Jai Singh Rathod is back – three years after he saved the country’s PM, successfully caught terrorist Roshan Sherchan and made a whole nation heave a sigh of relief for an hour-long freedom from the assault of TV serial saas-bahus. 24, the Indian Television drama based on the American series of the same name is all set to pack a solid punch with its second season.
The most recognisable face, and the one to lead the action, none other than ‘jhakaas’ actor Anil Kapoor looks bolder, the tone foreboding, and we soon get sucked into yet another 24 hours of his life.
A lot has changed as we soon find out. The death of his wife (Tisca Chopra) takes its toll on Rathod who we are told is battling alcohol issues and has been sent to rehab. The son is angry with the dad and holds him responsible for his mother’s death. Dysfunctional family issues aside, we soon meet the new ATU chief.
Sakshi Tanwar makes her debut in the series playing Malik – a tough cop who hates to be called Ma’am. For a saas-bahu veteran who is known to start palpitating at the mere flickering of a diya, this is a welcome change!
Sure enough, with Abhinay Deo and Rensil D’Silva (who also directed the previous series) at the helm of affairs, the pace soon picks up and we are given an hourly account of the new threat looming large that is to keep Rathod and Co busy for this season.
The threat is bigger, a deadly virus will be released on \ unsuspecting deshvaasis if a dreaded terrorist (Roshan Sherchan) isn’t freed. For some high voltage weekend drama that doesn’t insult your grey matter, get hooked to it asap.
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*Spoilers Ahead*
The series opens with Nana Patekar’s voice filling us in on the details of the last 3 years. New characters soon make an appearance. Ashish Vidyarthi plays the terrorist Roshan Sherchan and Sikander Kher (Haroon Sherchan) is the brother seeking his release. With his lithe and stealthy movements, Anil Kapoor makes his presence felt and admired.
While the first episode acclimatises us to the new threat and the main characters, we soon get down to business by episode 2. Rathod should be in rehab, but he is already negotiating with the terrorist he himself caught. What information does Rathod want? And how come he is batting from Haroon’s side, the terrorist’s brother? We also meet Surveen Chawla who is at the receiving end of Haroon’s possessiveness.
But she is also in touch with Rathod? Is he double crossing the terrorists or is he being fooled? We have to wait to find out. Meanwhile reprising his role as the country’s PM, Neil Bhoopalam makes it clear that the government would not be negotiating with the terrorists.
This leaves Malik with little choice other than to shout at her team to hunker down more suspects and plausible clues. Anita Raj who was banished from the party by her own son wants to make amends. But the side eye and evil expressions point to another sinister plot in the making. Meanwhile Rathod’s daughter has a creepy neighbor and it is already giving us nightmares!
Final Verdict
One huge threat, lots of possibilities and poised to be a nail biting watch – make sure you check 24 Season 2 out. It has been a while I was this excited to see something on a Hindi TV channel. High on the Q-riocity quotient, this is one deserves a big thumbs up.
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