Netflix has an interesting line-up of original Indian series which will be streaming soon on its OTT platform. These include Raj & DK’s crime comedy thriller ‘Guns & Gulaabs’, spy thriller ‘CAT’ starring Randeep Hooda, Hansal Mehta’s high-octane journalism-based drama ‘Scoop’ and Abhishek Chaubey’s dark comedy thriller ‘Soup’ starring Manoj Bajpayee and Konkona Sen Sharma. All of these have been confirmed by Netflix.
However, one title which is conspicuous by its absence is Season-2 of last year’s much-loved albeit uneven anthology ‘Ray’. It was an on-screen adaptation inspired by four short stories by legendary filmmaker and author Satyajit Ray. ‘Ray’ Season-1 featured an ensemble cast including Manoj Bajpayee, Kay Kay Menon, Ali Fazal, and Harshvardhan Kapoor, etc, and was directed by Srijit Mukherji, Abhishek Chaubey, and Vasan Bala.
Two short segments of ‘Ray’ Season-1 namely ‘Bahrupiya’ by Srijit Mukherji and ‘Hungama Hai Kyon Barpa’ by Abhishek Chaubey particularly received immense praise from critics and audiences alike. And these two short stories are good enough reasons for ‘Ray’ to be renewed for Season-2 by Netflix.
There are myriad short stories written by Satyajit Ray which could be contenders for a potential ‘Ray Season-2’. For instance, ‘Ratan Babu and That Man’ is about a middle-aged reclusive man who becomes fascinated by his doppelganger. Then, there is another short story ‘Pikoo’s Diary’, which is a heartrending tale of marital discord told from the perspective of a diary maintained by a six-year-old child. Besides these, there are loads of other stories by Satyajit Ray which deserve to be brought to OTT.
So, clearly there is no dearth of content and talented performers and directors in India for ‘Ray’ Season-2. But for that to happen, Netflix should seriously consider renewing the anthology series for another season. Last year, it was in the news that the makers initially had twelve stories in mind. Netflix usually takes a few months (sometimes longer) to decide whether a show should be renewed or not.
And since there is no official update for ‘Ray Season-2’ by Netflix, it doesn’t seem like a good sign. The OTT giant should greenlight ‘Ray S2’ and shouldn’t get dissuaded by the idea that not all segments of Ray’s opening season were unanimously acclaimed. Because a series like ‘Ray’ definitely deserves a shot at another season.