Season 2 of ‘Taj’, chronicling the fight among heir apparent to claim the Mughal throne after Akbar, starts with a fabulously cast unrecognizable veteran actor Dharmendra playing Salim Chisti, just like the previous season. Almost a decade and a half after Anarkali’s death, and an open rebellion by Shah Salim, Akbar is still besotted with the succession issue and hence meets the Sufi saint. However, the similarities between the two seasons end right at the outset. The second part of ‘Taj’ is all that the first wasn’t. It is much more Machiavellian, mature, incisive, and engaging.
A new director (Vibhu Puri) has stepped in, the writing (Anand Neelakantan, Christopher Butera) now is much sharper, the dialogues (Ajay Singh) and characterizations have improved, and production has gone up many notches up so much so that the second season feels like a completely new show. Tejal Pramod Shetye’s cinematography creates a lavish and regal Mughal era replete with exquisite palaces and a plethora of outdoor scenes.
Performance-wise all actors seem to have awakened from the deep slumber they were in during the first season. In fact, no one is somnambulating anymore. Naseeruddin Shah has got rid of the puffiness around his eyes and has got a lot of opportunities this time to tell us what a wonderful actor he is. Check out the scene in which he suffers a stroke or the ones in which he is interacting with the Sufi saint, he leaves no stone unturned to bring out the haplessness of an aging monarch who is left with no option but to see his sons feuding with one another for the throne.
Talking of sons, Aashim Gulati and Shubham Mehra reprise their roles of Shah Salim and Shah Daniyal who stand at the two ends of the spectrum. While they may disagree on almost everything in their characters, one thing is for sure, both of them have been made to sport a ridiculous onscreen look to show that they are 15 years older now than in the previous season. Men generally tend to face hair fall as they age and not vice versa. Therefore, seeing Shah Salim sporting a long-flowing mane generates unintended laughter.
The romantic track between Salim and Anarkali was devoid of any connection. However, there is much more promise and romance in the Salim-Mehrunissa (Sauraseni Maitra) track. Unlike Anarkali, Mehrunisa is not a pushover and is a go-getter. Here glimpses from TV series ‘Siyasat’ which was based on ‘The Twentieth Wife’ by Indu Sundaresan are obvious and abundant.
Also, with Mehrunissa’s entry, it is no longer a man’s world. Palace intrigues by Mehrunisa and the three wives of Akbar, Jodha (Sandhya Mridul), Salima Begum (Zarina Wahab), and Ruquaiya Begum (Padma Damodaran) have started unfolding and fructifying. Women appear to have fought back to get their due space and credit this time. They are giving men a run for their money by scheming and manipulating.
Salim is now hell-bent on conquering Delhi. He has sons who are always fighting with each other and think Salim is responsible for their woes, just like he thought about his father, Akbar.
With lots of interesting well-shot sub-plots like who poisoned Akbar and Abu Fazal, the tragedy of Mehrunissa’s first marriage, and the return of Mirza Hakim (Rahul Bose) the plot has just thickened and piqued our interest for the next part. Expectations are high. Till then, catch this royal affair unfolding on Zee5.
Series: Taj 2
OTT: Zee5
Director: Vibhu Puri
Cast: Naseeruddin, Dharmendra, Aashim Gulati
