The adage- flip side to a coin- just got a new definition, a new meaning and perspective in reference to Chicago city. There’s one side to the coin that’s all slick and then there’s a hard truth awaiting when you flip the coin- it’s rusty and slathered with a stained layer, credits grime,  grunge and of course time. There’s not even the slightest light of reality to this absurd new definition one may say, however, no matter how funny this seems, it is what aptly describes the Chicago of present times. Seemingly disjointed into two different worlds in itself, one part of the city has been painted into a happy picture of an idyllic setting and the other side, the West and the South are riddled beyond imagination and tolerance with ghastly violence and sufferings.

The Chi is a narrative presenting the screen space to this daily fight and struggles of the West and South Chicagoans.  

Emmy Award winner Lena Waithe has limned and produced a soul-touching narrative with the Chi where every nuance, each aspect of Southern Chicago sinks real deep. The pilot opening sets the pace of the narrative effortlessly, planting a jittery vibe since its alpha. The first scene follows a starry eyed, frizzy haired teenager Coogie (Jahking Guillory) riding past scenic murals, huddling past the busy streets and a pulling some lively stunts on his skateboard here and there only to stumble upon a dead body. Little to his knowledge, he steps voluntarily into troubled waters by deciding to pack the boy’s sneakers and neck accessory for himself. Boy, this is where the story starts stirring to life.

Acknowledged as a coming-of-drama and a network narrative, the incidents, the goings on and the characters are related to each other. Here you don’t flap the pages and turn to the next part to find out what happens, you just chance upon people and meet them along the way, listening to the music that is their story.  In the midst of the plot unfolding, there pops a question as to ‘how the characters’ are lives interwoven with each other’s and how are their stories vis-a-vis everybody else’s too?’ The answer is the whole idea behind the narrative.

The Chi tries to project the mayhem that has turned out be a part and parcel of the daily life at Chicago. The story echoes the deep seated agony due to injustices amongst the Chicagoans and the lack of a  copper-bottomed justice system compels them to charge ahead and commit heinous crimes that go beyond reason or take matters into their hands and erase the upwelling of emotions for once and for all. Though this isn’t about being right or supportive of such macabre killings, the -narrative drives home the point - ‘why is someone packing bullets for breakfast’.

The Chi can be termed as a ‘dawn of renaissance’ as it clearly imparts a resonating message loud and clear; the echoes of which seem to be shifting the dark cloud lurking above this great city.  Lena Waithe has delivered a powerful narrative as promised, ‘I want to show people in human light.’ The Chi - Wiping off the Shades of Grey