MUMBAI: The Office Season 2, presented by Applause Entertainment and a BBC Studios India production, based on the US series starring Steve Carell is now live. The first season of the Indian version garnered mixed reviews, which is natural, considering that the new series tends to be compared to the old, wildly popular one. The first two episodes of the new season that set the tone for the rest of the series, are directed by Rohan Sippy, with director Bumpy doing a stellar job in the rest of the series. 

The brand-new series has the same old characters who you might have fallen in love with, in the previous season. There is the narcissist boss Jagdeep Chaddha (Mukul Chaddha), Chief Funjabi Officer of the company Wilkins Chawla who tries hard to be friends with his subordinates and blur boundaries but fails miserably, often rubbing them the wrong way in the process. Chaddha’s boss Riya (Gauahar Khan) spends most of her time reining Chaddha in and reminding him that she is the boss. 

The love quotient of the series is through the roof. Amit Sharma (Sayandeep Sengupta) is the prankster who has a soft corner for the already-engaged office receptionist Pammi (Samridhi Dewan). The super sanskaari Anjali (Priyanka Setia) and boss-worshipping TP Mishra (Gopal Datt) can’t get enough of each other and try their best to keep their romance a secret from the office staff. The newest employee Kitty (Mallika Dua) has a massive crush on the intern Sapan (Abhinav Sharma), the chocolate boy who speaks only when absolutely needed. 

Other characters who add on to the office masala are Sarla (Preeti Kochar), the special Malayalam films loving Kutty (Gavin Methalaka) aka DJ Chubby, HR head Mayur Bansiwal (Madhukar) who loves keeping issues piled inside boxes, Sunil Jetly (Saleem), Chien Ho Liao (Rinchin) and Nehpal Gautam (Bhadoria). 

Each episode shows the employees dealing with a new issue. Office politics, romance troubles, Diwali and birthday celebrations, sick leaves and so on…you name an office woe and it is being portrayed in this series. Each character is indispensable, with actors delivering their best and making sure the laughter does not stop, with over-the-top and subtle jokes. 

What’s Wow: Brilliantly carved and portrayed characters. The Pammi-Amit track is what kept us hooked throughout, more than anything else. Mallika Dua brings in her addictive brand of comedy. She is hilarious in the series. 

What’s Blah: TP Mishra gets Salesman of the Year award, but there has been no display of his sales prowess, really! 

Parting Shot: The Office Season 2 on Hotstar Specials is a definite must watch. Side Effects might include sudden and uncontrollable laughter. 

Cast and Crew: 

Cast: Mukul Chaddha (Jagdeep Chaddha), Samridhi Dewan (Pammi), Sayandeep Sengupta (Amit Sharma), Gopal Datt (Triveni Prasad Mishra), Abhinav Sharma (Sapan), Priyanka Setia (Anjali), Preeti Kochar (Sarla), Gavin Methalaka (Kutty), Sunil Jetly (Saleem), CHien Ho Liao (Rinchin), Mallika Dua (Kitty), Gauahar Khan (Riya), Mayur Bansiwal (Madhukar), Nehpal Gautam (Bhadoria) 

Director: Rohan Sippy, Bumpy 

Editor: Vaishak Ravi 

Director of Photography: Hemant Chaturvedi 

Original Music: Sagar Desai 

Credit: The Digital Hash