Nishaanchi 2 review

Cast: Aaishvary Thackeray, Vedika Pinto, Monika Panwar, Kumud Mishra, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub

Director: Anurag Kashyap

Rating: ★★★

Think of Nishaanchi as Deewaar’s skeleton rebuilt in the badlands of Wasseypur. At its core, it’s the familiar tale of two brothers: one drifting toward self-destruction, the other staying with their mother and trying to be the good one.

The first instalment had ended on a cliffhanger, and audiences weren’t exactly kind. That lukewarm response pushed the makers towards a direct-to-OTT release for the sequel. And so Nishaanchi 2 arrives with barely a whisper.

The premise

The story picks up with Dabloo walking out of jail after ten years, only to discover that Rinku (Vedika Pinto), the woman he loved, is now with his brother Babloo. Both brothers are played by Aaishvary Thackeray, and the emotional terrain is familiar but engaging. Dabloo promises his mother, Manjari (Monika Panwar), that he’ll set things right. But Ambika Prasad (Kumud Mishra) and Inspector Kamal Ajeeb (Mohd Zeeshan Ayyub) have other plans. The lingering question is whether the brothers will ever learn the truth about Ambika’s role in their father’s death.

Directed by Anurag Kashyap, the film runs two and a half hours. What works is the textured world Kashyap builds. He has consistently excelled in this area, whether in GoW, Mukkabaaz, or Manmarziyaan.

What works

The first half has the viewer hooked, and the pacing rarely slips. But it’s the second half that delivers the real punch, offering just the right amount of bang for the OTT buck. Anurag’s strength lies in building tension that never overplays its hand, and the shifting dynamics between the characters make this journey engaging.

Writers Ranjan Chandel, Omjit Sahu and Kashyap himself stitch it all together into a finale that’s satisfying. It’s clear the makers had imagined this unfolding in a packed hall, the kind where an audience would break into applause at the high points. Nishaanchi flips the traditional expectation of a woman waiting for someone else to take revenge on her behalf. This is no Karan-Arjun, where a mom will wait for years for her sons to get reincarnated, only to settle scores!

The music complements the plot, although it raises one question: did we really need a song to underscore every major beat? Maybe not, but in the larger flow of things, it settles in.

Aaishvary has an easy screen presence, one full of confidence, and he plays both Babloo and Dabloo with sincerity. Monica, as the matriarch, is effortless, shouldering the film’s climax, while Vedika brings in the real twist in the story. Zeeshan gets on your nerves, and that’s a win for his character.

By the time the dust settles in this yet another heartland world created by Anurag, Nishaanchi 2 delivers a far smoother ride than expected. It may come from modest expectations, but it leaves you with the sense of a story finally told the way it always wanted to be.