Ankitasharma at 04:19, 5 February 2026

2026-02-05T04:19:25Z

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{{short description|Indian web series}}
{{Use dmy dates|date= December 2020}}
{{Use Indian English|date=December 2019}}
{{Infobox television
| image = CJ- Behind Closed Doors Poster.jpeg
| caption = Promotional poster
| genre = [[Crime (genre)|Crime]]<br/>[[Legal drama]]<br>
[[Thriller (genre)|Thriller]]
| based_on =
| runtime = 41-60 minutes
| creator =
| director = {{ubl|[[Rohan Sippy]]|Arjun Mukerjee}}
| starring = {{Plainlist|
*[[Pankaj Tripathi]]
*[[Jisshu Sengupta]]
*[[Kirti Kulhari]]
*Khushboo Atre
*[[Anupriya Goenka]]
*[[Mita Vashisht]]
*Pankaj Saraswat
}}
| writer = [[Apurva Asrani]]
| theme_music_composer =
| composer = [[Sameer Phaterpekar]]
| country = India
| language = Hindi
| location = India
| cinematography =
| editor =
| network = [[Hotstar]]
| released =
| first_aired = {{Start date|2020|12|24|df=y}}
| last_aired =
| company = [[BBC Studios|BBC Studios India]]<br> [[Applause Entertainment Limited|Applause Entertainment]]
| executive_producer = {{Plainlist|
* Siddharth Khaitan
* Rajesh Chadha
}}
| producer = {{Plainlist| [[Sameer Nair]] <br/> Deepak Segal }}
| num_seasons = 1
| num_episodes = 8
| list_episodes =
| related = {{Plainlist|
* ''[[Criminal Justice (Indian TV series)|Criminal Justice]]'' (2019)
}}
| image_alt =
| channel =
}}

'''''Criminal Justice: Behind Closed Doors '''''is an Indian [[Hindi]]-language [[legal drama]] [[web series]] for [[Hotstar Specials]] written by [[Apurva Asrani]] and directed by [[Rohan Sippy]] and Arjun Mukerjee. The series stars [[Pankaj Tripathi]], [[Kirti Kulhari]], [[Jisshu Sengupta]] and Khushboo Atre, and was released through [[Disney+ Hotstar]] on 24 December 2020.<ref name="cast">{{cite web | last=Borah | first=Prabalika M. | title=Set reaction: Shilpa Shukla on 'Criminal Justice: Behind Closed Doors' | website=The Hindu | date=2020-12-16 | url=https://www.thehindu.com/entertainment/shilpa-shukla-on-playing-a-prisoner-in-criminal-justice-behind-closed-doors/article33342277.ece | access-date=2020-12-24}}</ref>

== Cast ==
* [[Pankaj Tripathi]] as Advocate Madhav Mishra
* [[Jisshu Sengupta]] as Advocate Bikram Chandra, Anuradha's husband
* [[Deepti Naval]] as Vijaya "Vijji" Chandra, Bikram's mother
* [[Kirti Kulhari]] as Anuradha "Anu" Verma Chandra, Bikram's wife
* [[Anupriya Goenka]] as Nikhat Hussain, Mandira's former assistant
* [[Mita Vashisht]] as Mandira Mathur, Corporate lawyer
* [[Ashish Vidyarthi]] as Dipen Prabhu, Public Prosecutor
* [[Ayaz Khan]] as Dr. Moksh Singhvi
* [[Shilpa Shukla]] as Ishani Nath
* [[Padma Damodaran]] as Justice Alka Sharma
* [[Vibhavari Deshpande]] as Mukta Tai
* Adrija Sinha as Rhea Chandra, Anuradha and Bikram's daughter
* Khushboo Atre as Ratna Mishra, Madhav's wife
* Nilofar Gheshwat as Pushpa
* Ajeet Singh Palawat as Sub-Inspector Harsh Pradhan; Gauri's husband
* Kalyanee Mulay as Asst. Sub-Inspector Gauri Pradhan; Harsh's wife
* Pankaj Saraswat as DCP Raghu Salian

