[The Railway Men Review Netflix] Based on a true story, but not entirely accurate throughout the narrative.

The Railway Men (The Untold Story of Bhopal 1984) Netflix mini-series, consisting of 4 episodes, is based on the true story of a major toxic gas leak in Bhopal, India. The incident resulted in the death of over 15,000 people and became one of the most catastrophic industrial accidents in the world.

The Railway Men Review Netflix

The real-life events in this story are akin to the Chernobyl disaster but occurred in India in 1984. It involved a factory producing a pesticide for American companies, and a tragic error led to the release of toxic gas that engulfed the city of Bhopal. The incident resulted in a significant number of casualties and injuries. Readers interested in this case can easily find a wealth of information, as it is one of the most well-known industrial disasters in global history.

In this series, however, the focus is not directly on the events in Bhopal; instead, it creates a new narrative by introducing new characters into the mix. It constructs a storyline around a train that must travel to that location while the toxic gas blankets the entire city. The surviving people of Bhopal attempt to stop the train from entering. The story takes on a melodramatic hero theme with real characters integrated into the plot, such as the actual station master, while others are fictional, like the robbers who infiltrate as fake policemen. There’s a young boy who lost his brother to the gas and other characters who make up 90% of the narrative, entirely fabricated.

The series attempts to provide some depth to these characters by portraying them as secret heroes of the town, despite the fact that they are mostly entirely fictional. Additionally, there’s a portrayal of government actions at the time, with a female minister trying to countermand the orders of the prime minister and send a gas relief team. The narrative in the series is orchestrated to create a behind-the-scenes melodramatic hero story in Bhopal, but it is not entirely based on real events. This could be disappointing for those seeking an in-depth exploration of the actual events. However, if you are only interested in the fictional story, it is still watchable. The series effectively builds suspense around the consequences of the gas leak and concludes by juxtaposing real events with the fictional storyline in the final episodes, but it does not delve into the legal battles as much.

Even though the production values of the series may be impressive, there are several inaccuracies in the storyline. For instance, the cause of the incident, which is still unproven, is portrayed in the series as the result of employee negligence combined with the factory’s lack of maintenance and care. Additionally, the majority of deaths in the town are attributed to people unknowingly dying in their sleep. The toxic gas, being heavier, would cause those at lower levels, such as children, to perish first. However, the series fails to depict this accurately.

Moreover, there are errors in the portrayal of the gas’s impact, such as showing living creatures, like stray dogs, in scenes where a large number of people have died. This is unlikely due to the severity of the toxic gas, which would have quickly killed small living beings. The series also inaccurately represents the effects of the toxic gas, suggesting that people who come into contact with it only experience temporary blindness and can survive by using wet cloths to cover their noses, whereas in reality, the consequences were more severe.

These inaccuracies suggest that the creators did not prioritize making the series entirely true to life, even if the information is derived from general news reports.

In summary, the series takes real events as a framework to create a new melodramatic hero narrative, but embellishes it with details that deviate from reality. While aiming to evoke the impact of the actual events, the series falls short of accuracy and contains numerous inaccuracies. It may not be suitable for viewers seeking a factual representation of the events.

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