“Rocket Boys Season 2”, begins from where the first season ended. Both the Rocket Boys are now working separately on their respective projects. Homi Jehangir Bhabha believes that if India has to move forward as a powerful country, then it should pursue its atomic bomb program with full force. Whereas, on the other side Vikram Sarabhai wants to change the fate of the common man of the country by sending satellites into space. The political conditions of the country have also changed. This is the time when India’s first prime minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru passed away and the next PM Lal Bahadur Shastri was found suspiciously dead in Tashkent. Following it, Indira Gandhi takes over the chair and the first woman prime minister has her own mettle to prove and also carries the weight of her father’s legacy on her shoulders.
There are conspiracies of America pressurizing India and how being surrounded by Pakistan on one side and China on the other side, we start seeing an ally in Russia. The undercurrent of the season is Indian politics, in which the layers of Morarji Desai’s inability to become the Prime Minister after the death of the first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru are also brought to light.
Unlike the first season which totally revolved around scientific achievements, the second season seems to be plunging into the sugar syrup of politics. But as soon as the aim of the series moves away from scientific research into Indian politics, the purpose of making the series seems a little scattered.
The personal lives of the characters are also explored this time. Rather than presenting them as some sort of larger-than-life heroes, they have been shown like common people. Their pains, complaints, struggles, shortcomings, everything feels like your own. And this is the most beautiful part about the season. All these little moments make the show a heartfelt outing.
My favorite part about the show is its casting and how they do not attempt to cast lookalikes of legendary figures. Just like the last season, Ishwak Singh and Jim Sarbh are completely committed to their characters. A huge chunk of credit goes to them for keeping the audience engaged till the end with their brilliant performances, once again.
Arjun Radhakrishnan as the people’s President Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam is quite an interesting casting and is bound to sit well with the audiences. Charu Shankar gets the chance to play the former late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and she does a great job as the catalyst of the story. Huge applause to her for not mimicking her, yet delivering an impactful performance. Saba Azad has faltered again. Her role does not provide much support to the show whereas Regina Cassandra levels up her performance beautifully as Mrinalini.
Along with some great performances, the season will be remembered for its amazing music which does manage to leave an impact on the audience. Achint Thakkar’s music and Subash Sahoo sound design is perfect in every way. The theme music of the show is its life. DOP Harshveer Oberai has captured the period setup very well. He is not trying to force it on you, but just keeps on getting sharper and better with every frame.
Overall, “Rocket Boys Season 2” is a rewarding watch if you’re someone who loves exploring the realms of science, history and politics. It’ll help you know about the glorious history of our country and its first step towards nuclear revolution. It is informative and does entertain but not at par with the first season.
“Rocket Boys Season 2” is now streaming on SonyLIV.
