The BBC has unveiled a first glimpse of its upcoming series Virdee, a six-part crime thriller based on the bestselling novels by AA Dhand, featuring a talented ensemble cast.
Newly released images from the BBC showcase Game of Thrones actor Staz Nair as lead detective Harry Virdee, alongside Aysha Kala as Harry’s wife Saima and Crossfire’s Vikash Bhai as Saima’s brother Riaz.
The cast also includes Kulvinder Ghir and Sudha Bhuchar as Harry’s parents, Ranjit and Jyoti, with Good Omens star Elizabeth Berrington as DS Clare Conway and actor Danyal Ismail as DS Amin.
Set and filmed in Bradford, a city central to AA Dhand’s novels, Virdee follows the story of Detective Harry Virdee, a devoted officer estranged from his Sikh family after marrying Saima, a Muslim woman.
The cast is rounded out by Nina Singh, Majinder Virk, Tomi May, Andi Jashy, Hussina Raja, Yousef Naseer, Akshay Kumar, Madiha Ansari, Nichola Burley, Javed Khan, and Ramon Tikaram, reports the Liverpool Echo.
According to the synopsis: “A turf war is brewing in the underbelly of the city with the police losing its grip on gang rivalries as they spill out onto the streets of Bradford. When a young dealer is murdered, Harry’s duty to uphold the law clashes with his links to members of the crime gangs. With his personal life in chaos, he must hunt down whoever is targeting those around him.
“Whilst the killer holds the entire city to ransom, Harry realises that he is going to need the help of his brother-in-law Riaz, a drugs kingpin who runs the largest cartel in the county. Pulled together in an alliance that could ruin them both, Harry must make a choice: save himself and his family or save his city. He will not be able to do both.”
Acclaimed composer Hans Zimmer is teaming up with James Everingham for Bleeding Fingers, to create the theme music for Virdee, and Shashwat Sachdev will also contribute. The BBC has not announced an official release date for Virdee yet.