Web Series Review: BANDISH BANDITS SEASON 2 rests on supreme performances and memorable music but it suffers due to its length

Star Cast: Ritwik Bhowmik, Shreya Chaudhary, Divya Dutta, Atul Kulkarni

Director: Anand Tiwari

Synopsis: BANDISH BANDITS SEASON 2 is the story of two ex-lovers meeting again amid some musical chaos. Three months after Radhe Rathod (Ritwik Bhowmik) is crowned as 'Sangeet Samrat', his grandfather, Pandit Radhemohan Rathod (Naseeruddin Shah) passes away. Radhe, his father Rajendra (Rajesh Tailang), mother Mohini (Sheeba Chadha) and uncle Devendra (Saurabh Nayyar) try to take Pandit ji's legacy forward. Tamanna (Shreya Chaudhary) ghosts Radhe and secures admission in the Royal Himalayan Music School, Kasauli. Here, she comes across Nandini Singh (Divya Dutta), a teacher with unconventional methods, and a senior student Ayaan (Rohan Gurbaxani), who charms Tamanna. Arghya (Kunaal Roy Kapur), Radhe's manager, asks the latter to be a part of a famous band called Rage And Raga. But Radhe declines the offer. Meanwhile, the Rathod family faces public humiliation when Kailash Mandrekar (Suyash Tilak) writes a book on Pandit ji and how he stopped Mohini from singing. The students stop attending their classes and their music shows are cancelled. With no other choice, Radhe accepts the Rage And Raga offer. The band is headed by Mahi (Paresh Pahuja), whose way of functioning is very different from that of Radhe. Rage And Raga decides to participate in the India Band Championship and so do the students of Royal Himalayan Music School. Radhe leaves Mahi's band as he feels the latter disrespects Pandit ji's compositions. Radhe decides to participate in the India Band Championship and asks his family for help. What happens next forms the rest of the series.

Bandish Bandits Season 2 Story Review: Atmika Didwania, Karan Singh Tyagi, Digant Patil and Anand Tiwari's story is superb and introduces new challenges and characters as well, which add to the entertainment. Atmika Didwania, Karan Singh Tyagi, Digant Patil and Anand Tiwari's screenplay is unhurried and beautifully blends music and drama. However, the pacing is too slow and might not be accepted by a section of the audience. A few developments are also not convincing. Atmika Didwania, Karan Singh Tyagi, Digant Patil and Anand Tiwari's dialogues are simple and sharp. The one-liners mouthed by Kunaal Roy Kapur are too funny and deserve a special mention.

Anand Tiwari's direction is neat. This is a one-of-its-kind show, and he keeps this aspect intact. Songs are a mainstay, and he ensures that it remains the focus of the narrative. There’s a lot of drama and confrontational sequences that keep the interest going. What’s also interesting to see is how the dynamics change between characters at different points. A few scenes that stand out are Rajendra confessing that he unintentionally leaked out the family secrets, Nandini’s entry, Radhe and Tamanna’s first meeting at the championship, Mahi’s outburst, Mohini and Digvijay's (Atul Kulkarni) face-off, the Bikaner sequence, etc. The scene where the ‘students’ touch Mahi's feet is moving and praiseworthy.

On the flipside, this season, like Season 1, is excessively long. But Season 1 episodes were short. Here, some episodes are 50 minutes plus while the last two episodes have a run time of more than an hour. This makes for a tedious watch, and it feels like watching two seasons. A few scenes and tracks could have been done away with, like Ananya's (Aaliyah Qureishi) family track. Also, the pacing is not consistent. The elimination round gets over in no time as if the makers wanted to rush through the sequence and move on to the next one. Moreover, the equation between Radhe and Tamanna is confusing and some of their actions will bewilder the audience. Lastly, the Rathod family was boycotted due to the book; this aspect is conveniently forgotten, and we don’t see anyone reacting over Radhe’s presence in the championship.

Bandish Bandits Season 2 Performances: Ritwik Bhowmik yet again plays the lead role effortlessly. He uses his innocent face and fine acting talent to deliver a great performance. Shreya Chaudhary has a stunning screen presence and this time, her performance is way more impressive compared to Season 1. Rajesh Tailang and Sheeba Chadha, as always, are dependable. Saurabh Nayyar replaces the late Amit Mistry; though he gives his best, his performance is just alright. Divya Dutta rocks the show, thanks to her performance and well-fleshed-out character. Kunaal Roy Kapur brings the house down whenever he opens his mouth. Rohan Gurbaxani looks dashing and leaves a mark. Paresh Pahuja shines and how. Suyash Tilak, Aaliyah Qureishi and Yashaswini Dayama (Soumya Mehta) are impressive. The others who do well are Meghna Malik (Avantika; Tamanna's mother), the late Rituraj Singh (Harshvardhan Sharma, Tamanna's father), Pawan Uttam (Prashant; who works in music school), KCD (Karan Chitra Deshmukh; part of Rathod band) and Arvind Wahi (Bhairav Singh). Mane Khan (Alaap sir) is lovely in a cameo while Arjun Rampal’s special appearance (Imroz Dahelvi) is a surprise.

Bandish Bandits Season 2 music and other technical aspects: The songs are the show’s USP. The songs that work big time are 'Araj', 'Garaj Garaj Rock', 'Saavan Mohe Tarasaaye', 'Nirmohiya', 'Sakhi Mori' and 'Ghar Aa Maahi (I’m Waiting for You)'.

Souumil Shringarpure's background score is in sync with the musical theme. Anubhav Bansal's cinematography is outstanding, especially in the music performance scenes. Hazel Paul's costumes are appealing and yet realistic. Manini Mishra's production design is classy. Tanupriya Sharma's editing is not up to the mark as it's too dragging.

Bandish Bandits Season 2 Conclusion: On the whole, BANDISH BANDITS SEASON 2 rests on superb casting, supreme performances, memorable songs and well-executed dramatic scenes. However, the show suffers due to excessive length.

Rating: 3 stars