The Family Man Season 2 review: This Manoj Bajpayee thriller makes for an utterly nail-biting watch

4/5

Cast: Manoj Bajpayee, Priyamani, Samantha Akkineni, Sharib Hashmi, Ravindra Vijay, Vipin Sharma, Dalip Tahil, Sunny Hinduja, Mime Gopi, Azhagam Perumal, Sharad Kelkar

Directed by Raj and DK

Rating: 4/5

In a scene, we find the show’s lead, a clinical and sharp secret agent, in an emotionally fragile state. Having recently lost an associate in a hostile operation, he struggles to compose himself. Desperate to seek comfort, he calls up his wife who he hasn’t spoken to in days following a bitter fallout. When she gets on the line, he’s at a precarious point of breaking down but collects himself almost instantly, possibly adhering to the code of conduct synonymous with his job: discretion. His voice cracks up but he camouflages it, deliberately exhibiting nonchalance. It just takes this one scene to summarise how Manoj Bajpayee has honed his craft over the years. Conveying a gamut of emotions wordlessly with much restraint, evidently the 52-year-old actor seems to be in prime form.

What sets this series apart has much to do with its lead. Neutralising terror threats without missing his son’s parent-teacher’s meeting, the show’s central character, Srikant Tiwari (Bajpayee) made for a fallible yet relatable figure in the first season itself. An officer with a covert government outfit, Tiwari oscillated between life-threatening missions to take down terrorists and playing dutiful dad and doting husband. And in straddling his pressing professional commitments with his domestic engagements, the hapless Tiwari sometimes even resorted to hilariously elaborate lies to get by.

But this season opens to a very different Tiwari — one who has hung up his desi Bond boots to take a stab at building a career with an IT firm. Almost a hat-tip to films such as In Good Company, Office Space (multiple references to TPS reports) and The Intern, this one renders the present-day workplace as one helmed by upstart bosses in their 20s who dispense lessons on life and corporate etiquette to the point of being excruciating. The misplaced Tiwari struggles to fit in and since he misses his ‘field’ job, he routinely calls up his trusty associate JK (Sharib Hashmi) for updates and to offer unsolicited advice.

Set against the backdrop of civil war-like conditions in Sri Lanka, this one follows a rebel leader who seeks refuge in the UK to garner support for his revolution. When a prominent figure of this movement meets with a tragic end, it unwittingly triggers a chain of events that could lead to a devastating attack. With the concerned head of states busy maintaining diplomatic ties, matters take an unfortunate turn when a terror outfit offers to lend support in plotting a vicious attack. It’s inevitable that Tiwari would be pulled in at some point to helm the mission, but the unexpected turns enroute make this an utterly nail-biting watch.

Filmmaker duo Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK assemble this nine-episode-long series with their signature flourishes in storytelling. Almost every episode folds with a cliffhanger. The fictional series presents a balanced account and ensures that it doesn’t sympathise with the insurgents while conveying their ordeals. The series delivers as a compelling political thriller and also makes one reflect on the altruistic efforts of those tasked with national security.

With his acid-tongued clapbacks and his melancholic monologues, Bajpayee slips into Tiwari and effectively conveys his character’s many moods. Priyamani, who reprises her role as Tiwari’s better half, gets enough room to flesh out her conflicted character, while Hashmi and Sunny Hinduja contribute immensely in their supporting parts. But it is Samantha Akkineni who lends a trailblazing effort, playing the unswerving and resolute rebel Raji with a determined gaze. Her action scenes seem as gory as the next Korean thriller and include pokes into eye sockets and dismembering of limbs for convenient waste management. And if this performance is anything to go by, she surely has a promising Bollywood career ahead. It also helped that cinematographer Cameron Eric Bryson trained his lens to closely capture the uncertainty and terror in every action scene and often, visually contributed to the mood as well.

Littered with taut chase sequences, death-defying stunts, gun battles right out of a first-person-shooter, this one will inspire much gnashing of teeth and clenching of fists. But the show also details the minutiae of a fragmented marriage, the asphyxiation experienced by those nursing wounds of the past and the vulnerable position that many teens on the cusp of adulthood find themselves in. And the true measure of this show’s success lies in the fact that it manages to convey these afflicting emotions across the screen.