Indian Matchmaking Season 2 Review: Matchmaker Sima Taparia is back with yet another regressive cringe-fest that's underwhelming

2/5

Story: Matchmaker Sima Taparia from Mumbai is back to help her elite clientele find their potential life partners. While many of them are 'demanding' and unwilling to 'compromise', we also see the return of three clients from season one- Aparna, Nadia and Pradhyuman.

Review: Seema aunty is back! This time around with a completely new roster of clientele, along with a few familiar faces from season one. The second season yet again focusses on people in their 30-somethings desperately trying their luck in the dating game and landing a potential life partner. 

The show marks the return of Mumbai-based Pradhyuman, who was said to have rejected over 150 women in season one. He reveals that he met his ladylove Ashima at a party and they both hit off from the word go. We also witness the opulent wedding of the duo and they even make an appearance in the series finale among the other 'successfully' married couples. 

Nadia, the Guyanese American from New Jersey is back and it looks like her relationship with Chicago-based lawyer Shekar Jayaram has fizzled out due to the long distance. In the meantime, Nadia meets Vishal at a mixer that she hosted and sparks fly between the two. All the potential clients of Sima are in attendance at the party. But things don't really go far with Vishal and Nadia ends up feeling rejected once again. Sima aunty, who had persuaded Nadia to choose Shekar over Vishal (as Vishal is seven years younger to Nadia), gets her moment of 'I told you so'. Sima aunty believes that even Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas are not a good match because she looks 'older'.

Aparna, the picky lawyer has now relocated to New York, but this time around, we see a toned down version of herself. She remains her sassy self, and is friends with Jay, whom she was introduced in the last season. No points for guessing why she was brought back as she was one of the most interesting characters of season one. But Aparna is no longer in Sima aunty's roster and is trying to find love on her own and is seen going out on dates with a few men. But without the Sima aunty connection, her love life seems to be on a separate track altogether and completely disjointed from everything else that's going on screen. 

The new list of clientele include Akshay Dhumal, a self-proclaimed world's most eligible partner, who calls women ‘chicks’ and is finding it tough to find a woman who would be willing to relocate to his town, Nashik. Yet another client is Viral Joshi, a fiercely independent, headstrong and career-driven woman who drives a fancy car and is proud of the fact that she is not a damsel in distress, unlike her other married friends. When Viral doles out her long list of preferences, and Sima aunty tells her that she will not get a 100 per cent match and that Viral will have to compromise, the tension between the two is palpable. 

Shital, on the other hand, wants to get married at the earliest as she feels that her window to having children is narrowing down with each year. She feels that she has been too picky in the past, thus losing out on potential matches. We also meet Arshneel Kochar is a cardologist living in Cleveland, who has only dated Indian American woman as he assumed that Indian women were regressive! He is also wary about how they would react to a man in turban. Vinesh, on the the other hand, wants a woman could make pakoras like his mother! Rupam, a divorcee with a daughter, who is looking to begin her life all over again, is advised by Sima aunty to keep her criteria short as she has fewer options in the market! Though the season does not focus much on her love life, towards the end we see that she has managed to find love on her own. 

Just like season one, Sima doesn't seem to have much success as a matchmaker in season two as well. Most of the participants seem to have underwhelming dates and they claim that there is no chemistry between the two. Fitness remains a crucial part of their criteria. There is an awkward moment between Viral and her date Jaymin, where she says that he doesn't look quite the same as in the picture. 

Viral finally seems to have hit it off with Aashay, a match suggested by Sima, while Shital has found love on her own, in a doctor named Niraj. Arshneel has had two good dates with dentist Rinkle, but Vinesh has not had any success with the dates suggested by Sima. Akshay is revealed to have received a lot of bad energy after his broken engagement and he meets a priest, to lift the curse.We also get to meet Priya towards the end, who is yet to meet Sima. 

Sima aunty, who gets less screens space in season 2, seems to have moved on from 'adjustment and compromise' to 'settle for 60-70 per cent match and have patience', this season. There is less amount of schooling for her clients. We do not see clients from any different background as well. The cattiness is all there, but too many participants seem to spoiling the curry and the storylines seem disjointed, thus making the overall experience underwhelming when compared to season one.

Verdict: Rima Taparia's Indian Matchmaking season 2 is yet another problematic series with many cringeworthy moments. Skip it!