== Episodes ==
{{Episode table |background=64544C |overall= |title= |director= |writer= |airdate= |episodes={{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 1
|Title = A Perfect Family
|RTitle =
|DirectedBy = [[Rohan Sippy]]
|WrittenBy = [[Apurva Asrani]]
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2020|12|24|df=y}}
|ShortSummary = Bikram Chandra is a high profile lawyer in Mumbai. He is seen fighting a case for a family without many means. His wife Anuradha is at home, and is seen contemplating over her medication, before discarding it. She doesn't pick up Bikram's phone and goes to see Moksh, a reputed psychiatrist in town, who is also a family friend. Bikram calls Anu a number of times, but she does not pick up his calls. Later, she calls Bikram from a super market. Bikram meets Mandira after that and also recommends to give case to Nikhat, who was her assistant in the first season of Criminal Justice. Once home, Bikram checks Anu's phone and notes an unlisted number on her call list. After putting their daughter Rhea to bed, he joins Anu in bed. He tries to make love to her, but she is not in a mood. He asks her to get vaseline from downstairs, Anu picks up a knife, crawls into bed and stabs Bikram. She leaves the house as if in a daze after phoning a Hospital. Rhea is woken from her sleep and enters her parents' bedroom to find her father stabbed. She pulls the knife out of her father's side and calls her grandma. The police takes Rhea with them and arrests Anu from the Hospital. Anu confesses to stabbing Bikram. Knowing that no lawyer will defend someone who has attacked Bikram, DCP Salian calls Madhav Mishra, to find if he would be interested in this case. Madhav just married in Patna leaves his newly wed wife and takes a flight for Mumbai on his first night.
|LineColor = 64544C
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 2
|Title = Open and Shut
|RTitle =
|DirectedBy = [[Rohan Sippy]]
|WrittenBy = [[Apurva Asrani]]
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2020|12|24|df=y}}
|ShortSummary = Harsh and Gauri Pradhan, husband and wife and SI's working together investigate the case. Harsh, Gauri and Madhav Mishra interview the Chandra house staff and discover new information. Harsh convinced that Anu is to solely blame manipulates her to confess to the murder without a lawyer present. He further manipulates Anu, promising her access to Rhea, if she affirms her confirmation in court. Despite Madhav's advice, Anu affirms her confirmation in court.

