Panchayat: A Great Promise
Arun Kumar Sahu
Ambassador of India to Bulgaria & North Macedonia
arun.sahu68@gmail.com
New Delhi : One reason viewers lose interest in later seasons of a rising web series is the absence of intensity, novelty, and surprise elements. The fourth season of Panchayat, a highly refreshing web series that showed great promise in its initial three seasons, suffers from these issues. The plot becomes predictable, the characters remain static, and the storytelling is dull. Friends, Suits, Money Heist, or Breaking Bad outlasted their time because, in every episode, they managed to take the viewer somewhere new, exciting, and captivating.
The first season of Panchayat, five years ago, was a breath of fresh air in Indian web entertainment. It was realistic, rustic, amusing, and entertaining. It commented on things, beings, and the state of decentralised politics in Hindustani-speaking rural north India. The introduction of the characters was closely aligned with reality, making them identifiable to an ordinary viewer, especially the youth of India. The characters were introduced with potential for development in future seasons. It promised to explore the complex and intriguing nature of grassroots Indian politics.
Indian dialogue writers have refined their craft. It is inspiring to see how adeptly the characters express their emotions, sentiments, and perspectives through the nuances of languages and dialects. They communicate things without explicitly stating them. They know how to use wit to convey something meaningful. This is a very positive trend in Indian content creation, and Panchayat further advances this trend.
The Panchayat features a superb cast, ideally suited to their roles. However, with actors like Raghubir Yadav and Neena Gupta, the director’s creative freedom is immense. It’s unfair to underutilise their talent. Both Sachivji and Rinki, along with their interpersonal relationship, need further development to truly engage the audience. Their relationships must avoid stagnation. Abhishek, or Sachiv Ji, needs to rediscover sharper facets of his character to captivate viewers’ interest. He shouldn’t remain on the fringe for long. The sooner he takes centre stage, the better. Vidhayak Ji cannot continue with the same mindset indefinitely. It might be more intriguing if he breaks a longstanding stereotype common in many Indian films and shows. The characters could attract more interest if they venture into grey areas without losing their core traits. All of them should evolve, gain momentum, and reveal their inner strength and dilemmas.
Visually, the fourth season was predictable, monotonous, and uninspiring. The same small road, the crowd, the motorcycle, the village centre, the Pradhan’s home, and the local Panchayat office. A village Panchayat is also part of a Panchayat Samiti, a sub-division, and a district. It includes wards that mirror geographical, caste, and class dynamics. Visuals should be engaging, featuring dynamic and varied camera angles.
One recognises the importance of resources, both material and time, to keep something like the Panchayat running season after season. Still, as we progress in creating excellent content and shows for OTT and other digital media for a global audience, we must manage these aspects carefully and pay attention to even the smallest details. Even then, there is no guarantee of commercial success; nonetheless, our creators can always try, and with hard work and dedication, they will succeed more often than not.
