Paatal Lok’s Season 2
Amazon Prime Video
Swimmingly escaping the Curse of the second season, Paatal Lok does well, extremely well, in its second season, in spite of the absence of some of some of our beloved characters from the previous season, for example the evil Vishal Tyagi (Abhishek Banerjee) , the hotshot journalist Sanjeev Mehra (Neeraj Kabi) and his neurotic wife Dolly (Swastika Chatterjee).
But the additional characters in this season are so layered and unpredictable, we don’t get a chance to get nostalgic about the losses.
This time, Hathiram (Jaideep Ahlawat, habitually exceptional) and Imran (Ishwak Singh) are in Nagaland investigating a high-profile murder where the prime suspect is a wayward adrift drugged young woman Rose (Merenla Imsong). The rugged unspoilt terrain serves as a solid soundingboard for the investigative procedural which involves a surplus of physical and emotional probing.
In spite of a plot that thickens with every episode, the procedural never gets uninteresting, thanks to the canny characterizations that are hefty and yet funny. Even a relatively small character like the pregnant cop Manju with her conversations mixing murder with vegetables, is delightfully sharp and witty.
Among the new characters recruited in Season 2, Tillotama Shome as a Naga cop Meghna Barua stands out, though her presence gets limited playing time. I wish there was more of she, as well as Gul Panag as Hathiram’s disillusioned wife.
Gul Panag has some precious scenes with a quiet little orphan (Rokilbul Hossain, solemn heartmelting) Hathiram brings home to his wife, somewhat like Naseeruddin Shah in Masoom.
Oh yes, there is an interesting twist midway through the series when one of the protagonists reveals that the “girlfriend” he has been whispering sweet nothings to on the phone is actually a male.
Not a single moment is wasted in the eight episodes of taut and coiled storytelling. Director Avinash Arun maintains a resolute grip over the proceedings all through, not wavering for even a moment. This is a series that requires our complete and unconditional attention. Life never promised us a rose garden. And Paatal Lok is not afraid to create a stink.
Paatal Lok Season 2 takes potshots at its dramatic interjections and narrative exclamations. Death in this series is always sudden violent and irrelevant. Just like life. Paatal Lok comes as a jolting reminder of what levels of brilliant storytelling can be achieved on the OTT platform by those who know how to use the extended space afforded by the medium.
