Gullak 2 is packed with heart-warming performances. May it be Geetanjali Kulkarni, Jameel Khan, Vaibhav Raj Gupta, Harsh Mayar, or Sunita Rajwar; everyone has given their best. If I had to rate them on a scale of 1 to 10, I would give each one of them a 100. It’s their joint effort that has made Gullak 2 so realistic, effective, and relatable. But yes, some characters stay with you longer than expected especially when you don’t expect much from them. The actor gives in his 200% to the character and then the unexpected happens. The turtle wins the race!
Santosh Mishra, the head of the family is one of the most loving characters in the series. Even after being a father, he is more motherly when it comes to the family. Soft-hearted, fun-loving, and the most chilled-out person in the family. In the entire series, he just silently supports the family, in a way that you don’t even realize how his presence acts as one of those strongest pillars which when moved can make the entire empire shaky. It’s just like when the roots are hurt, the tree cannot survive long.
His strong support, silent sacrifices, and giving nature are some of the key characteristics that are not at all loud. He lends support only through actions, not words which makes Santosh Mishra one of the most challenging roles to play in Gullak 2. When it comes to Shanti Mishra, his wife, she is at least vocal about her anger, disappointments, and frustrations. But when it comes to Santosh Mishra, he never made his disappointments or stress obvious or let it reflect in his behavior.
There were just a few scenes where you can tell that his life is not all hunky-dory. His life might not be as happy as we assume it to be all the time. If you have read my Gullak 2 review, this is why I have called the writing of this series ‘intelligent.’ Sending out the desired message to the audience without using words is an art. But for that art to make an impact on the audience, you need a true artist. That is what Jameel Khan did.
When it comes to silently sending out the message to the audience, he has hit the bull’s eye. There are four scenes that I clearly remember where he makes you empathize with him, pity him, and then, as always, love him for the father that he is.
The first scene is when he helplessly asks Annu about his broken chappal when he understands that his son has forgotten to get it repaired again.
The second scene is where Annu tells his parents that he feels humiliated because they haven’t done anything in life for which they would be respected in society.
The third is when Santosh Mishra gives money to his wife and asks her to give it to Annu so that he has something to give his younger brother as a gift for his board results.
The fourth is the family photo scene where Annu hesitates to stand behind his father for the picture and Papa takes the initiative to bridge the gap.
All of these scenes are performed exceptionally well by Jameel Khan. I wonder if any other actor would have been able to pull it off as effortlessly as him.
A big virtual hug to Papa for being such a cute, innocent, and most-wanted Papa in the world. Thank You for making this character so adorable and enjoyable for the audience sir.