The Chernobyl is a 2019 historical tragedy drama television miniseries created and written by Craig Mazin and directed by Johan Renk.

It stars Jared Harris as Varley Legasov, Stellan Skarsgard as Baris Shcherbina, Emily Watson as Ulana Khomynk and Poul Ritter as Anatoly Dyatiov. It was HBO's first co-production with Sky Uk. In 2018,major photography took place in Lithuania. Shooting began on May 13, 2018. Locations from Ukraine were used for the final shooting. All of this filming took 16 weeks. In 2019, premieres were held in the United States and the United Kingdom. At the 71st Prime time Emmy Awards, it received nineteen nominations and won for outstanding limited series, outstanding Directing and Outstanding Writing. At the 77th Golden Globe Awards, the series won for Best miniseries or Television Film.

The Chernobyl is a 2019 historical tragedy drama television miniseries created and written by Craig Mazin and directed by Johan Renk. It stars Jared Harris as Varley Legasov, Stellan Skarsgard as Baris Shcherbina, Emily Watson as Ulana Khomynk and Poul Ritter as Anatoly Dyatiov. It was HBO's first co-production with Sky Uk. In 2018, major photography took place in Lithuania. Shooting began on May 13, 2018. Locations from Ukraine were used for the final shooting. All of this filming took 16 weeks. In 2019, premieres were held in the United States and the United Kingdom. At the 71 st Prime time Emmy Awards, it received nineteen nominations and won for outstanding limited series, outstanding Directing and Outstanding Writing. At the 77 th Golden Globe Awards, the series won for Best miniseries or Television Film.                                  The story unfolds in Chernobyl on April 26,1986, in the Soviet Socialist Republic of Ukraine, the nuclear power plant explosion in the Soviet Union. The story unfolds as the catastrophe and the damage it caused, how the real cause of its aftermath and subsequent events were concealed and how a great crowd fought to uncover them. The heroes the world has never seen, the firefighters who fought the disaster for the first time, the volunteers and the miners who dug the tunnel with difficulty under reactor 4 are revered here. 1:23:45 , This is the first title of the first episode. It is the time at which reactor 4 explodes. It released more radiation than the atom bomb released in Hiroshima. This first episode is about fear, about trusting about the problems of the chain of command but above all, about how people react to difficult situations and how unpredictable it is. Akimov's line in the control room "Don't worry. We did everything right. Something strange must have happened" was not dramatised but was really what he said at that moment, according to multiple accounts from the control room. They represent the fear of death that results from the enforcing commands. The influence of the shadows of the ruling class and capitalism stands out. "Open wide of Earth" is a common prayer at Eastern Orthodox funerals. In this miniseries, that is the title of the 3rd episode. This storyline depicts the bravery and pride of the Soviet people from the past. The altruism of the three of them of the lives of millions of human beings presented in a way that touches our hearts. In Gorbachev's words, the dilemma of making a difficult decision for mankind is as follows. "Comrade Legasov, All victories inevitably come at a cost. Sometimes we count this cost in rubles. Sometimes we count it in lives." It was believed that three volunteers, who opened the gates in order to prevent a further catastrophe exposure. The value of ordinary human life is determined by the hand of capitalism. The story highlights how nature and the gifts of nature have also suffered from a serious mistake made by people who pursue greed for power. This includes a heart-touching scene in which men walk through Pripyat and kill irradiated cats and dogs which have become dangerous merely by a disaster of human mistake. But showing this quote "The happiness of All mankind" feels ridiculous. Lyudmilla's behavior is very insensitive. She portrayed the departure of loved ones because of a terrible disaster in a very subtle and sensitive way. That is why Lyudmilla Ignatenko, a Pripyat resident, ignores warnings about her firefighter husband's contamination. An example to prove that the radiation was so severe is that Ludmilla had a miscarriage. The higher authorities did not care about the damage done to the lives of ordinary people. That’s why the government hid the truth about the disaster. The Chernobyl disaster led to many political consequences along with the health and environmental issues. Firstly, the accident prompted nuclear energy policy to arise as a significant public issue. It also led to a distrust and unease between Soviet citizens, specially those in the evacuated and nearby areas and president Gorbachov’s regime. The town of Pripyat is another example of the political implications in the wake of the Chernobyl disaster. The town had been initially created to house workers, nuclear experts and their families. The population size of the town was around 60,000 people, all of whom had to evacuate at the explosion of reactor 4. The evacuation of Pripyat occurred in just a couple of hours, however, it took some time for the government to inform the citizens of Pripyat the detrimental extent of the explosion. Some of the citizens of Pripyat, like many of the firemen, were killed trying to put out the radioactive fire. Many other citizens were affected by radiation, some cases fatal and other causing later health issues including thyroid cancer. Cancer patients are still prevalent in the area. Births with genetic disorders, deformities and disabilities still occur today. As wired points out, the Chernobyl disaster presents an unintended experiment in what earth would be like without humans. Hunting is strictly illegal and living within the Chernobyl exclusion Zone is not recommended. The fewer humans there are, the more nature can re-establish itself; unencumbered species are actually living better within the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone than outside of it. Wolves were found to be seven times as abundant on the premises than in other, non-radioactive areas. Although humans are the greatest creature of nature, humans are responsible for its destruction.  