In a courtroom drama landscape dominated by monologues, “tareekh pe tareekh”, and dramatic judgements, the 2024 Netflix show Maamla Legal Hai had stood out as a refreshing outlier.
Billing itself as a courtroom comedy, the show leaned into the absurdities of India’s judiciary, using just the right amount of daft humour to humanise one of the four pillars of democracy, rendering it ordinary while offering an insider’s view into its perceived inefficacies.
Delhi’s fictitious Parparganj District Court is back in session, with all its quirks and absurdities. Maamla Legal Hai 2 opens with its protagonist, advocate V.D. Tyagi (Ravi Kishan), now promoted to Principal District Judge.
Flamboyant yet a tad idealistic, Tyagi is keen to bring about change, but soon realises that wearing the robe is far trickier than arguing a case.
Then there’s Tyagi’s best friend Mintu (Anjum Batra), who is now the bar president, Sujata Negi (Nidhi Bisht), newly upgraded from the foyer to a chamber, and their love-hate relationship.
Also back are the monkey repeller and court manager Vishwas Pandey (Anant V. Joshi), and the Harvard-returned, politically correct Ananya Shroff (Naila Grrewal), who remains as idealistic as before, but is now tempered with some practicality.
Like its first season, the eight-part series draws from real-life cases—some funny, some absolutely absurd, and some poignant. There’s a man who burns his armpits using a deodorant, an alcoholic who questions the authenticity of country liquor because it no longer gets him high, a juvenile desperate to land up in Tihar Jail to learn the tricks of the trade from seasoned gangsters, an imposter posing as a judge, and a dramatic separation case.
The show also pokes fun at systemic flaws, judicial delays and red-tapism, through an insider’s gaze.
For instance, there’s the all-too-common case of rats eating into cannabis kept as evidence. In another moment, when Tyagi attempts to overhaul the court’s evidence room, somebody quips that had Stephen Hawking visited the place, he might well have discovered a black hole there.
While the show keeps its tone light, the weight of the job comes through in a particularly poignant case. As Tyagi presides over a matter under Section 302 of IPC (meaning murder), he finds himself unable to deliver a life sentence to the convict.
The stakes are as high as the question at its core: can a person truly be beyond reform? Through Tyagi, the moment captures the pressure of the role—the uneasy space between adjournments, and the familiar “tareekh pe tareekh”.
While most issues are handled with a light touch, a few fall through the cracks. For instance, a landlady harassing a male tenant isn’t treated with the seriousness it warrants. Similarly, a gay character fighting a property dispute with his late partner’s wife is reduced to a familiar, somewhat filmy display of LGBTQ+ rights.
Like its first season, Maamla Legal Hai 2 thrives on its stellar cast and the eccentric characters they play.
This season introduces a few new additions to the mix, including Dinesh Lal Yadav—better known as Nirahua—who is quirky and hilarious, making him a perfect fit. Dibyendu Bhattacharya, meanwhile, brings the right degree of seriousness to a slippery, layered role. Meanwhile, Kusha Kapila adds another layer of elitism into the district court.
While Maamla Legal Hai grounded itself as a courtroom comedy, its second season builds on that foundation, deepening its characters, adding layers, and making them feel more rooted. With all its eccentricities, humour, ambitions, jealousies and also romance, the series makes for a wholesome watch.
