Panchayat Season 4 Review – A Fading Flame in Phulera’s Familiar Fields

🌾 Introduction: A Warm Yet Weary Return to Phulera

Amazon Prime Video’s Panchayat has long been celebrated for its authentic rural charm, simple storytelling, and the lovable characters of Phulera. However, with Season 4, the magic feels somewhat recycled. While the setting remains serene and the performances steady, the content appears to be running in circles.

🎬 The Premise: Familiar Faces, Fewer Surprises

In Season 4, Phulera is abuzz with election fever, with Manju Devi (Neena Gupta) and Kranti Devi (Sunita Rajwar) locking horns in a small-town political battle. Our beloved trio – Sachiv Ji (Jitendra Kumar), Vikas (Chandan Roy), and Prahlad (Faisal Malik) – dive into campaign madness, while Pradhan Ji (Raghubir Yadav) recovers from a cliffhanger injury.
There’s still charm in watching the villagers bicker over freebies like samosas, toilet renovations, and generators, but the satire begins to feel repetitive rather than refreshing.

🌟 Standout Performances: Sunita Rajwar Shines Bright

While most characters appear to stagnate, Sunita Rajwar as Kranti Devi is a fiery addition. Her screen presence commands attention, and she becomes the unlikely standout in an otherwise routine ensemble. Even Swanand Kirkire, cast as the quirky MP, offers brief relief, though not enough to truly elevate the season.

🧭 Storytelling: When Comfort Turns into Complacency

Earlier seasons of Panchayat thrived on nuance, silence, and introspection. Season 4, however, trades that in for broader jokes and surface-level storytelling.
Abhishek’s existential crisis, once a compelling thread, is now reduced to him simply waiting for his MBA results. Other characters like Vikas and Prahlad similarly feel trapped in loops, missing the depth that once made them relatable.
The show tries to be a satire of democracy, but ends up feeling like a parody of its own past.

🧱 Production & Direction: Strong But Stale

Directed by Deepak Kumar Mishra and Akshat Vijayvargiya, and written by Chandan Kumar, the show retains its high production values – from tight editing to crisp cinematography. But the writing lacks freshness. The once-organic humor now seems formulaic, like a pre-packaged version of what once was a heartfelt tale.

🔚 Final Verdict: 2/5 – Time to Rethink or Retire?

Panchayat Season 4 is like returning to your hometown and realizing your old friend hasn’t changed at all – for better and worse. The series hasn’t lost its warmth, but it has lost its edge.
It no longer offers fresh perspectives, instead choosing to rehash the familiar. As Gram Chikitsalay and Dupahiya enter the OTT landscape, Panchayat risks becoming just another rural dramedy in a saturated genre it once pioneered.