The True Story of Netflix’s Scoop: Jigna Vora’s Arrest & Fight for Justice
Scoop is one of the latest releases streaming on Netflix. It is a crime drama created by Hansal Mehta and Mrunmayee Lagoo Waikul. It follows the real-life story of Jigna Vora, a journalist accused of helping Chotta Rajan in killing the ace crime reporter Jyotimitra Dey in 2011. The series has been critically acclaimed for its gripping storyline and stand-out performances. It has been rated as one of the best Indian web series of 2023. Here’s the real story of Netflix’s Scoop.
Is Scoop Based on a Real Story?
The series has been adapted from Jigna Vora’s autobiography, Behind Bars in Byculla: My Days in Prison. It is an account of the events from Vora’s perspective. It has Karishma Tanna, Harman Baweja, Prosenjit Chatterjee, Deven Bhojani, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayub, and Tannishtha Chatterjee in lead roles.
Author Jigna Vohra’s book – BEHIND BARS IN BYCULLA published by @PenguinIndia was launched at an event in Mumbai. pic.twitter.com/tqgGxjHGSt
— Booked For Books (@Booked4books) October 1, 2019
What’s the Real Story of Jagruti Pathak?
Karishma Tanna’s feisty and sassy character, Jagruti Pathak, is based on Jigna Vora. Scoop follows the story of Jagruti Pathak as she has to defend her innocence after being accused of using her contacts in the underworld to kill her competitor – another crime journalist. Let us go behind the scenes in the film to uncover the tests and trials of the real-life Jagruti Pathak.
Jigna Vora used to be an eminent crime-beat journalist when her life took a U-turn. She was working as a deputy bureau chief of the Mumbai bureau of the Asian Age newspaper in 2011 when Joytirmoy Dey, her colleague, and friend from Mid-Day, was shot dead in broad daylight at Hiranandani Powai in full public view by motorcycle-borne criminals. The police investigation revealed that the murderers belonged to the Chhota Rajan gang. Jigna Vora was charged for her involvement in the murder conspiracy. She was blamed for providing Chotta Rajan with Dey’s address, bike number, and other details to eliminate her competitor. She denied the claims and acknowledged contacting Chhota Rajan just to interview him.
The Mumbai Police arrested Vora for further investigation on November 25, 2011. Life was never the same for her, and she documented all the experiences thereon in her book, Behind Bars in Byculla: My Days in Prison. She was confined in prison for the next 9 months, facing the most traumatizing experience. In her book, she shared the unpleasant experience of being asked to strip by the lady constables while on her period. Her days and nights in prison were what nightmares are made up of, eating unhygienic foods with strands of hair floating, scrubbing toilets, and living in a dark and damp cell. Jigna was finally released in 2012 from Byculla jail. But, life outside the prison was a long battle to prove her innocence, and it had just begun.
For the next seven years, she had to be part of the court hearings, day in and day out. She was cleared of all the accusations against her by the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act court in 2018, as no evidence was found against her.
Where’s Jigna Vora (Jagruti Pathak) now?
However, life after that has not been easy. In an interview with the Times Of India, she claimed that she was denied jobs because of her criminal record. She has been working as a tarot reader, healer, and astrologer for the last 5 years.
Image Source: Jigna Vora on Twitter
Her story leaves us wondering about the plight of thousands of women locked up even though they did not commit a crime. Later when the court finds them innocent, there is no means by which they can live life like they used to before. We can only thank the almighty that the censorship-free OTT platforms have allowed filmmakers to bring the unseen side of stories to the public.
Hansal Mehta has given us another gem of a web series after the brilliant Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story. Scoop has been streaming on Netflix since June 2nd, 2023. Do watch it in case you haven’t yet!