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Review: ‘Panchayat’ Revels In the Simple Pleasures of Village Life

The Amazon Prime Video series stars Jitendra Kumar, Raghubir Yadav and Neena Gupta.

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Panchayat

‘Panchayat’ Revels In Simple Pleasures of Village Life

(The review may contain spoilers)

What happens when you are neither here nor there? No, you are not shallow enough to fail the system. Neither are you equipped enough to deal with the cut-throat competition. You fall somewhere in between. Do you consider your achievements ‘enough’? Or do you pine in the misery of the so-called ‘mediocre’ life that destiny has thrown at you?

Season one of TVF’s new show Panchayat, streaming on Prime Video, opens with Abhishek Tripathi (Jitendra Kumar) venting his frustrations to his closest friend. Both have just passed out of engineering college and have had to go through the drill of campus placements. Abhishek falls into the ‘not-enough’ category. Laziness overshadows his drive and he lands the job of the panchayat secretary in a remote village in Uttar Pradesh - Phulera. On the other hand, his best buddy is set to live the ‘flashy’ corporate life with a salary of Rs 80,000 a month.

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The Amazon Prime Video series stars Jitendra Kumar, Raghubir Yadav and Neena Gupta.
Raghubir Yadav in a still from Panchayat.
(Photo Courtesy: YouTube screengrab)

Left with no other choice, a glum Abhishek reaches his ‘punishment posting’ only to find out that the woman Pradhan, Manju Devi (a brilliant Neena Gupta), who he is supposed to report to is nowhere in the picture. Instead, her husband Brij Bhushan Dubey (an arresting Raghubir Yadav) is in charge of affairs. “In the previous Panchayat elections, the government had reserved seats for women. In order to win, Dubey ji made his wife run instead of him”, Abhishek’s assistant, Vikas, informs. That very conversation and Abhishek’s bemusement capture our attention - writer Chandan Kumar and director Deepak Kumar Mishra have cleverly chosen this ‘modest’ profession for the protagonist.

The panchayat secretary is not just a post - it’s a gaze of the privileged, urban dweller towards the ‘real India’, one that Bollywood has fed him/her through the ages.

It’s only when Abhishek starts to pore over the files and interact with the villagers does he stumble upon deep-rooted prejudices and practices that have engulfed Phulera.

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But, he is not the messiah here. Rather, our man is a selfish creature whose only goal is to clear the CAT exam and get out of Phulera. He extends a helping hand when he has something to gain out of it. In one of the episodes, Abhishek takes on the task of busting a myth about a haunted banyan tree. He devises a smart plan to drive the fear out of the villagers’ minds - but hidden in that is his personal interest of getting the last solar light installed in front of the office instead of the pre-decided place, that’s near the tree.

The Amazon Prime Video series stars Jitendra Kumar, Raghubir Yadav and Neena Gupta.
Jitendra Kumar in a still from Panchayat.
(Photo Courtesy: YouTube screengrab)

One of the most well-crafted sequences is when, during a wedding, Abhishek unintentionally gives a piece of his mind to the groom on the ills of dowry. However, this reaction was a result of the groom demanding his prized “chakka kursi” (revolving chair).

Panchayat keeps alluding to Swades’ Mohan Bhargav, a brilliant NRI working with NASA who gives up his comforts to revolutionise a village with his scientific acumen. Perhaps the reason Mohan comes up is because it’s high time we lift the veil off the saviour complex. Abhishek is no Mohan, rather he is as flawed as Nutan Kumar from Newton, a rookie government clerk who lives in the cocoon of his own needs.

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Bidding adieu to the romanticised lens of rural India, the TVF show revels in simpler pleasures of a life devoid of glitz and glamour. All the characters are unique in themselves, and not for once do we feel that they have been reduced to caricatures.

They hero worship, believe in superstitions, do not have lofty expectations and never question the Pradhan because their worldview is limited. On one hand, Akshay Kumar’s son’s name is enough to convince a father that Aarav is what his child should also be called. On the other, a woman, while explaining the need for population control, tells her husband, “Do you know the pain women have to endure to give birth to more than two kids?” However, despite limited access, Phulera residents always have each other’s back. They even go to great lengths to make Abhishek feel at home.

The Amazon Prime Video series stars Jitendra Kumar, Raghubir Yadav and Neena Gupta.
A still from Panchayat.
(Photo Courtesy: YouTube screengrab)

Superstitions, apathy of the police, corrupt politicians, gang wars - Panchayat touches upon these aspects with a pinch of humour. And it is in the minute details that the show wins our hearts. While a lost key takes us through the concept of dowry and feud between brothers because of property, a stolen monitor, is symbolic of skewed investigations and a botched up judicial system.

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Behind every well-made show is a successful cast, and the terrific ensemble ensures that Panchayat never feels dull and one-note. Raghubir Yadav is flawless as the big hearted but laid-back village Pradhan. Despite being chided by his wife, he does not think twice before helping out residents of Phulera. Dubey even makes Abhishek a part of his close-knit WhatsApp group when the latter launches into a monologue about how lonely he is.

However, this kind and caring soul too can’t escape the fragile male ego, which comes to light in one of the episodes.

In the eight-part series, Neena Gupta makes a small appearance, but her character stays true to the grim reality of women’s role in villages. Despite holding positions of power, women are forced to stay behind closed doors, cooking for their husbands who steal their very identities. In a fitting closure, Manju Devi delivers the strongest punch.

The Amazon Prime Video series stars Jitendra Kumar, Raghubir Yadav and Neena Gupta.
Neena Gupta in a still from Panchayat.

It’s refreshing to see Jitendra Kumar on screen every time. From the coaching-class teacher in Kota Factory to a depressed student in Panchayat, roles have reversed for him and he owns both with supreme suave. Kumar portrays Abhishek’s frustration with such ease that we can’t help but feel for this young guy who had to leave a bustling metro and make a desolate and gloomy panchayat office his home. Like his character in Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan, this one too is consumed by pent up rage and every expression feels real.

The same aerial view of Phulera in almost every episode warns us of a staggered pace, but the quiet monotony of a place tucked inside a huge state opens a box of stories about trust, friendship, comfort and happiness. Panchayat leaves a lingering smile on our face and takes us back to the days of Swami and Friends.

Tales of dacoits, gangs, zamindars have their own thrill but a montage of people going about their daily business is special.

Panchayat scores in its opening credits too, and by the time the sun sets on the worn-down office, we know one thing for sure - it takes a village to drive away the fatigue that has crept in owing to Bollywood’s obsession to set every other film in a small town.

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Topics:  Neena Gupta   Panchayat   Jitendra Kumar 

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