There is childlike glee to Shefali Shah's voice when we get on a call with her on Tuesday morning, and with good reason. Only hours before, Delhi Crime – created and directed by Richie Mehta, and fronted by her – bagged the gong for Best Drama Series at the 48th International Emmy Awards, becoming the first Indian series to bring home an Emmy.

Since then, it has been a blissful haze of congratulatory calls and messages. Shah announces that her top priority is to schedule a video call with the team to celebrate the win. "Honestly, I want a real celebration where we can all be present together, but God knows when that will be possible," she begins. The Netflix series — a gritty retelling of the Delhi police's investigation of the 2012 Nirbhaya case — bested Charité 2 (Germany), Criminal UK (UK) and El Jardín de Bronce 2 (Argentina) to win the top honour. "[Ahead of the gala] I told Richie that I don't know of any other show that deserves this [accolade]."

In his acceptance speech, Mehta dedicated the award to "all the women who not just endure the violence that men inflict on them, but are then tasked to solve the problem." Shah infused her character DCP Vartika Chaturvedi with guts and gumption as she cracks the Delhi gang rape case. "The show not only stands for women, but also for justice. When news of the 2012 Delhi bus gang rape broke, we all felt, 'Why is nobody doing anything about it?' I didn't know this side of the story until [the series came my way]. While the series depicted a woman's trauma and pain, it showed that it took another woman to crack the case and get justice," adds Shah.

Elated as she is by the victory, Rasika Dugal — who played the trusted probationary IPS officer Neeti Singh — takes the opportunity to highlight the rampant violence against women in the country. "According to statistics, there has been an increase in violence against women since 2018. So, the true victory of the series would be to serve as a reminder to us that we, as a society, allowed a crime like the Nirbhaya rape case to happen and that we need to constantly check ourselves." She credits Mehta for employing an empathetic gaze. "The show examined the lives of the women investigating this case, thus giving a glimpse into [their state] in a patriarchal society. It depicted that everyday discrimination and sexism contributes to creating an environment where a crime like this can happen," she adds.

Richie Mehta