Once bitten twice shy… well, broadcaster Sony and producer Shashi Sumeet Mittal seem to have learnt this idiom very well. No wonder, after trying to experiment with a marriage of young boy Ratan (Afaan Khan) with an older girl Diya (Tejasswi Prakash Wayangankar) in Pehredaar Piya Ki which went awry, they have so far made sure to do everything by the book in its sequel Rishta Likhenge Hum Naya.
No wonder you have references to Rajput pride (interesting in times of Padmavati crisis) and honor. Diya continues to fulfill her promise to Dada Hukum (Ratan’s father) that she would be protector of adult Ratan Maan Singh, now played by Rohit Suchanti. We wonder why Parmeet Sethi (original Dada Hukum) was not shown for the above scene and a new actor played the Dada Hukum, which was reshot for second season as well.
Tejasswi is doing a good job, her sword fighting and other action sequences, when she protects Rohit’s character, are a departure from the normal demure lead girls of desi TV. Rohit, on the other hand, is also performing to his best, his youth spunk and the banter between him and his Mr. India (Diya) is fun to watch. The emotions which depict the coming of age of man are shown well by him. The chemistry between both is gradually being built, yet nothing is overt as of now.
The supporting cast in the mahal is also good. You want to hate Bhuwan Singh (Jiten Lalwani), the jealous uncle who tries to poison Ratan, but his wife saves him.
In a bid to further raise tensions, cop Yash (Siddharth Shivpuri) wants to save Ratan, while his own mom wants to bump him off. The theme is working on the age old palace intrigue, where you can’t trust your own shadow. The passing of the buck and cloak and dagger theory adds to the thrill.
The setting is spot on for a Rajasthani royal family, complete with all the pomp and grandeur, women are dressed in elegant saris. Tejasswi is shown more in western and casual attire for she is fighting the bad guys. But she does look beautiful in the few sari sequences.
The screenplay and background music fits the narrative. There is not much time wasting as scenes unfold fast and easy.
The challenge for the creative is how to show love blossoming between Diya and Ratan? The protector track is not good enough and you need romance on TV. Hope, it does not offend sentiments again which these days are easily anguished. Younger man older woman in a traditional set up might be irksome. We would not be surprised if a triangle comes along, our bet would be more in the form of Ratan college mate, a beautiful girl. Back story in 30 something Diya life might also be on the cards.
Sony would surely want this show to fire for their other recent new shows Haasil and Ek Deweena Tha have not really rated so far.
We would rate it 3 out of 5 stars.