Bandish Bandits is the first-ever web series made on Hindustani Classical Music. If you’re bored by today’s hollow songs which are nothing but noise, then you’re gonna love this series.
Starring: Ritwik Bhowmik, Shreya Chowdhary, Naseeruddin Shah, Atul Kulkarni, Rajesh Tailang, Amit Mistry.
Director: Anand Tiwari
Release date: 4 August, 2020
Story
Radhe is a Classical Singer from a well-to-do family that comes from Rathod Gharana of Jaipur. Radhe meets Tammana who is a pop singer. Tammana proposes a deal in front of Radhe to sing alongside her on the stage but Radhe’s family doesn’t like pop culture. Although due to family’s financial conditions Radhe accepts the deal and performs with her but with a mask on his face. Soon he becomes a national sensation due to his mask identity and his talent. But his identity starts to leak out.
Performances
The actors are spot on with their performances. One can see the attitude of a veteran singer in the cast of Bandish Bandits. The way they manage to bring out most out of their character is commendable.
Music is from the side of Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy which is phenomenal and fits perfectly in the aura of the story.
The story and scriptwriters were on point but kinda lost the track for a bit in the final episode of season 1. It may be intentional to create suspense for the next season, no one can say.
What Stands Out
The story revolves around the two singers who are completely different as they belong to different genres of music, yet the same as they belong to the same industry. The series shows the ins and outs of belonging to a well-known and ancient Gharana. You’ll see it in the scene Radhe’s Grandfather (Naseeruddin Shah) puts Radhe in difficult positions to prepare him for the legacy. Radhe goes into extreme end situation to be able to handle the heat which comes along the fame.
Another thing which the story brings forward is the inner family rivalry. Like when Radhe’s stepbrother (Atul Kulkarni) from Bikaner Gharana, who is from another mother whom Radhe’s father left, wants to destroy the legacy and respect of Rathod Gharana in order to take revenge from Radhe’s father and to gain more fame than the Rathods. In the music industry rivalry is also there but yet no one talks about it often except this series.
Final Words
You’ll find this series musically fulfilling if you’re sick of listening to the hollow music of today’s Bollywood. This series brings the beauty of Hindustani Classical to its finest with the fine art of storytelling.