|LineColor = 64544C
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 3
|Title = A Reasonable Doubt
|RTitle =
|DirectedBy = [[Rohan Sippy]]
|WrittenBy = [[Apurva Asrani]]
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2020|12|24|df=y}}
|ShortSummary = In jail, Anu meets Ishani who takes her under her wing. However Ishani later shows her true colours and starts misbehaving with Anu. Outside, Madhav convinces Nikhat to meet Anu and manages to pass on a message to Rhea, her daughter. Due to which Rhea demands to meet with Anu, which makes Anu really happy for the first time.
|LineColor = 64544C
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 4
|Title = Murder
|RTitle =
|DirectedBy = [[Rohan Sippy]]
|WrittenBy = [[Apurva Asrani]]
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2020|12|24|df=y}}
|ShortSummary = Harsh is determined to record Rhea's statement before she meets Anu, by blackmailing the CWC in charge. Getting wind of this, Madhav stakes out Vijji’s house, where he is able to take pictures of people present in the house (prosecutor, Mandira, Harsh, Gauri) during the statement recording of Rhea as a prime witness. Using this, Madhav gets Nigam thrown out as prosecutor and Mandira looks for a new public prosecutor. Meanwhile, Vijji gets a call from the hospital that Bikram is awake and when they all reach to the hospital, Bikram takes his last breath.
|LineColor = 64544C
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 5
|Title = Broken Dreams
|RTitle =
|DirectedBy = [[Arjun Mukerjee]]
|WrittenBy = [[Apurva Asrani]]
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2020|12|24|df=y}}
|ShortSummary = Seven months have passed, and Mandira and Vijji have engaged a new hotshot prosecutor, Prabhu who is quite confident in his capabilities to win the case and determine to prove Anu a murderer both in the eyes of the court and Public through media. In the meantime, Madhav and Nikhat delve into Anu's past, which sheds new light on Bikram. As both meets Anu's father who tells them he was always in contact of Bikram and who also paid bills during his surgery 2 years back, while also claiming to both the father and daughter individually that another one doesn't wish to see them, creating distances. Bikram also seem to cut Anu's all the links with the outside world, keeping her away from her close friends as well.
|LineColor = 64544C
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 6
|Title = The Truth is Born
|RTitle =
|DirectedBy = [[Arjun Mukerjee]]
|WrittenBy = [[Apurva Asrani]]
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2020|12|24|df=y}}
|ShortSummary = Madhav and Nikhat's suspicions about Bikram mount when they record Rhea's statement, where they get to know that Bikram used Rhea to keep an eye on her mother, who she talks to and what she does on the pretext that Anu is depressed.. In the jail, A woman named Sudha befriends Anu, and following her son being taken away to an adoption house after six years in jail, Sudha commits suicide, urging Anu to get out before the same happens with her. At the same time, a DNA test due to request of Harsh, reveals a shocking new twist, that Anu's newborn child is not Bikram's, but her psychiatrist Moksh's. On one side Gauri and on the other side Nikhat and Madhav examine pictures taken on Bikram's camera of Anu's closet, underwear drawer and makeup on her dresser trying to figure out their purpose.
|LineColor = 64544C
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 7
|Title = The Trial Begins
|RTitle =
|DirectedBy = [[Arjun Mukerjee]]
|WrittenBy = [[Apurva Asrani]]
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2020|12|24|df=y}}
|ShortSummary = The trial begins, and Prabhu paints Anu as a scheming villainess whereas Madhav slowly begins to reveal Bikram as a controlling husband who was mentally abusing his wife. Due to the vital nature of Rhea's testimony, Madhav shrewdly suggests that Nikhat should take the lead on the case. When Nikhat pushes Rhea on the stand, both Rhea and Anu crumble and Anu begins to reveal to her lawyers the hell her marital life was.
|LineColor = 64544C
}}{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 8
|Title = Out in the Open
|RTitle =
|DirectedBy = [[Arjun Mukerjee]]
|WrittenBy = [[Apurva Asrani]]
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2020|12|24|df=y}}
|ShortSummary = Gauri re-examines the CCTV showing Anu wandering on the street after stabbing Bikram. Finding a vital clue, Salian gives the footage to Madhav, who with the help of his wife, sees that Anu dumped a bottle of vaseline in the garbage. Rhea finally blurts out the truth about her dad. Anu reveals that Bikram had total control on her life and anally raped her as a form of punishment. Initially thinking of committing suicide, a pregnant Anu decided to stab Bikram instead. The court finds Anu guilty of culpable homicide and sentences her to 2 years including time served which effectively sentences her to a year in prison.
Vijji and Rhea show up at the prison to take Anu's baby home. Gauri finds that she is pregnant but decides that she does not want to be with Harsh.

Madhav takes his wife on a long delayed honeymoon.
|LineColor = 64544C
}}
}}

== Production ==

=== Development ===
On 12 February 2020, [[Sameer Nair]], CEO of [[Aditya Birla Group]]'s content studio [[Applause Entertainment]] and [[BBC Studios|BBC Studios India]], announced for the sequel of ''[[Criminal Justice (Indian TV series)|Criminal Justice]]'', which will be adapted from the second season of the [[Criminal Justice (British TV series)|2008 British original series]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Hotstar's Criminal Justice Renewed for Season 2|url=https://gadgets.ndtv.com/entertainment/news/criminal-justice-season-2-hotstar-renewal-official-cast-pankaj-tripathi-bbc-applause-2179516|access-date=2021-01-22|website=NDTV Gadgets 360|date=13 February 2020 |language=en}}</ref> Sameer Gogate, business head of production at BBC Studios India said "The success of season one has shown what good content can achieve, and we hope the second season will be equally loved by the audiences."<ref name=":0" /> While [[Pankaj Tripathi]], [[Anupriya Goenka]] and [[Mita Vashisht]] were reported to reprise their roles from the first season, the makers did not reveal about the new cast and crew, including the director.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Ramachandran|first=Naman|date=2020-02-12|title=India's Hotstar Signs Second Season of BBC, Applause Thriller 'Criminal Justice'|url=https://variety.com/2020/tv/global/hotstar-applause-bbc-thriller-criminal-justice-season-two-1203501915/|access-date=2021-01-22|website=Variety|language=en-US}}</ref>

