Faadu is a romantic-drama TV series directed by Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari and written by Saumya Joshi with music composed by Santhosh Narayanan. The series stars Pavail Gulati, Saiyami Kher and Abhilash Thapliyal, alongside other cast members. The series has 11 episodes, with a runtime of around 40-50 minutes.
SonyLIV describes the series as:
An intense poetic love story between two opposite characters.
– Faadu Review Does Not Contain Spoilers –
Faadu is a captivating series, one where reality is harsh and is only softened by love and its sweetness that makes everything ok for a while. Starring Pavail Gulati and Saiyami Kher, the two actors play these characters with so much conviction and warmth that you can’t help but ask for a good outcome for their lives individually and together from the very first episode.
It’s a story about choices and perseverance, and there’s something very genuine in Gulati’s eyes that sells his story of poverty and rags to riches. Abhay wants to get out of his horrible situation and live a better life with Manjiri by her side. He shows her a life that she wasn’t privy to before and plays a dangerous game that can implode at any moment.
The real thrill of Faadu is in these moments of struggle and the various decisions that take him back to the moment the series starts. Along the way, he finds guidance and love from those around him, with life teaching him the biggest of lessons. It’s interesting how those we deem to be the worst out there often turn out to be our biggest saviours, almost like a guardian angel.
Abhay is such a crazy and interesting character. He sets the goal post first and then starts out on his journey to fulfil his dreams and change his reality. However, there are rays of hope and happiness even in the worst of times. You will be able to relate to Abhay and Manjiri’s struggles, and how they find happiness in the smallest of things while going through the biggest of hurdles together.
There are some hard-hitting realities in Abhay’s world that you want him to overcome as soon as possible. The series does a good job of making us root for Abhay and his dreams. Whatever outlandish his wants and needs are, you are behind him. Now, since you are invested in this journey of life, watching Abhay and Manjiri becomes such a great sight.
The series is arresting and entertaining throughout, but it does gloss over the bad things a bit. Abhay’s immaculate English feels incorrect when he talks about the horrid truths of his everyday life to his professor in college. There are several moments like these where the series feels like it’s keeping the not-so-nice realities at arm’s length and pushing through towards other things that, at least, don’t look as ‘yucky’.
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The last few episodes of Faadu are interesting and solidify Abhay’s downfall and awakening at the same time. It opens his eyes but feels very stretched with extended dialogues between him and Mishra, wherein the latter constantly says this and that to intimidate him. Plus, the ending seems poignant but still rather mellow at the same time.
Like, I understand the emotion here, but considering how much time we spent rooting for Abhay and watching him slowly turn into a stranger, his arc changes rather quickly, and the last episode ties off its loose ends rather easily.
I also somewhere felt like the part of Abhay’s life that we see comes rather conveniently to him, and people just magically listen to him as if he’s Naruto (if you know, you know).
Is real life really this convenient? Maybe he’s the anomaly in a sea of struggling people who never get out of the rut. Either way, the most heartening part of Faadu is his brother Roxy’s journey and later relationship with Manjiri’s parents. In all honestly, the supporting cast of the series is a sight for sore eyes and makes you feel warm inside. Manjiri’s parents, especially her father, are just such positive influences that you want good things to happen to them whenever they come on screen.
Pavail Gulati and Saiyami Kher are excellent as Abhay and Manjiri, and it’s a treat to watch them bounce off each other throughout the runtime, either for or against each other. Manjiri is the perfect storm for Abhay’s need to succeed by any means, and it’s heartening to see her character never falter in her resolve. She’s someone you’d want to follow in a story because she is so clear about the right and wrong aspects of life. And Kher plays that character beautifully – even her eyes are just so expressive!
Summing Up: Faadu
Faadu is a love story that tries to stand the test of time and circumstances. It’s an entertaining watch from start to end, although it does falter a bit in the last episode or two. Things get solved rather conveniently, but you still stay glued to the screen to watch the decisions our protagonists will take in a bit to fight against their own destinies.
Faadu is streaming on SonyLIV.
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