Poacher – Season 1 Episode 1 “The Confession” Recap & Review

The Confession

Episode 1 of Poacher, titled The Confession, begins with a strange local named Aruku walking inside the office of the Forest Officer, Adil Sheikh, claiming that he is responsible for the death of hundreds of Elephants. Aruku states that he has also made a statement to the media, and soon, the news will make headlines. 

Aruku informs them about Raaz, a leader of the poacher group who is hell-bent on clearing the Malayatoor jungle of the Elephants to flatten his pockets. Raaz isn’t alone and is joined by Varghese and Ivan Das. Soon, the news comes to Mala’s ears, and she is told by one of her informers that Raaz is hiding in Adimali.

Mala conveys the same to his colleague, Vijay Babu, asking them to arrest Raaz and make an example of him. Unfortunately, Raaz manages to escape in the nick of time and evades arrest. Soon, everyone learns about the severity of the crime, and even the Guardian publishes an article on the same. A full-fledged investigation is launched, and Neel takes the charge.

Neel is an unconventional officer who immediately makes it clear that he’ll handle the case in his own way and only with his team to make sure there’s no leak of critical intel. Neel also calls Mala and assigns her to help with the poaching case.

During a face-to-face meeting, Neel makes it clear that they need to catch the poachers as soon as possible and restore people’s trust in the forest government.

Mala assures her that she’ll do her best to solve the case. For investigative purposes, Mala is also given a set of documents containing details of Raaz’s circle. Mala notices a familiar name, a man who has been in continuous contact with Raaz.

Morris arrives at Dina’s office after she arrests his wife to force Morris into surrendering. Morris is known to be in cahoots with big-shot poachers and has also been involved in ivory smuggling.

Dina offers to cut Morris a deal in exchange for vital information, and when Morris refuses to divulge anything, she decides to hold him for a day. Eventually, Morris takes the deal, agrees to comply, and gives Dina the address where he’s sent 75kg of Ivory. He also talks about a woman named Poonam Verma, who runs an art shop in Delhi.

However, the art shop is only the front, and Poonam and his associate Ravi use it to buy and sell Ivory. Morris also says that he is just a middleman and is not directly involved in the killing of the Elephants. As for Mala, she contacts Alan and asks him for specialized software so they can analyze the mountain of data.

By day, Alan works for the Crime Control Division of Indian Wildlife, and by night, a snake expert, treating people with snake bites. Alan also meets his superior, Vishal, and asks his permission to join the direct investigation. Vishal says yes but also wants Alan to know the dangers involved and advises him to work in silence and not reveal himself.

The Episode Review

The series starts off with a strong focus on the real and pressing issue of poaching, which continues to afflict the jungles of Southern India. However, this issue is not unique to India alone.

Poaching has been a global problem, with animals being killed for their skins or body parts to be sold to the highest bidder for profit. There have even been instances where poaching has been linked to funding terrorism.

The story introduces a character named Raaz, who is depicted as a central figure in a poaching ring operating in the jungles of Malayatoor. Raaz is responsible for the deaths of numerous elephants, as their teeth are sold to ivory smugglers.

Now the question is, will Neel and Mala, the protagonists, will be able to apprehend him and put an end to his illegal ring?