Richie Mehta, an Emmy-winning director, presented his new crime series, ‘Poacher’, on Tuesday. The series is a fictitious dramatization of events that occurred in the deep forests of Kerala and the concrete jungle of Delhi, based on court papers and affidavits.
The series highlights the enormous contributions made by Indian forest service officers, NGO workers from the Wildlife Trust of India, police constables, and good Samaritans who risked their lives to investigate the greatest ivory poaching network in Indian history.
QC Entertainment, the Oscar-winning production and finance business behind films such as Spike Lee’s “BlacKkKlansman” and Jordan Peele’s “Get Out,” is producing its first television series, “Poacher.”
It is created, written, and directed by Richie Mehta, the director of ‘Delhi Crime,’ and features Nimisha Sajayan, Roshan Mathew, and Dibyendu Bhattacharya in key parts.
To maintain the story’s authenticity, ‘Poacher’ was filmed in real-life locations in Kerala and New Delhi and is predominantly told in Malayalam, Hindi, and English.
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Talking about the same, Mehta said: “After putting the last four years into exploring the themes and characters in this complex world of crime fighting and the extraordinarily high stakes involved, I couldn’t be more thrilled to partner with Prime Video to take Poacher to a worldwide audience.”
“Working with the team at QC Entertainment has been a dream come true, from a creative, logistical, and emotional standpoint, as has collaborating with our actors, crew, and the real subjects on which this series is inspired,” said the executive producer of “India in a Day.”
He went on to say, “The team at Prime Video demonstrated from the moment they saw our blood, sweat, and tears on screen not only that they understand what we’ve put into this, but that they have the excitement and commitment to take this to the world.”
“We aim to provide unique and honest stories that have the potential to spark social and cultural conversations. “Poacher, based on an extraordinary true story, is one such ambitious endeavor to explore the meaning of justice in a context never seen before on screen,” said Manish Menghani, director, content licensing, Prime Video India.
Manish added, “Poacher promises to enthrall viewers in India and throughout the world with its gripping, edge-of-your-seat narrative and push us as humans to comprehend how our actions can have an irreversible influence on the ecosystem. This true-to-life story has the potential to raise awareness and encourage communities to take action.
“When we saw ‘Delhi Crime’, we realized Richie was a filmmaker we wanted to collaborate with. We saw in that performance his ability as a storyteller to keep us on the edge of our seats while also dealing intelligently and empathetically with sensitive issues, especially when adapting true stories,” said QC Entertainment’s principals, Edward H. Hamm Jr., Raymond Mansfield, and Sean McKittrick.
The first three episodes of the eight-episode series debuted during the 2023 Sundance Film Festival.
‘Poacher’ will launch on Prime Video on February 23.