In April 2020, the makers announced that [[Kirti Kulhari]] will appear in the new season, with [[Apurva Asrani]] roped in as the screenwriter and [[Rohan Sippy]] and Arjun Mukherjee were roped in to helm the series.{{Citation needed|date=December 2021}} On 3 December 2020, the makers announced the new title as ''Criminal Justice: Behind Closed Doors''.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Hungama|first=Bollywood|date=2020-12-03|title=EXCLUSIVE SCOOP: Title of Pankaj Tripathi starrer Criminal Justice season 2 on Disney+ Hotstar revealed : Bollywood News - Bollywood Hungama|website=[[Bollywood Hungama]] |url=https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/news/bollywood/exclusive-scoop-title-of-pankaj-tripathi-starrer-criminal-justice-season-2-on-disney-hotstar-revealed/|access-date=2021-01-22|language=en}}</ref>

=== Filming===
Principal shooting of the series took place in March 2020, but was immediately stopped due to the [[COVID-19 pandemic lockdown in India]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|last=Hungama|first=Bollywood|date=2020-09-18|title=Criminal Justice 2: Makers complete shoot; plan to release in November : Bollywood News - Bollywood Hungama|website=[[Bollywood Hungama]] |url=https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/news/bollywood/criminal-justice-2-makers-complete-shoot-plan-release-november/|access-date=2021-01-22|language=en}}</ref> The shoot was resumed in July 2020, with the makers following the safety guidelines imposed by the government in order to curb [[COVID-19]] spread. The entire season is shot at three locations spanning over 60-70 working days.<ref name="cast"/><ref name="Khan 2020">{{cite web|last=Khan|first=Talib|date=2020-12-18|title=Criminal Justice: Behind Closed Doors with Directors Rohan Sippy and Arjun Mukerjee|url=https://www.thedailyjagran.com/entertainment/criminal-justice-behind-closed-doors-with-directors-rohan-sippy-and-arjun-mukerjee-10021287|access-date=2020-12-24|website=Jagran English}}</ref> Shooting of the series was completed in September 2020.<ref name=":1" />

== Release ==
The series was initially scheduled for a release in November 2020, before being postponed to December.<ref name="Khan 2020" /> On 8 December 2020, the makers unveiled character posters of the series,<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Disney Hotstar Criminal Justice season 2 trailer will be out on this day, shares new character posters! - Rediff Realtime News|url=https://rediff.com/news/entertainment/Disney-Hotstar-Criminal-Justice-season-2-trailer-will-be-out-on-this-day-shares-new-character-posters/1b409c4f4c0245c6?src=interim_alsoreadheadline|access-date=2021-01-22|website=Rediff}}</ref> with the trailer being unveiled on 10 December 2020.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-12-10|title=Criminal Justice Season 2 trailer: Pankaj Tripathi's Madhav is back with a bang|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/web-series/criminal-justice-season-two-trailer-pankaj-tripathi-7099371/|access-date=2021-01-22|website=The Indian Express|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-12-10|title=Criminal Justice 2 trailer: Pankaj Tripathi's Madhav Mishra returns for a big payday, watch|url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/tv/criminal-justice-2-trailer-pankaj-tripathi-s-madhav-mishra-returns-for-a-big-payday-watch/story-ROiXHqwQ9D6WNW17rBcfnK.html|access-date=2021-01-22|website=Hindustan Times|language=en}}</ref> The series released on [[Disney+ Hotstar]] on 24 December 2020 in [[Hindi]], [[Tamil language|Tamil]], [[Telugu language|Telugu]], [[Malayalam]], [[Kannada]], [[Bengali language|Bengali]] and [[Marathi language|Marathi]] languages.{{Citation needed|date=December 2021}}

