The Seen-Yet-Unheard Women of Paatal Lok 2

The Women Of Paatal Lok Season 2 Live In The Shadows — & That's A Real Pity

The women of Paatal Lok have always lived in the shadows of the men who have the punchier dialogues, more impactful scenes, more defined character arcs, and more effective twists, Swetha Ramakrishnan writes.

THERE'S A PIVOTAL SCENE in Paatal Lok season 2 where two female characters (and mothers) tell each other, nodding in submission and grief, “It’s not the first time we’ve had to pay for the sins of our men.” This may seem like a true-blue moment of women accepting the sacrificial nature of their contribution to the lives of their men, but it’s actually emblematic of the entire second season: where the male characters — spearheaded by the brilliant Jaideep Ahlawat as Hathi Ram Chaudhary — take centrestage of the narrative, sidelining the brilliant women that populate the show.

There’s no doubt that Paatal Lok season 2 is a stellar show, even elevating its excellence from its first season. If the first season was gory, raw, gripping and on-the-nose, the second is subtle and nuanced, and it lets the visuals of Nagaland (where the show is based), its culture and its people unravel most of the storytelling. Hathi Ram Chaudhary is back in all his glory, and with an impressive cast to pad him up (including Ishwak Singh, Tillotama Shome, Prashant Tamang and Nagesh Kukunoor, among many others) this season flows like butter but packs a gut-punch. One of the biggest negative feedbacks that season 1 got was that it was too violent, and used the ‘ sexual violence against women’ trope to seem more edgy. This season is different. There are sensitive themes, and there are women characters at the forefront of these scenes, but the violence is alluded to and not shown in gruesome detail. The brutality is depicted with nuance and artistic flair.

However, both seasons still have one common negative. And I say this with a heavy heart because I absolutely loved both seasons (to the point of re-watching season 1 after season 2 finished because I just couldn’t get enough). The women of Paatal Lok have always lived in the shadows of the men who have the punchier dialogues, more impactful scenes, more defined character arcs, more effective twists. I understand this creative call; this is a show that doesn’t mince the gruesome brutalities and complicated politics of the landscape it covers, whether Delhi-NCR or Nagaland. Finding a way to champion the women’s stories is tough, and there’s a larger narrative arc to follow. And yet, there are a few moments that allow the women to shine.

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When Renu (Gul Panag) hits back at Hathi Ram Chaudhary every time he’s too rough on her (including a resounding slap in season one that Hathi Ram deserved), or when she brings a moment of calm to the proceedings in his life by giving him a champi . Take Tillotama Shome in season 2, playing Meghna Barua, a Nagaland-based cop who is equal parts stoic and equal parts motherly (she has a 6-year-old son). Meghna is given a proper arc, from being merely a plot point in an episode about a larger political scheme, to having an entire episode surround her and her attempt to reach back home to her son on Christmas Eve (keep your tissues ready for this one). Who can forget Dolly Mehra (Swastika Mukherjee) who battles her debilitating anxiety (and no-good, cheating husband) to give birth to puppies all by herself, only to realise it’s her love for canines that saved her entire family from being murdered?

But these moments are few and far between. In season two, the glaring otherisation of the female characters stands out. Let’s start with two characters who had the potential to be power pawns in the larger political game being played in Nagaland. Asenla Thom (Rozelle Mero) and Grace Reddy (Theyie Keditsu), both wives of powerful men who held the strings of Nagaland’s culture and politics (and crime) in their hands: Jonathan Thom, a snaky political leader who handled the drug trade of the area and was killed in the first episode, sparking off the entire sequence of events, and Kapil Reddy (Nagesh Kukunoor), an even snakier businessman who projected that he had Nagaland’s best interests at heart, but in reality, he was willing to go to any lengths to make a business summit happen in the state, under any (dubious) circumstances. Both these women had the opportunity to rise above their husbands, and take reign of the wrongdoings. I was expecting Asenla to take charge of the politics and drug business of the Thom family, but she was ultimately reduced to handling a mistress who could have been a problem. Her silence became her biggest virtue, which is quite frankly, annoying. Later, when she is given some pretty harsh news at the end of the season, instead of crumbling, she is shown as the strong, resolute mother who goes through with what is best for her state. Commendable, but there could be so much more to her character.

ALSO READ | Paatal Lok Season 2 Is Slick, Smart & Superbly Acted, But Falls Short As A Follow-Up

Perhaps the biggest disappointment in this regard is with the character of Rose Lizo (Merenla Imsong), who sparks off the second season's proceedings, and every important character is either chasing her or investigating her story. And yet, we don’t hear her voice once. Rose is a drug addict and her moments of addiction and struggle are few and far between. We hear about her story from other characters, which is infuriating because a part of me was hoping we would get one scene where she would be able to talk. Instead, her character’s loop is tied up with convenience. Rose is the reason a lot of the stuff happens in season two, yet I have no idea what she sounds like or have no clue about any depth to her character.

As someone who loved both seasons of Paatal Lok , I had to really dig deep to find this critique. A part of me understands the creative call taken to give the spotlight to certain characters and their arcs, but when the same error in judgment is repeated a second time around, it’s hard not to chime in. It is important to recognise the creative decision to focus on the men of Paatal Lok . The show’s narrative is sprawling, its ambitions grand, and in an eight-episode format, choices about who gets the spotlight are inevitable. However, one cannot ignore the richness the female characters bring to the fabric of the story. Even in their limited roles, they serve as the emotional, moral, and often tragic heart of the show.

Ultimately, Paatal Lok leaves us with a question: does its portrayal of women critique their erasure in society, or does it inadvertently replicate it? The answer lies somewhere in the uneasy middle. The women of Paatal Lok are survivors, defined by their resilience in a world that refuses to see them as equals. Their presence may be subdued, but it is far from insignificant. They are the shadows that give depth to the darkness — the silent architects of a story that is, frustratingly, not theirs to tell.

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