The Broken News 2 is a smart satire on primetime news drama with some easter eggs about life all around us
Director: Vinay Waikul
Cast: Sonali Bendre, Jaideep Ahlawat, Shriya Pilgaonkar, Indraneil Sengupta, Taaruk Raina, Sanjeeta Bhattacharya, Akshay Oberoi
Where to watch: Zee5
Rating: 3 stars
For about two decades, we – the audience – have been privy to 24-hour news channels in this country. What began as a round-the-clock information hub soon turned into a mudslinging akhara filled with screaming matches. Our TV news is so outlandish that satirising it is no easy task. Vinay Waikul’s The Broken News did well in that regard in its first season two years ago. In the second season, the show delves deeper into the cross-section of daily news, raising issues like ethics, morality, and corruption, while littering not-so-subtle references to real life incidents. All this makes for a good watch, which is made even better by a sublime performance from Jaideep Ahlawat and another great outing from Sonali Bendre.
The Broken News season 2 takes forward the story of Radha Bhargava (Shriya Pilgaonkar). The young journalist was branded a traitor and jailed at the end of season 1 when she tried to expose governmental corruption. Her boss at Awaaz Bharti Ameena Qureshi (Sonali Bendre) fights to get her out but soon regrets it, almost. Radha is hell bent on vengeance, discarding all ethical considerations, and using any and every tactic to get their rival – Josh 24X7’s Deepankar Sanyal (Jaideep Ahlawat). What follows is a game of chess, filled with shifting alliances, shocking turns, and at least a few Easter eggs of real controversies.
What makes The Broken News’ second season engaging is how it never over-dramatises the drama of newsrooms. The ingredients for a good masala entertainer are there and director Vinay Waikul makes sure to present it as honestly, without embellishment. Because any addition of drama to the already absurd reality of news would have made it caricature-ish. Waikul steers clear of that cleverly, making sure the show is satire, but never parody.
Jaideep Ahlawat is the strongest performer in season 2, quite unsurprisingly. The actor does not rely on any theatrics or depend upon a distinctive accent or distinguishing feature on his person. Instead, he goes old-school, using subtlety to bring out a character who could be anybody. His Deepankar is the everyman, who does not always believe in the propaganda he is peddling but does it because that’s his job. Ahlawat brings to the fore his character’s forced helplessness and turmoil quite naturally. Sonali Bendre delivers a flawless performance as his foil – the idealistic Ameena. Her task was tough because Ameena’s idealism can easily become boring or unrelatable but Sonali manages to humanise it easily.
Shriya Pilgaonkar had the toughest task, playing a character that flirts with moral boundaries and ethics at almost every step. Her descent into the darkness is not unconvincing even if it is a little rushed. Pilgaonkar does her earnest best to do justice to it but comes up short on a few occasions, but fortunately not to a level where it appears jarring.
But what elevates The Broken News 2 from just watchable to enjoyable is the sprinkling of real-life incidents and Easter eggs. There is a case of a superstar actor’s sun being arrested in a fake drugs case, an incident of bad mid-day meal at a government school causing chaos, and even one about an app that snoops on you through your phone. It is all something that has been around is and further grounds the show into reality.
The Broken News manages to retain the freshness of season 1 and introduces some novelty this time around. It is by no means a perfect show. It is rough around the edges and falls victim to the tendency of becoming a whodunit every alternate episode. But its competent leads and engaging story helps the show coast through those choppy waters.
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 "The Broken News 2 stars Jaideep Ahlawat, Sonali Bendre, and Shriya Pilgaonkar")
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