Panchayat is a web series created by TVF and streaming on Amazon Prime. One line which can describe this web series aptly can be ‘When the right talent blends with a perfect story, the display of a whole-hearted entertainment becomes imminent’. The rural drama series has eight episodes and is well written.
It shows the mundane aspects of life in a rural area in many enjoyable and entertaining moments set upon by the well-written characters Abhishek Tripathi an urban boy played by Jeetendra Kumar, Pradhan Manju Devi or Neena Gupta and Pradhan Pati Brij Bhushan Dubey featuring Raghubir Yadav.
The head of Panchayat is Manju Devi but only on papers as the village is actually managed by her husband Paradhan Pati Brij Bhushan Dubey. Brij is sympathetic towards Abhishek as he is of the same caste and asks him to stay with them but Manju Devi has a college-going daughter whose marriage is a big concern for her rather than the job her husband does in her name.
Brij Bhushan Dubey explains to him the quirk reason for defecating in fields despite having two toilets at home as Tripathi takes up the job of Sachiv. There are many difficult things to do in rural areas with their own set of problems like making birth certificates, family planning or implementing government policies.
The supporting cast of the series Vikas (Chandan Roy) and Prahlad (Faisal Malik) deserve a special mention for their performance. They become advisors and friends to Abhishek who is perplexed and full of anxiety. They always talk about Brij Bhushan Pandey who is said to be Pradhan Pati of the village. Neena Gupta has given a flawless performance and Jeetendra Kumar has brought out the role of Panchayat Sachiv quite well.
The series has genuine laughter in all its episodes. It is a series that is required during the hard time of lockdown. It can prove to be a good watch for those who want to see rural India in its full glory.