== Reception ==
Ektaa Malik, writing for ''[[The Indian Express]]'' gave three out of five and said, "''Criminal Justice: Behind Closed Doors'' is a gripping morality tale, that is not to be missed".<ref name="Malik 2020">{{cite web | last=Malik | first=Ektaa | title=Criminal Justice Season 2 review: A gripping morality tale | website=The Indian Express | date=2020-12-24 | url=https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/web-series/criminal-justice-behind-closed-doors-review-a-gripping-morality-tale-7118376/ | access-date=2020-12-24}}</ref> Divyanshi Sharma of ''[[India Today]]'', gave three-and-a-half out of five and stated, "Criminal Justice is an important show, if not the most perfect one. And with every episode ending at a point where you want to know what happens next, it comes across as a successful thriller. The show ends on a bittersweet note, reminding us that no matter how much it rains, the sun will always shine."<ref name="Sharma">{{cite web | title=Criminal Justice 2 Review: Kirti Kulhari and Pankaj Tripathi power a hard-hitting tale | date=2020-12-24 | url=https://www.indiatoday.in/entertainment/ott/story/criminal-justice-2-review-kirti-kulhari-and-pankaj-tripathi-power-a-hard-hitting-tale-1752431-2020-12-24 | access-date=2020-12-24}}</ref> [[Saibal Chatterjee]] of ''[[NDTV]]'' gave three-and-a-half out of five and said, "As a legal drama, Criminal Justice S2 is pretty close to being top-notch. But it is its sharp-eyed exploration of women seeking equality in life and at work that elevates the series to a higher plane".<ref name="NDTV.com 2020">{{cite web | title=Criminal Justice 2 Review: Legal Drama Is Pretty Close To Being Top Notch | website=NDTV.com | date=2020-12-09 | url=https://www.ndtv.com/entertainment/criminal-justice-2-review-legal-drama-is-pretty-close-to-being-top-notch-3-5-stars-out-of-5-2342856 | access-date=2020-12-24}}</ref> Tatsam Mukherjee from ''[[Firstpost]]'' stated "Criminal Justice: Behind Closed Doors flirts with the notorious brand of 'realistic' that traverses the line of exploitative and vulgar."<ref>{{cite web |title=Criminal Justice: Behind Closed Doors review — Kirti Kulhari, Pankaj Tripathi's show tries too hard to come off as realistic |url=https://www.firstpost.com/entertainment/criminal-justice-behind-closed-doors-review-kirti-kulhari-pankaj-tripathis-show-tries-too-hard-to-come-off-as-realistic-9145221.html |website=Firstpost |date=25 December 2020}}</ref> Nandini Ramnath from ''[[Scroll.in]]'' wrote " Kirti Kulhari’s heartrending performance is especially laudable considering her frustrating passiveness for the part. By reserving Anu’s transformation until the very end, the series reveals how hard it is for women to publicly admit to violence."<ref>{{cite web |last1=Ramnath |first1=Nandini |title='Criminal Justice: Behind Closed Doors' review: A victim of domestic abuse learns to fight back |url=https://scroll.in/reel/981941/criminal-justice-behind-closed-doors-review-a-victim-of-domestic-abuse-learns-to-fight-back |website=Scroll.in|date=24 December 2020 }}</ref>

== Sequel ==
Further information: [[Criminal Justice: Adhura Sach]]

The third installment was released on 26 August 2022 with [[Pankaj Tripathi]] and [[Shweta Basu Prasad]] in the lead roles. [[Pankaj Tripathi]] and [[Khushboo Atre]] would be reprising their roles from previous 2 seasons, whereas [[Purab Kohli]], [[Swastika Mukherjee]], [[Adinath Kothare]], [[Kalyanee Mulay]], [[Aaditya Gupta]], [[Deshna Dugad]] and Aatm Prakash Mishra are new addition to the cast.

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{IMDb title|13690576}}

[[Category:Hindi-language Disney+ Hotstar original programming]]
[[Category:2020 Indian television series debuts]]
[[Category:Indian drama television series]]
[[Category:Indian legal television series]]
[[Category:Hindi-language television shows]]
[[Category:Indian television series based on British television series]]
[[Category:Television shows set in Mumbai]]
[[Category:Television series by BBC Studios]]

Criminal Justice: Behind Closed Doors - Revision history

Ankitasharma at 04:19, 5 February 2026