Aarya Antim Vaar review: Sushmita Sen, Ram Madhvani keep you on the edge of your seat in this engaging but bumpy ride

Creator: Ram Madhvani

Cast: Sushmita Sen, Ila Arun, Sikandar Kher, Vikas Kumar, Vishwajeet Pradhan, Viren Vazirani, Aarushi Bajaj, Pratyaksh Panwar, Bhupendra Jadawat, Shashvat Seth

Where to watch: Disney+ Hotstar

Rating: 3 stars

The first season of the crime drama Aarya was a roaring success in 2020 as it received abundant love from the viewers and critics. In 2021, the next season faltered a bit as the storytelling seems stretched and dull. Ram Madhvani and his team of writers shift the gears in the third season and come up with a racy, fast-paced thrilling tale of how Sushmita Sen's Aarya Sareen continues to protect her children from the police, the drug lords, and even herself.

Titled Aarya Antim Vaar, the second part of the third season begins right where the first part ended with Sushmita's Aarya entangled in the web of crimes as she attempts to get back the heroin caught by the cops. The new drug kingpin Nalina Sahiba and her son Abhimanyu (Ila Arun and Shashvat Seth respectively) are after her life, as is the Russian drug dealer Mikhail. As Aarya plans her next moves against her new enemies, her three children start losing her trust and doubting her real intentions. Things get even more complicated as ACP Khan (Vikas Kumar) is desperatley trying to find evidence against Aarya and finish the drug empire.

Sushmita Sen steers Aarya once again with her solid and towering presence and is aptly called Sherni this time. Vikas Kumar's  earnest performance continues to be another highlight of the series. Ila Arun doesn't have much to do, but Shashvat Seth, who plays her son, makes a striking appearance as a crazed villain. Sikandar Kher shines in his short yet effective role. Two young actors who make their presence felt in the huge ensemble are Viren Vazirani and Bhupendra Singh Jadawat. Viren as Aarya's son Veer and Bhupendra as Khan's mole Dhruv manage to capture your attention with their noteworthy performances.

What majorly works for Aarya Antim Vaar is it's fast-paced narrative filled with twists and turns, that keeps you invested in the four episodes. The use of tabla and Sanskrit shlokas in the background music also add great touch. The plot moves at a breakneck speed, which is essential in a thriller but it also lets some loopholes slip in the narrative. There are too many characters being killed left, right, and centre, and the rest of them are double-crossing each other.

One major reason for Aarya succeeding in its first season was that equal weightage was given to the thrilling elements and the emotional aspects of the show. Antim Vaar becomes too much of a crime drama, and neglects the emotions. The relationships feel underdeveloped and shallow, which is quite a major letdown. Also, the third season gives ample screen time to Aarya's daughter Arundhati aka Aru's romantic relationship but since the same character was played by another actor (Virti Vaghani) in the last two seasons and you have a new face (Aarushi Bajaj) taking forward her journey, you feel a bit disjointed.

Though the second part of Aarya's third season gets a bit uneven and irregular in its bumpy ride; the thrills and performances make up for it. Ram Madhvani must be credited for adapting the Dutch series Penoza successfully to the Indian sensibilities. As the name suggests, if you want to know if this is Sushmita Sen's last outing as Aarya, you can watch the last four episodes of Aarya Antim Vaar on Disney+ Hotstar.