The acting and writing are unbelievably perfect. While watching this, you will absolutely forget that you are watching a TV series. Because this is realistic. You are given a phenomenal and real experience. Firstly, I want to say the casting is excellent. Jared Harris as Valery legasove, the deputy director of the Kurchatov Institute brought in to aid cleanup efforts, Stellan Skarsdard as Boris Shcherbina, a Council of Ministers’ deputy chairman,  Paul Ritter as Anatoly Dytlov, the deputy chief engineer at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant and Emily Watson as Belarusian Ulana Khomyuk, a nuclear physicist from Minsk. Khomyuk is a fictional composite character. Unlike most of the characters who are based on real people, Ulana is an amalgam representing the hundred of Soviet scientist who worked on solving the crisis at Chernobyl. Choosing a woman for such a role should be appreciated. There are scenes where my blood ran cold, where I felt queasy but most of all I was just horrified by the scenes that depicted those first on the scene. You always look for the helpers in any disaster. But what if the disaster overcomes by the helpers. What if even the strongest of us are no match for the horrific event. It’s almost unthinkable. But it happened here. Music was created using sound recordings from an actual nuclear power plant. The folk song, at the pets’ “funeral” was sung by Russian soldiers. It’s about resiliency, stubbornness, refusal to die. The music on the last scene is not an original music for the series, but it was, in fact, composed by Hildur Guonadottir. It’s the track “Liour” from her album “Saman”. However, the audience has captivated by emotional music.  The authors of this series have done a great job to show every detail of what the world looks like in the times of the Soviet Union. The telephones, the clothes, the haircuts, the cracked paint on the windowsills, even the door glass is similar to that of the Soviet Union. The costumes of soldiers, nurses, authorities, workers, and they are remarkable. The designs of the locations and props have managed to build the audience’s confidence in the story. The makeup crew has done a great job in this series. They have done the prosthetics of wounded people and dead people supremely. Therefore people’s pain can be felt by the audience. The firefighters' clothing and shoes discarded in the basement of the Pripyat hospital are still there. However, there are omissions here as well. Here are some examples; when the three men enter the flooded area in dry suits, to open the slice gates, their respirators are not connected to their face masks. In the 4th episode, when the three soldiers are leaving the table where they ate and drank, some bottles and scraps can be seen in the background. In the next shot, however, the table is completely clear. There are also some factual errors. The character of Valery Legasov is described as “an expert in RBMK reactors” but in real life he was not. He was a nuclear physicist and a nuclear chemist. The beginning and end of the story are done by Legasov’s voice. The excellence and dedication of that character will not be forgotten. The last lines, spoken by Legasov. The start and the climax have the same question of this TV series, “What is the cost of lies?” . This is up to us. We have to find the solution for that. From beginning to end the story vividly depicts the devastation caused by the explosion and the aftermath. There was a perfect climax in every aspect that can be imagined. Editing and details there are some scenes which had minor technical glitches, but acting, storytelling, characters, cinematography, music, dialogue, makeup etc; are all excellent. Due to political conflicts, socialism and the impact of capitalism, people have suffered a lot during this era. Those circumstances have been recreated realistically in this tv series. But the most important thing is that tv series shows that the Soviet authorities lied to people about this disaster all the time. For example, In Kiev, which is 130 km from Chernobyl, nobody knew about the high levels of radiation till the middle of May. From my point of view, this series definitely has to be watched by all people. It excellently highlights the chaotic mentality  and diversity of human. This is a tribute to all the heroes who have lost their lives in a nuclear power plant explosion in the Soviet Union and saved all of humans from death. Hats off to HBO, Craig Mazin, Jonah Renck and everyone who was a part of making this masterpiece. The one last thing I should mention here. “But you know the Russian proverb; Trust but verify”. Piyumika B. Jayawardhana 4 th Year Department of Fine Arts Faculty of Humanities