies without any expression. Total spoilers in this case.

Lot more was expected with such names in the series, unnecessary the script was dragged without any thriller or suspense. Kindly do not make any part 2 for this one.

A brilliantly crafted show about the sad reality in which money making rackets are no longer limited to finding loopholes, but ruining the lives of hardworking individuals simply trying to make a better life for themselves. The show explores the issues from multiple perspectives, all leading to a satisfying pay off in the end. You witness how the selfish desires of few create chaos for other's, pushing many beyond the point of breaking.

The show unravels slowly but explores in intricate details the height of Educational, Police and Political Corruption.

A very well made show that's definitely worth investing your time in. It's only flaw? It has only 9 episode's! We need more of this!!!

Seen this episode.

Majedaar hai. Intresting hai. Full of actions, emotions,thrills and suspense. Feels like watching a Hindi movie. Hope this will bring some good changes to our education system and inspire the next generation to move ahead with new aspirations. This puts light on the business in education system of india and illicit means by which wrong people are taking undue benefit to excel. How corruption is eating our roots of education system and how it will be impacting lives of millions of people in the bad way hence it depicts Take down on corruption in the education system and faceoffs with the bitter reality.

Best series and direction on education scam gauhar did a fab job as always, waiting for part 2

mystery keeps us holding on to screen nice direction yet delight to watch part 2 asap

new concept on education series till now, feels fantastic

also all the characters acted so nicely in series seems to realistic

it seems like a real life story now it is coming from UP State as goons and mafia are not over yet in rural areas of India.

This movie bring total justice showcasing the actual education scam happening in and around us.

We really appreciate the work of its team further looking to see better performances in coming seasons.

All the best to its director and producer.

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It's hard hitting hardcore story..!!

I watched it in one go as it was so intense..Could not stop watching.. Every character has a gripping effect on you starting from Vidya to Dhansu to Aditya to Anuradha.. The expressions are so honest and convincing.. I loved it totally.. Everyone must watch to know what is happening..We would have never known that this kind of thing existed.. I have loved Afzal's movies earlier but this series is mind-blowing.. What an incredible story teller you are,Afzal..!!

Thank you for highlighting such scams to the audience.. Waiting for more such stories.. Kudos to the entire team..

All the actors work so hard and all actors are very good in there performance in all the three main lead characters Pavan Manothra ,Gauahar Khan ,Gulshan Devaiah all are worked so nice in the film but Pawan Manothra had excellent work all the expression of him are so good.

Puneet Kumar Mishra, Rajendra Sethi, Iram badar khan are doing excellent work.

Kumar Saurabh done the excellent character in the webseries.

Basically all the actors done eltimate work in the webseries. It's a combination of Thriller, Action,Emotions,Romance, Relation.

Talk about the screenplay and Dialogues the story written by writer is so well .

I have seen the webseries its all about real story of Medical Scam its a suspense thiller and terrific webseries ever.

Just gone through season 1 of this series and blown away with the way the entire series is made. While lead actors have done good job, I found the smaller characters also done quiet well in their roles. Dr Nanhe, SI, Totla Ganster, sister of Aditya (Lead) , Dhansu....it is just endless. Every one has done their role very well particularly giving a complete story feel of heartland og MP. Remarkably different characters from UP Based series. I was surprised as there were not too much publicity available for this series and just got to it through scanning MX Player. Looking forwrd for the season 2.