Sacred Games season 2 first look out: Kalki, Ranvir Shorey join the race

Saif Ali Khan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Pankaj Tripathi will continue to play the characters of Sartaj Singh, Ganesh Gaitonde and Guruji in the second season of Sacred Games.

Netflix has released the first look of the season 2 of Sacred Games, which is set to return with a new trail of betrayal, crime, passion and a thrilling chase through Mumbai's underbelly, later this year.
The 26 second video released on YouTube Sunday shows all the characters who will play the pivotal roles in the next season. Apart from Saif Ali Khan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Pankaj Tripathi, who will continue to play the characters of Sartaj Singh, Ganesh Gaitonde and Guruji, the teaser also introduces Kalki Koechlin and Ranvir Shorey. According to Netflix, fans will witness Koechlin as Batya and Shorey as Shahid Khan in the show.'

The second season picks up from Sartaj Singh (actor Saif Ali Khan) pursuing his relentless battle of saving the city and Ganesh Gaitonde (actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui) facing bigger challenges to retain his position as the legendary kingpin of Mumbai.

The intriguing Guruji (actor Pankaj Tripathi), introduced in season one as Gaitonde's 'third father', plays a pivotal role in unfolding a chain of events that shape the next season.

Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap will continue directing Ganesh Gaitonde's track, while director Neeraj Ghaywan will take over Sartaj Singh's plot.

Vikramaditya Motwane and Varun Grover will continue their roles of being the showrunner and the lead writer respectively.

The first season also starred Radhika Apte and Kubbra Sait.

Last December, "Mirzapur" actress Harshita Gaur had confirmed that she had bagged a pivotal role in "Sacred Games" season two.

Actor Jatin Sarna, who made a big impact with a small role as Nawazuddin's volatile hitman Bunty in "Sacred Games", will also be back in Season 2 of the Netflix series, although his character was killed in the first season.

"The second season goes into a flashback. My character Bunty is on a wheelchair. So I need to harness and control my natural energy level to play a subdued physically limited character," Jatin said.

Business Standard

Bazaar' review: Far from an Indian version of 'The Wolf Of Wall Street'

The first half of the film drags at an even keel without any real inciting moments, merely establishing the characters.

Director Gauravv K Chawla's "Bazaar" is a film with the cut-throat stock market, as the backdrop.

Rizwan Ahmed (Rohan Mehra) is an educated, bright boy from Allahabad who has lofty dreams and wants to make it big. Against his middle class father's will who attaches more importance to loyalty, Rizwan moves to Mumbai to try his luck and fulfil his ambitions.

He idolises, Shakun Kothari (Saif Ali Khan), a small town boy from Surat, who has become the wolf of the stock trading market and is known for his business acumen and understands "only maths".

How Rizwan makes his presence felt in the city of Mumbai, owing to his "emotional understanding" of the market, learns bitter lessons and bounces back, forms the crux of this film.

The narrative is lazily crafted. It follows a first-person account, where the protagonist, Rizwan recounts his life -- his trials and tribulations in Mumbai. A short-cut approach, this route tends to be a bit tedious and jarring for the viewers, as it breaks the flow of the narration and the seriousness of the craft.

The first half of the film drags at an even keel without any real inciting moments, merely establishing the characters -- throwing light on Rizwan's determination to make it big in Mumbai, as well as, Shakun's manipulative and clever mind and his ability to turn any situation in his favour.

Post half-time the pace accelerates and some drama unfolds, revealing the politics and corruption in the perilous world of stock market trading, making the film a bit more engrossing. The climax particularly is a highlight and astutely handled.

The dialogues are well-written and a few hard-hitting ones, leave their mark. The characters are well-etched and justify their actions seamlessly.

Saif Ali Khan as the Shakun Kothari, the suave, but scheming stock market veteran, fits the character perfectly, but does not make any real effort to add nuances to his performance. He is credible, but not outstanding.

Debutant Rohan, as Rizwan Ahmed the "boy with a small town mentality" is earnest and performs naturally. He lacks the charisma of a star, but more than makes up with his impressive acting skills. He grows on you and is endearing.

Radhika Apte as Priya, Rizwan's colleague and love interest, essays her character perfectly and adds to the glamour quotient.

Chitrangada Singh as Shakun's wife, who does not tow the line with him, is wasted in a miniscule role... Read More

Business Standard

Sacred Games-Rajiv Gandhi case: Delhi HC watches show, finds nothing urgent

The plea alleges that certain scenes and dialogues in the show defame former PM Rajiv Gandhi.

The Delhi High Court on Monday sought to know whether it could hear as a PIL a plea claiming that some scenes in the Netflix series "Sacred Games" are derogatory to former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi and should be removed.

A Bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Chander Shekhar asked the petitioner's advocate to first advance his submissions on the point of maintainability of the plea as a public interest litigation (PIL) and listed the matter for further hearing on July 19.

The Bench said it has gone through the CD of the series, placed on record by the petitioner, and there was nothing urgent in it as all the episodes have been aired.

It also asked how the actors could be held liable for enacting their characters.

The court said a person is entitled to express his views, which may be right or wrong, and asked the petitioner to satisfy it on how the court could interject.

"Are there other remarks in the series or any other material as far as Rajiv Gandhi is concerned? You don't require any CBFC certificate before airing?" the Bench asked.

The court was hearing a plea filed by petitioner advocate Nikhil Bhalla, through advocate Shashank Garg. It contends that the show, starring Saif Ali Khan and Nawazuddin Siddiqui, "incorrectly depicts historical events of the country like Bofors case, Shah Bano case, Babri Masjid case and communal riots".

Senior advocate Chander Lal, appearing for Netflix, and senior advocate Rajiv Nayar, representing production house Phantom, said the series has eight episodes that have already been aired and does not require a CBFC (Central Board of Film Certification) certificate.

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