There is no doubt that the first season of the romantic comedy serial, Suno Chanda, was a bona fide success. Aired last year in Ramazan, the Farhan Saeed and Iqra Aziz starrer was an instant hit with the audience and left people craving for more.

What made Suno Chanda season 1 stand out

A treat to watch, the show aired every day during Ramazan last year, leaving fans wishing for more when it ended. The romantic comedy gave us a fresh pairing of Farhan Saeed and Iqra Aziz. The banter between the two cousins, trapped in a marriage without consent; and willing to do anything possible to break apart, set the mood of the whole drama.

From Arsal and Jiya’s every day fights to DJ’s cunning ways of extracting money, from Shahana’s Punjabi to Jalal Khan’s Pashto, and from Kinza and Sherry ki chalakian to Bi Jaan and Shah Jahan’s efforts to keep the household together, and from Nazakat ki nazakat aur baat baat pe bemaar hona and Billo ka teeliyan lagana, the drama had everything possible to make it an exciting watch.

The last episode of Suno Chanda season 1 had 7 million plus views and the audience even watched re-runs on YouTube.

The case of season 2 and a missed opportunity

With the second season being hyped on social media with BTS shots of the cast, viewers could not wait for the new show to begin.

The second season of Suno Chanda began on 1st Ramazan this year and picked up right where it ended. Although the first episode managed to gather 4 million-plus views on YouTube, it came down to lesser and lesser views with each passing day.

I, as a viewer of both Season 1 and now 2, can safely say that  I am no longer a fan of the main leads the way I was before. The reason being Iqra’s overacting in comparison to her co-star Farhan (who also, by the way, has scenes where he is supposed to show displeasure) but really seems to have control over the portrayal of his character’s expressions and tone of voice.

The bickering between the two seems nonsensical and honestly, interminable this season. It has gotten exhausting and that’s that. From pouring Arsal a cup of tea to being told to dress up, Jiya’s anger seems to arise at the smallest of things.

Not all hope is lost

Now you all will ask why I am even watching this show if I am not a fan of ‘Arjiya’. Well, to be honest, the star of the show has to be Shahana Jamshed Ali (aka Arsal’s mother and Jiya’s saas). With her on point Punjabi chutkule, Nadia Afgan takes the prize for winning Suno Chanda season 2! She is the reason I am still hooked to the drama.

Where we mostly see saas-bahu dramas with an evil saas and a crying bahu, it is a breath of fresh air to watch the portrayal of Shahana’s character as a supportive and loving mother in law.   Also, her and Arsal’s chemistry comes off as natural as it can get between a mother and son.

Apart from Shahana, the new characters introduced in the show are most certainly the gems keeping the play intact. Arjumand Rahim as Pari makes you fall in love with her as soon as she comes on screen. She taunts the members of the household in Punjabi without a care in the world and surely knows how to get her way around things.

Then there is Raza Talish as the naive Mithu – another character who is adored due to his helpful nature and innocent remarks. Acting as the know it all, Mithu believes he has the answer to every question but that’s just him answering everything without getting to the point.

Lastly, the new entrant Sabeena Farooq as Maina has to be the perfect choice for a Pakhtun. Speaking in one flow while mixing Urdu with Pashto has to be a job well done. Only two episodes in and the dimpled actress has won hearts.

Most of it is lost though

While the first season primarily focused on Arsal and Jiya’s relationship, the new show is an amalgamation of sorts with various storylines in one. From Jiya’s dreams to pursue her higher studies and Kinza and Sherry’s marriage, to Joji and Billo’s marriage and now Mithu and Maina’s love story.

Spanning 30 episodes in total over the course of the month, surely it can get hard putting content out there every day but some mistakes in the show are being overlooked (blatantly). For one, a big mistake noticed by many is Arsal and Jiya’s wedding photograph in their room just after a few hours of their wedding.

Moving on, four episodes in, Bi Jaan tells Arsal and Jiya not to hang out as their walima is that very day but in the next scene everyone is shown to be asleep (scratching my head). Also, another blunder which is a recurring one is the curious case of Jiya’s hair. Can someone please explain this to us??? This is what we are talking about (these two pictures are from the same episode).

All in all, if one wants to enjoy Suno Chanda season 2, they have to not think too much like me. Let’s just hope there are better things in store for us.