‘Breathe: Into The Shadows 2’: Cast & Crew
Director: Mayank Sharma
Cast: Ivana Kaur, Resham Shrivardhan, Hrishikesh Joshi, Saiyami Kher, Shrikant Verma, Amit Sadh, Nithya Menen, Abhishek Bachchan, Naveen Kasturia
Available On: Amazon Prime Video
Duration: 8 Episodes, Around 45 Minutes Each
‘Breathe: Into The Shadows 2’: Story
‘Breathe: Into The Shadows 2’ or ‘Breathe 3’ takes on from where it left the last season. Abhishek Bachchan is back as Dr Avinash and J, and he is trying to complete the mission that he couldn’t finish in the last season. He is out here to murder 6 more people and all those victims have been convicted on the basis of the 10 sins of the mythological character Ravana. Will the gritty cop Amit Sadh be able to save these people from getting killed? Will Nithya Menen be able to save her daughter Ivana Kaur from the monster J? Will Dr Avinash be able to suppress J and be done with him forever? Well, for all that you’ll have to watch the show.
‘Breathe: Into The Shadows 2’: Performances
Amit Sadh makes a cracker of a cop. Right from the very first season of ‘Breathe’ to this third installment, he has been in top form. He has got the physicality of a cop correctly. Someone who doesn’t have to flaunt his six-pack abs to show he’s a cop, but someone whose stare makes you want to piss in your pants, that’s how well Sadh has managed to outline the character. While he doesn’t have too much of emotions to portray onscreen, but getting the angst of a police officer who’s oppressed under the system’s pressure must have been tough, and Sadh got that aspect correct to the T.
Nithya Menen is good however, she isn’t as good as she was in the previous season. In the last season, she had a lot more of a character, while in this one, her character is just feeling helpless and reeling under the pressure of a killer at loose. In the previous season, her character didn’t feel like it was trying too hard to get the emotions in place. But, that’s changed here, and her characteristics seem to have taken a nose dive. She was a more confident woman in the previous part, but here she feels just like a pawn in a killer’s hands.
Abhishek Bachchan was menacingly good in the previous season, but sadly, the stretching of this season makes the intrigue factor of his character fly out of the window. He was a doctor, and throughout his character was trying to find his daughter and save her from the killer J. But ever since it was revealed that J was his own alter ego, the character of Avinash doesn’t seem to have any say of his own. He is just there in bits and spurts. Bachchan’s deep baritone definitely adds to the character of J, but as Avinash, he is just too lacklustre.
Naveen Kasturia could have been the surprise character that would have defined this season. However, that didn’t happen. Kasturia’s crazy antics felt funnier rather than menacing. Considering he is the one who is not just helping J in his missions but also planning and pushing the entire operations, his act should have been more on the lines of the Joker from ‘The Dark Knight’.
Sadly, the supporting characters have also been reduced to a minuscule level in this season. Sadh’s cop partner used to be a major character in the last two seasons. His family had been shown in ample amounts, and there was a parallel comedy track happening along that line. Sadly, that’s missing in this season completely.
‘Breathe: Into The Shadows 2’: Script, Direction & Technical Aspects
It’s sad that Mayank Sharma, the director chose the Abhishek Bachchan story to extend and make a 3rd season of ‘Breathe’ whereas the first season of ‘Breathe’ with R Madhavan was a much better write-up and technically sound presentation. Well, what can you do?
So, the direction is going down with every season of ‘Breathe’. The R Madhavan show was very oriented to the theme that how far would a parent go in order to save their child. Sadly, this season has turned into a revenge fantasy. J’s aspiration to get revenge on all people who have directly or indirectly tried to hurt Avinash in any way is the prime focus of this season. Then again, the previous season had 4 murders spanning around 12 episodes, and here we have 6 murders to happen in about 8 episodes. Doesn’t it feel a bit too cramped? It’s so cramped up that Mayank Sharma decided to not show one of the murders and just did a sudden revelation that the person himself committed suicide after realising his guilt and figuring out that he might be the next victim of J. How convenient!
To add to that, the writing by Mayank Sharma has tried to showcase mental illness in a way which is not going to be liked by many.
The cinematography by S. Bharathwaaj is the only good thing about the technical team. He has managed to capture the lanes and bylanes quite brilliantly amidst the chase sequences. Even in the dimly lit underground sequences, there is not a single shot where you would feel like you didn’t understand what’s been shown.
‘Breathe: Into The Shadows 2’: Can Kids Watch It?
Yes
Outlook’s Verdict
Mayank Sharma’s third installment of ‘Breathe’ has its shortcomings in its writing and the direction. Rather than making a sequel to the Abhishek Bachchan story, he should have somehow tried to concoct a story so as to bring the R Madhavan angle back. To that, he should have stuck to the original idea of a parent trying to save their kid rather than going for the revenge drama. With all its problems, this is at best an Average watch. I am going with 2 stars.
