The much loved and awaited series ‘Pitchers’ enjoyed an IMDB rating of 9.1 when it first came eight years ago. It became a cult show and an inspiration for millions of people to embark on their entrepreneurial journey. The first season revolved around the trials and tribulations of four young entrepreneurs who quit their day jobs in order to pursue their dream start-up venture.
Pitchers Season 2 now returning after a gap of 7 years and this time around, we meet the Pitchers- Naveen, Yogi and Mandal( played by Naveen Kasturia,Arunabh Kumar and Abhay Mahajan) 2.5 years after their tech start-up Pragati.AI was founded.The start-up is on the cusp of an expansion journey and short of one co-founder, their CTO Jeetu( Jeetendra Kumar).
The show begins with showing Pragati trying hard to get investors and also enter into a strategic partnership with KC Enterprises headed by Ashish Vidyarthi. With acute cash crush, their talent bunch losing the zest to exhaustion and burnout and the future looking bleak, the trio try hard to salvage their sinking ship.
Created by Arunabh and directed by Vaibhav Bandhu, it meticulously observes the nuances of entrepreneurial life, not only portraying the spirit, hopes, heartbreak and failures but also the learnings that come with each stepping stone in the journey of building start ups.
This journey is peperred with heartfelt drama and emotions which flesh out it's well researched plot and characters that feel extremely authentic.There is a plethora of case study like references to the real world start-ups supported with numbers, which exude a lived in vibe to any corporate person.
True, the makers dramatize many portions of the narrative to build tension, uncertainty, like the overwhelming 3-day deadline for their product launch where all the techies make the office space their home or the desperate need to hire coders at the gates of Ola and Uber!
But Arunabh steals the show as Yogi Bhaiya, whose swears land as much as his sullen face and his receding hairline.The troika absorb you in their emotional arcs. The additions - like Sikandar Kher and Ashish Vidyarthi are impressive. Abhishek Banerjee shines as the cocksure Bhaati, whose one liners and advices stay with you even if he doesn't. I wish he was given more screen time
I struggled with exploring Ridhi Dogra's Prachi and her real intentions around Pragati and also the business jargons like Pivot and Valuation. Pitchers does get over technical at times.Ronjini Chakraborty appeoaches 'Appu' with a noticing conviction.
On the whole, it's a well made series that's relatable and realistic. I go with 3.5 stars. The 5 part series is streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
On the whole, it's a well made series that's relatable and realistic. I go with 3.5 stars. The 5 part series is streaming on Zee 5
Ahwaan Padhee, is an IT Techie/Business Consultant by profession and a film critic/cinephile by passion, is also associated with Radio Playback as well, loves writing and conducting movie quizzes.
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