A strong sense of struggle anchors the series

The characters in ‘Sapne Vs Everyone Season 2’ are not afraid to expose their weakness, and that’s their greatest strength. The series is terse, compact and largely free of digressions normally deployed to buy time.

Everyone is in a hurry to get somewhere, though they are not really getting anywhere. By the time they realise they are hurtling into an abyss, it’s too late.

The two protagonists, Prashant (Paramvir Cheema) and Jimmy (Ambrish Verma), prevail in parallel, concurrent swirls of storytelling. I did wonder at one point if it wouldn’t have worked better to have two separate serials rather than meshing the two lives which seem separated by aeons of morality.

However, both Prashant and Jimmy’s struggles are relatable, especially Prashant, who is that Bollywood prototype known as The Struggler. A talented struggler in his own right, Paramvir Cheema (excellent earlier in ‘Tabbar’) gives his all to Prashant, and then some more.

There is a pulsating tangibility to Prashant’s unvanquished optimism, especially at one audition where he knows he is not getting the part. Some of Prashant’s struggler friends like the angry Manish and the gentle writer Ashwin are contoured characters who are given strong voices in a series that tends to get overcrowded though not oppressive.

Jimmy’s violent machismo, filled with gunshots and stinging slaps, communicates the lowbrow archery of a mannequin sharpshooter who is blinded by his own ambitions. Ambrish Verma, who plays Jimmy, also writes and directs the series. He knows his character inside out. This doesn’t necessarily make his character likeable. Jimmy is a nasty piece of work swimming in his own bile.

‘Sapne Versus Everyone’ (what sort of a title is that?) is still a force to reckon with in Season 2.