Director: Chandan Arora
Cast: Roshan Mathew, Mohit Raina, Sarah Jane Dias, Trinetra Haldar Gummaraju, Ninad Kamat, Mahesh Shetty
Platform: SonyLIV
Genre: Thriller, Suspense

Kankhajura, now streaming on SonyLIV, sets out with the promise of a layered psychological thriller, and for the most part, it delivers. But in trying to weave too many threads into a single web, the show sometimes loses its grip on the very tension it works so hard to build.
 
Directed by Chandan Arora, the series adapts the Israeli drama Magpie and centers on a fractured sibling bond, where guilt, manipulation, and buried trauma simmer just beneath the surface. When Ashu (Roshan Mathew) walks back into the world after 14 years in prison, he’s not just seeking closure — he’s also carrying emotional explosives, set to detonate in the carefully constructed life of his older brother Max (Mohit Raina).
 
The strength of Kankhajura lies not in its twists — which are sometimes telegraphed too early — but in the way it leans into discomfort. Scenes stretch just long enough to make you squirm. Conversations start as mundane and twist into psychological warfare. The atmosphere is dense with suspicion, but instead of rapid-fire revelations, the show opts for slow poison.
 
Roshan Mathew’s Ashu is the show’s dark heartbeat. He moves like a man still learning to breathe free air, with eyes that shift between innocence and menace. Mathew's performance is subtle but unnerving — he doesn't just play a manipulator, he embodies the quiet toxicity of unresolved pain.
 
Mohit Raina, meanwhile, plays Max like a man at war with his own conscience. His control is admirable, but at times, it feels like his character is held back by the script’s hesitancy to dig deeper. When he erupts, you feel it. But the show gives him few such moments.
 
The supporting cast, including Sarah Jane Dias, Trinetra Haldar, and Usha Nadkarni, add color and emotional stakes, though some arcs feel slightly undercooked. The Goa setting is more than just picturesque — it’s a symbol of decay and beauty coexisting. It’s a smart visual metaphor for the brothers themselves.
 
What holds Kankhajura back is its finale. After building a mood so rich in tension, the final few episodes accelerate too quickly, leaving behind the careful pacing that made the early parts effective. There’s emotional payoff, yes — but it’s delivered with the urgency of a ticking clock, not the satisfaction of resolution.
 
And yet, for all its missteps, Kankhajura has a magnetic quality. It burrows into your mind — just like the millipede it’s named after — and whispers questions about trust, guilt, and who the real traitor in the room might be.