Yudh: The New Amitabh Bachchan Show + Super Writing Contest!

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Should You Watch The New Amitabh Bachchan Show? + Super Writing Contest!

To say that Amitabh Bachchan towers taller than the steely buildings that make up the landscape of Yudh, the new fictional TV show that debuted on Sony Entertainment Television last night, won’t surprise you. As owner of a construction company, Mr Bachchan plays angry and humble, ill and warring, all with lock-jaw restraint.

Now we never write about television on bpb, but as people who’ve whined about how this lifetime isn’t long enough to watch all the brilliant TV fiction coming out of the West, while the Indian box gives us nothing, we had to tune in. Plus the show’s credits include Anurag Kashyap as Creative Director and Shoojit Sircar as Creative Consultant; and the cast besides Amitabh Bachchan playing Yudh or Yudhishtir, also features Kay Kay Menon, Sarika, Tigmanshu Dhulia and Nawazuddin Siddiqui.

Now that’s a lot of fodder for intrigue. Alert: spoilers ahead.

Episode One

We tuned in last night at 10.30 pm to meet Yudh, who owns a construction company plus two wives (played by Sarika and Ayesha Raza), and has a child from each. Still, episode one shows him in a positive light, as someone who takes on unethical competitors and warns corrupt cops. Halfway through the episode his illness (Huntington’s Disease) and illegitimate daughter are revealed, but so are the following: a brother-in-law who has just returned from jail, a son who defends his need to play video games, politicians, competitors, PR people and side kicks. It’s only episode one and Mr Bachchan is already saving falling buildings and belles, which makes you wonder, what drama is left for episode two.

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It’s probably this that made our room of four viewers feel like the story and Yudh’s character arc might have peaked too soon. But it’s too early to judge a show from a single one-hour episode. We can however, tell you this: the first episode sees an interesting story treated with jumpy editing. There seemed to be little flow in the story, with the plot quickly hopping from situation to another. If this was supposed to be a technique they intentionally employed, it didn’t come through. 

The camera also switches to random city stock shots while dialogues are mid-sentence, which is quite distracting. This is probably in keeping with the theme of ‘city’ and ‘construction’, but the execution seems slightly forced.

What We Liked

The story is interesting enough to make you want to tune in to the next episode, and the appearances by Kay Kay Menon as the corrupt police commissioner with a neck brace (hence his reference to the fact that someone else’s neck would have to be on the line since his isn’t available) and Tigmanshu Dhulia are brief but memorable.

Our night ended with a mixed view around the room on whether episode two would be watched. Meanwhile, absent-mindedly, Sony remained on in the background, and Sunny Deol’s special appearance on the hilarious this-should-be-a-spoof-but-it’s-not CID came on right after. This broke up the debate, lightened the mood, and everyone decided Yudh is worth another shot.

Getting there: Yudh plays out from Monday to Thursday at 10.30 pm on Sony Entertainment Television.