Bindiya Ke Bahubali 2 director Raj Amit Kumar supports 8-hour work : ‘Make the lives of working class crew better'

Bindiya Ke Bahubali 2 director Raj Amit Kumar supports 8-hour work : ‘Make the lives of working class crew better'

• Bindiya Ke Bahubali S2 explores darker, more personal themes
• Director Raj Amit Kumar emphasizes visual storytelling, female agency
• Season 2 is now streaming on Amazon MX Player

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With Bindiya Ke Bahubali – Season 2 drawing attention for its darker and more emotionally charged narrative, its director Raj Amit Kumar says the tonal shift was never a calculated reinvention but an organic evolution of the story.

In an exclusive conversation with Moneycontrol recently, he opened up about the progression of the series, the politics of power, female agency, cinematic language, and the ongoing debate around working hours in the industry.

Season 2 has been described as more brutal and deeply personal compared to the first installment. Addressing whether this shift was deliberate, Raj clarified, “It was all written and shot as one season of 12 episodes. It is a natural progression of a story that moves from Comedy to Tragedy.”

Political dramas often risk becoming heavy with dialogue and rhetoric. For Raj , the grammar of cinema remains visual at its core. “Cinema is first a visual medium. Any good student of cinema keeps an eye on that,” he said, underlining his focus on visual storytelling even within a politically intense narrative.

At the heart of the new season is the escalating conflict between Bade Davan (Saurabh Shukla), Chota Davan (Ranvir Shorey), which spirals into a deeply personal family war.

When asked whether politics or blood relations are more compelling to him as a storyteller, Raj responded, “We all live in a socio-political environment. There is no escape from that. Yet, primarily Bindiya K Bahubali is the story of a dysfunctional family trapped in love-hate relationships.”

On whether real political events or regional power struggles influenced the storyline, he offered a broader reflection: “Bindiya is a microcosm of India. It is born out of absurdity all around us in everyday life.”

Season 2 pushes its characters to emotional breaking points, but Raj refrained from singling out any one journey as the most difficult to shape. “I won’t be able to pick like that. They are all connected in relationships with each other. One card falls and it has a rippling effect.”

The ensemble cast features seasoned performers such as Saurabh Shukla, Seema Biswas, Dibyendu Bhattacharya and Ranvir Shorey. Talking about collaborating with such established actors, Raj said, “It was great working with such talented people. If its creativity, it does not clash, it rebounds to create.”

Managing a powerhouse ensemble without overcrowding the narrative required focus, he explained. “It’s not that difficult. You focus on each moment you are creating, and capture the truth of that moment. Layers show up on their own.”

On directing confrontational scenes between actors with contrasting energies like Ranvir Shorey and Saurabh Shukla, Raj noted, “They bring their energies and authenticity to the tension I had written, and I capture it using the cinematic tool available.”

The women in the series — Seema Biswas, Sai Tamhankar, Tanishtha Chatterjee and Sheeba Chaddha — carry significant dramatic weight. Raj emphasised that placing female agency at the centre of the narrative was intentional. “I chose Bindiya as the fictional name of the city where the drama is set. That must say something. Women are at the centre of how power struggle takes place in the world we live in. Women always have agency, it is just that they find different ways to execute it. It was very important for me to delve into that.”

Balancing cinematic scale with long-form storytelling for OTT audiences came with practical hurdles. “Time and Budget is always the biggest challenge to create that,” he admitted.

Violence plays a defining role in the world of Bindiya Ke Bahubali. On deciding what to show and what to leave to the viewer’s imagination, Raj reflected, “Sex and Violence shapes and re-shapes the world. It is always an important question to handle what one should leave on camera and what should be left off camera. I can’t pinpoint how I generally make that decision. It always depends on the particular context of the scene.”

Despite the shift to streaming platforms, Raj says his creative approach remains unchanged. “To me personally, it does not. I make it like a long film, that’s all.”

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On whether Indian political dramas are evolving toward morally grey narratives, he said, “I don’t know if that really is happening, but if it is, isn’t that a good thing? We are all flawed humans who sometimes behave as heroes and sometimes as villains.”

Beyond power struggles and political maneuvering, Raj believes the season ultimately confronts a deeper philosophical question: “What do we want and what does it lead us to!?”

Addressing the ongoing debate around eight-hour work shifts in the industry, Raj shifted focus toward those behind the scenes. “Make the lives of working class crew better in terms of wages and working hours, and forget about the well paid stars in this debate.”

Crime drama series Bindiya Ke Bahubali Season 2 is streaming on Amazon MX Player.