Kota Factory Season 3: Perfect goodbye to almost perfect storyline, Jitendra Kumar aces while Tillotama Shome rocks
Netflix and TVF hit student-led drama Kota Factory is back with its third season. The drama, suspense, and emotion at the heart of this black-and-white show based on Kota, shows how students navigate the struggle of life in the city while chasing their ambitions. Just like the previous two seasons, this time too Jeetu Bhaiya is back with his words of wisdom to help AIMERS' students make it through another exam season. However, this time he's not that strong (mentally) to navigate his life in the chaos of this city and student problems. Kota Factory Season 3 is hard-hitting, natural, lovable, relatable, and inspiring, all at once.
Story
Kota Factory Season 3 begins where it ended in Season 2. One of the students of Jeetu Bhaiya played by Jitendra Kumar has committed suicide and the teacher in him takes that as a personal loss. Not only does he get help from a psychiatrist, he also takes some time off from work to deal with his mental health. On the other hand, his three favourite students Vaibhav, Meena, and Uday played by Mayur More, Ranjan Raj, and Alam Khan inquire about his return. Jeetu Bhaiya does return to AIMERS but he's not able to handle things as smoothly as he used to do in the past. Everything reminds him of the incident and no matter what occurs, he is torn between playing Jeetu Bhaiya and Jeetu Sir in front of his students. Amid all this Season 3 finally draws curtains on the JEE exams and we finally get to see if Vaibhav and his gang clear the exam and take a step closer to their dreams.
Direction
Pratish Mehta in his direction tells the tale more profoundly in Season 3. He along with the creators of the Kota Factory series, Punnet Batra (Head Writer), Pravin Yadav, Nikita Lalwani, Manish Chandwani and Raghav Subbu don't talk about the ideal world but the real one. They give a deep insight into the life of a JEE aspirant living in Kota and every emotion attached to that is brought on board. Be it jealousy with your own family member or feeling lower than your lover, parents' trust to changing friendship and its dynamics, every emotion has a place in Kota Factory Season 3. Raghav Subbu does a commendable job of showing the other side of Jeetu Bhaiya and finally revealing how he manages it all. However, the makers yet again just use Ahsaas Channa's character as a prop. A alone NEET representative in Kota Factory gets no big scenes this time too. Given that Kota is not only known for ITT coaching but also for medical entrance preparations, the makers have yet again given a sideline track to Ahsaas Channa. Till the end, we don't get to know whether she clears her NEET UG exam or not and that is a big disappointment. Bringing Tillotama Shome as Pooja Didi, however, is a masterstroke.
Moreover, some parts of the series do seem stretched. A mother literally questioning teachers about his son not paying attention is too much to watch. Vaibhav's confidence in a few scenes and too seems over the top. Meena's sudden fall for torturing is not very perfectly timed as well. Vartika's low confidence throughout also seems irrelevant given the results she ends up with.
Acting
It's Jitendra Kumar's universe and we're just living in it. After Panchayat Season 3, the actor is back to the TVF tribe with Kota Factory Season 3. What seems like a farewell to his character, Jeetu Bhaiya is the anchor of this edition of Kota Factory. His vulnerability, frustration, drowning mental health, and the dilemma between choosing to stay in Kota and leaving for Jaipur for a better opportunity, everything is brought to life by Jitendra Kumar. The actor is too good and the last scene can really make his fans cry out loud for their favourite teacher.
Mayur More yet again becomes the voice of JEE aspirants. There's a monologue in the fourth episode, where the actor wins you over when in breaks being torn between boards and entrance exams. Tillotama Shome is a masterclass performer. Everything she appears on-screen, viewers will be delighted. A scene between her and Uday's mother is the highlight of the series and perhaps can make you think that she's the perfect successor for AIMERS and Jeetu Bhaiya's legacy. Ranjan Raj and Alam Khan stay true to their character and deserve applause for their performances. For whatever part Ahsaas Channa has in the series, it is significant. Her 'apne Marvel universe me jaa rhi hoon' dialogue is perfectly timed by the makers.
Verdict
Kota Factory Season 3 comes across as a personal watch. Every viewer can relate to their emotions and personal growths or downfalls. This season too brings a breath of fresh air while giving you a pit in the stomach and makes you feel for young minds delved in preparations. Jeetu Bhaiya and his scenes are a must-watch while others win you over with their portrayals as well. Kota Factory Season 3 finally brings us to the end of the much-awaited results of these students and teaches some valuable lessons all along. However, the ending puts an exclamation mark on the return of Jeetu Bhaiya and Season 3 seems like a perfect goodbye to all the characters. The third season is well-crafted and clearly deserves 3.5 stars.