Mirzapur (Season 2):- The second season of Mirzapur suffers from some obvious flaws but remains entertaining nonetheless.
The second season of the beloved series, Mirzapur, begins with the shot of a deadly scorpion crossing the road. As the camera follows the scorpion, we hear a convoy of cars approaching and it feels as if we are about to witness a roadkill. However, the scorpion survives miraculously. One can’t help but notice how this scene is actually a retelling of the events that occurred at the end of the first season, how Guddu was able to escape death by an inch. This scene had me thoroughly impressed but my only regret is that the rest of season couldn’t do so consistently.
It has been quite a long time since the first season aired but the second season takes place only a few months after the events of the first. Everyone present at the wedding massacre was left bruised and battered either physically or emotionally or in case of Guddu, both. We see Munna Tripathi(played by Divyendu Sharma) recovering at an hospital, where he is visited by his father, Kaleen Bhaiya(played by an amazing, Pankaj Tripathi) and his grandfather(played by Kulbhushan Kharbanda). Even as he is lying on the bed, all Munna exclaims is how he failed to kill both of the brothers and squandered his opportunity to the throne of Mirzapur. Kaleen Bhaiya, however, says that he did all he could but he has to do better to get what he desires. The scene then cuts to a place faraway. We see two women stealing medical supplies in the cover of nighttime. We get to know that they are Golu(played by Shweta Tripathi) and Dimpy(played by Harshita Gaur) and they are currently hold up at a hideout deep in the jungle, taking care of Guddu Bhaiya(played by Ali Fazal), who is in no condition to take care of himself. He is always in a fit of rage and rightly so, since he lost both his pregnant wife and brother in the massacre and also for currently being at a standstill due to his injuries. The show portrays his desperation for revenge in a brilliant manner.
Right from the beginning, the show is able to quickly reestablish the various relationships and plot points from the first season and gets to work on the central theme of rivalry between the two parties in conflict. The second season is well-crafted and the script by Puneet Krishna and Vineet Krishna isn’t without its share of breathtaking moments. However, these moments are few as the show continues to rely on some of the similar cliched tropes from before. The pacing of the season is where the show has shown improvement, making each episode worthwhile to watch. The exposition in every episode is controlled and it never feels as though we are being bombarded with information. The cinematography is a department where the show remains consistent. The DOP, Sanjay Kapoor, captures the raw countryside beautifully and the action set-pieces boast some of the best shot planning and camerawork. The one-take sequence featured in episode three was the most thrilling and intense scene in the whole season. We watch how a couple of gangsters infiltrate a heavily-guarded compound to assassinate an important character. This scene builds tension slowly and the payoff at the end is nothing short of amazing.
However, this season, like its predecessor, suffers from some glaring flaws but the flaws this time really hamper the narrative often making scenes unbearable to watch. What baffles me is that the writing that actually helms a lot of the great scenes, brings down a lot of the others. The show always suffers when it’s trying to provide comic relief in between important parts. These scenes stick out like a sore thumb and instead feel slapstick due to the use of some raunchy comedy tracks. The best example of this comes in the form of possibly the worst scene in the whole season where Kaleen Bhaiya goes to visit the doctor to get treated for his problem of premature ejaculation. What saves this scene from being more horrible, is the no nonsense performance by Pankaj Tripathi. The worst plot point in the season is the entire election process for a State Assembly where the CM is re-elected for his second term. The way it is presented to us seems as if he and his party are the only ones running. There is no mention of an opposition and the entire concept of an election taking place remains in the shadows, much like the fleeting mentions of caste dynamics that the show tends to use to appear woke.
Coming to the performances, Pankaj Tripathi, Ali Fazal and Shweta Tripathi never disappoint. Each of them embodies their characters’ psyche beautifully, which shows just how great performers they are. A special mention should be given to Rasika Dugal, who plays Beena, the wife of Kaleen Bhaiya. She arguably has the best character arc in the whole season. The way she manipulates people into getting what she wants is a real treat to watch. Divyendu Sharma as Munna Tripathi was great in the first season but in the second season his motivation of claiming the throne of Mirzapur feels very derivative and cliched and it feels as if not a lot of care was taken while writing for his character in this season. He remains headstrong as long as he is not complaining about his supposed birthright. Most of the heavy-lifting is done by the supporting cast this time. Amit Sial, Isha Talwar, Vijay Varma give riveting performances and actually liven up some of the dull scenes with their portrayals. Anjum Sharma as Sharad Shukla was one character who felt the most underutilized. Though being under Kaleen Bhaiya, he is shown as man with huge ulterior motives but none of these come to fruition and he is left as an unbearable mess of a character by the end.
The ending of the season is where the greatest problem lies. Without giving any spoilers, the season finale felt like a desperate attempt to have the basis ready for a third season. It is the messiest final fifteen minutes I have ever been exposed to. The ending of the season only gave birth to more new grudges to exact revenge upon and frankly, happiness is definitely not on my mind, knowing that there is more to come.
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