I HAD NEVER HEARD OR READ ANYTHING LIKE IT: DIRECTOR AYESHA SOOD ON THE CRIME THAT INDIAN PREDATOR TRACES

Director Ayesha Sood throws light on why Netflix India’s show ‘The Indian Predator: The Butcher of Delhi’ is an important story to tell

Over the years, audience’s love for the true- crime genre has grown exponentially. Last year, Netflix docu-series – House of Secrets: The Burari Deaths and Crime Stories: India Detectives, caught the attention and fascination of all true-crime enthusiasts. Now, Netflix is dropping another true story that will explore the murky waters of cold-blooded murders and a merciless serial killer with Indian Predator: The Butcher of Delhi.

The upcoming docu-series will trace the story of a notorious serial killer who ruthlessly dismembered his victims and scattered their body parts around the city. Promising a scary, unnerving yet compelling watch, the series attempts to painstakingly explain the sequence of events that led up to his arrest based on investigations and coverage of serial killings in the Indian capital.

Produced by VICE India, the series is directed by renowned film-maker Ayesha Sood who shares insights on why she decided to back this title,“When the Vice India team approached me with the idea of developing ‘The Indian Predator’, I was truly intrigued because even though I consider myself to be a true-crime nut, and have been a Delhi resident all my life, I had never heard of this story. On researching this case I realized that this is indeed an important story to tell. Our intent with this series was to give the viewers a ring side view to the journey of one of the scariest serial killers in Indian crime.”

As it’s often seen in documentaries, the more you dive into the subject and speak to people the more is uncovered. You may think that you know the story and have all the context on the matter but there are always new angles and unforeseen challenges tackled along the way. And, developing the Indian Predator was no different.

Director Ayesha Sood throws light on the challenges faced to complete this series “As is the case with any true-crime documentary, Indian Predator: The Butcher of Delhi also had many layers and threads that kept unraveling through the interviews and conversations. It was tough to get everyone to come on the record because of the tragic nature of the crimes and mostly people are wary of documentation or keeping a photographic record of their lives. So, we had to be doubly mindful with our research and ensure that all aspects of the case are being accurately corroborated. Not to mention, there were physical difficulties also at play – whoever has shot post or during the pandemic knows how the health and security teams have to go all out to make sure the crew and our characters felt safe. We had stringent covid protocols in place – safe and controlled zones, disinfection stations and color codes to mark crew as per their working zones and technical equipment. Then as we neared the end of 2020, we were hit by one of the most severe winters the North has witnessed in recent times. While shooting in Bihar and Delhi with call times at 3.00/4.00 am – hot chai was never appreciated more by our incredible tireless crew. So, yes we were really up against a lot of odds while creating the series but I believe we have created something that is truly worth it all”

The chilling story of Indian Predator: The Butcher of Delhi, comes out 20 July, exclusively on Netflix.