Training Times:
There is a certain formula to be expected in all campus dramas. Naam Namak Nishan is different only to the extent that the young men and women are not in a regular college, but in the army’s Officer Training Academy (OTA) in Chennai.
It is imperative that the actors cast in the show, directed by Vikram Ghai and Shashank Bharadwaj, are fit. Their youth and physical fitness all but bounces out of the screen. An army academy also automatically cuts out some of the stereotypes of the campus shows—there are no sexy women, no overweight hangers-on, no class jester, and no real villain.
The cadets are hardworking and competitive, but also generally cheerful—despite the tough training, Now that the 17-episode series (on Amazon MiniTV) focuses much on the actual training – there are the usual shots of hurdles, and crawling under barbed wire, but the conflict focuses mainly on army brat Yuvraj (Varun Sood), and the rustic sportsman Gurbaz (Danish Sood). Yuvraj has a dad-sized chip on his shoulder, and wants to excel at everything to prove to his sceptical father and overachieving brother Dev (Karan Vohra) that he is not a loser. He rubs the easygoing Gurbaz the wrong way, and their rivalry dents the camaraderie of their team– Kohima.
Eventually the two, encouraged by the other in the team, make up and become best buddies. A large part of the show is literally fun and games, instead of military drills — the cadets are constantly in some tournament or the other, and there is some rivalry brewing with the Naushera company, with its swaggering leader Subbaiah (Pranjal Datta).
There are female cadets too, but the show leaves out any romantic or sexual tension that might brew between young people in close proximity. Both the male leads have love interests though—the pretty army doctor (Helly Shah) for Yuvraj, and mysterious Nia (Roshni Walia) for Gurbaz.
Ultimately, of course, the outside encroaches on the campus—a bunch of vaguely North Eastern terrorists (not Pakistani for a change!) plant a mole in the OTA and have a devious plan afoot. Which brings Dev into the OTA to investigate and things blow up – literally and otherwise.
Friendship, loyalty and patriotism are tested, and there just might be a Season 2 in the works. Naam Namak Nishan is mildly entertaining, with some earnest-looking actors working hard to make themselves and the show appealing. All the gym training undertaken to qualify for auditions, comes in handy to fill army fatigues well. Though it is about military preparedness and always putting the country above self, the show is not too violent or disturbing. In a week when there’s not much else on streaming platforms, this once could be given a look.
(This piece first appeared in seniorstoday.in)
