If Season 1 of Made in Heaven was starters, season 2 is that delicious and zesty main course we were all looking forward to. After four years of wait, this latest offering on Amazon Prime created by the feisty team of Reema Kagti, Zoya Akhtar, Alankrita Srivastava, Neeraj Ghaywan, Anil Lakhwani, and Rahul Nair makes for a compelling binge watch.
The script that brings to the fore the big fat Indian wedding tamasha is crisp, strong, sassy and knows how to 'hook you up' (pun intended), and then keep you there until the last credits in the last episode begin to roll.
Interestingly, despite the gap, one is instantly taken into the world of wedding planners Karan Mehra (Arjun Mathur) and Tara Khanna (Sobhita Dhulipala), as if they are just old friends catching up on the lost time. Season 2 is a grander and denser version which is consuming in its storytelling, direction and screenplay.
The backdrop remains the same—quintessential South Delhi and the opulent, extravagant weddings of its rich and famous. But this time, the script is beautifully crafted to give a voice to marriages of all forms—from exchange of vows between a lesbian couple, to a heartwarming remarriage of a single mother, to a buddhist wedding led by a dalit woman and an upper caste man, and more.
Made in Heaven 2 is a multi-layered narrative that takes the route of social commentary to delve upon the times we live in. Yes, we have the grandeur and opulence of the multi-crore Punjabi weddings to gape at, but that is just in passing. The real meat here is the storyline that moves seamlessly ahead episode by episode, taking us into the varied complexities of human relationships we did not even know existed. The makers ensure that the lead pair takes their viewers along and gets them involved too.
For instance, in the first episode you want to root for the groom who loves his dusky bride for what she is and discourages her from falling into the 'fair is beautiful' trap.
Likewise, in the second episode, starring Mrunal Thakur you want to slap the guy for violently thrashing and abusing his bride-to-be an evening before their wedding and you really hope that she calls it off. In the third episode, Neelam Kothari and Samir Soni, both childhood sweethearts who ended up marrying different people, pull at your heartstrings when they remarry in their early 50s in a bid to reclaim their lives for themselves.
Likewise, one wants to root for the character of Radhika Apte, an Ivy League pass-out and established lawyer who stands up for her dalit identity when marrying a man of privilege.
The core team involving the lead pair and those around them, including Mona Singh, Trinetra Haldar, Kalki Koechlin, Shivani Raghuvanshi, Shashank Arora and Shibani Bagchi greatly add to the story and take the narrative forward. This time around the Made in Heaven team, both on screen and off screen, has been considerably beefed up with a lot many characters in the fray.
We wish there was also more focus on the pink-peach extravagance —we'd have liked to ogle at the decor, gifts, cutlery, gifts, wardrobe and more that go on to make multi-crore weddings. But a bit of that is made up for in the fourth episode wherein we have a destination wedding.
Episodes are alternately directed by Ghaywan and the Kagti-AKhtar duo, and each one is a must watch.
Never mind, if you missed out on season 1; watch this—it is an enthralling binge-watch in itself.
Series: Made in Heaven, season 2
Streaming on: Amazon Prime Video
