Raakshasa trailer: Missing people, dismembered bodies and a man-eater crocodile plague Saudatti police station

Raakshasa on OTT: Vijay Raghavendra as SI Hanumappa and his motley team have to figure out if the bodies dropping in their station limits are the handiwork of a beastly human or a blood-thirsty animal

Vijay Raghavendra in Raakshasa

Raakshasa, the fourth Zee5 original Kannada web series is set to drop on the platform on February 20, 2026. Directed by Suhan Prasad and produced by Tharun Sudhir, the show has Vijay Raghavendra in the lead, in yet another cop role. Raakshasa is a 7-episode show, each around 25 minutes in run time. Joining Vijay on the cast are MS Jahangir, Avinash Yelandur, Appanna, Mahadev Hadapad, Mayuri Kyatari, Abhijith, Hulugappa Kattimani, Sushmitha Jagappa, among others.

What's troubling SI Hanumappa at the Saudatti police station?

In Raakshasa, Vijay Raghavendra is SI Hanumappa at the Saudatti police station, in north Karnataka, where a man-eater crocodile is on the loose. A dismembered body is found around the time of the festival celebration of the local potter community, held near the backwaters of the river. Although the investigation points to the crocodile, the fact that half of the cases at the Saudatti police station are of missing people disconcerts Hanumappa and team.

Also read: Raakshasa on OTT: Vijay Raghavendra’s crime thriller series a remake of THIS show?

All these people disappeared without a trace. Will Hanumappa close the latest case as a man-animal conflict or will he stumble upon something far more sinister? That is what the trailer of Raakshasa hints at. The show, meanwhile, is said to be the Kannada adaptation of the Tamil original Vilangu that came out in 2022 and had a serial killer theme against a caste sensitive background.

Also read: Vilangu review: This whodunit, starring Vimal, Balasaravanan and Ineya, is an edge-of-the-seat thriller

Vilangu was subsequently remade in Hindi as Janaawar – The Beast Within, with Bhuvan Arora in the lead. Here too, dismembered bodies, a serial killer, caste prejudice and institutional discrimination were at the core of the story. The lead investigation officer also had a pregnant wife back home, as is seen in the Raakshasa trailer too. How much Raakshasa will differ from the source material will be revealed when the show releases on Februry 20, available via OTTplay Premium also.

Zee5’s earlier Kannada show Shodha was also a remake, but script doctor Pawan Kumar, who also played the lead, ensured that most of the plot holes of the original were plugged in his version. Vijay Raghavendra, meanwhile, will be in khaki on the big screen too, what with his Second Case of Seetharam releasing on the same day. The film is the sequel to his earlier thriller, Seetharam Benoy Case No: 18.

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