Shiladitya Ray
‘Sacred Games’ is a crime thriller web television series that airs on Netflix. Written by Varun Grover, Smitha Singh, and Vasant Nath, the show is based on Vikram Chandra’s critically acclaimed and award-winning 2006 novel of the same name. The show is directed by Bollywood heavyweights Anurag Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane, and is one of the first Netflix Original shows that seeks to cater to the streaming service’s growing list of Indian customers.
A very new show, Season 1 of ‘Sacred Games’, consisting of eight 45-minute episodes, premiered globally on Netflix on July 6, 2018, and was largely praised by television critics and audiences alike, particularly for the stellar performances by the cast and the superb writing. Understandably, Netflix wasted no time in renewing the show. ‘Sacred Games’ season 2 released on August 15, 2019. Now fans want to know, will there be ‘Sacred Games’ season 3. Here’s everything that we know about it.
Sacred Games Cast: Who is in it?
When ‘Sacred Games’ was first announced, the star cast for the show got everyone talking. In Season 1, Saif Ali Khan plays the role of Inspector Sartaj Singh, a low-key and insignificant police officer who gets wind of a case of a lifetime. The menacing antagonist of the show, Ganesh Gaitonde, meanwhile, is played by none other than the brilliant Nawazuddin Siddiqui. Radhika Apte also stars in Season 1 as Research & Analysis Wing (R&AW) operative Anjali Mathur. Apart from these main cast members, dozens of other cast members play the roles of supporting characters who make recurring or periodic appearances.
Season 2 of the show brings in Pankaj Tripathy’s intriguing character, Guruji, who was introduced in Season 1 as the “third father” of Gaitonde. Additionally, Mirzapur actress Harshita Gaur and Bollywood star Kalki Koechlin, joined the cast for Season 2.
The biggest attraction will obviously remain Anurag Kashyap’s presence in the director’s chair – Kashyap directs the story arc surrounding Gaitonde. Meanwhile, Inspector Singh’s story arc in season 2 is directed by Neeraj Ghaywan. Vikramaditya Motwane serves as the showrunner.
All the surviving cast members from season 2 are expected to return for season 3, if and when it happens.
Sacred Games Plot: What is it about?
The official synopsis of the show of the first season of Netflix’s original reads: “As sprawling as the heat-drenched city it richly portrays, ‘Sacred Games’ delves into many emotionally charged worlds of contemporary India, in particular, the spidery links between organized crime, local politics and Indian espionage that lie below the shimmering surfaces of its economic renaissance. Money and corruption form the golden thread. In interweaving narratives and voices, ‘Sacred Games’ takes on even larger themes, from the wrenching violence of the 1947 partition of India to the specter of nuclear terrorism.” We won’t go into the details and ruin the show for you with spoilers – it’s a story best experienced first-hand.
Season 2 picks up the story from where season 1 ends and shows us the second coming of Gaitonde with the help of “guruji”. Meanwhile, Sartaj continues his mission as he races against time to save the city of Mumbai. Even though season 2 ends on a cliffhanger, for all practical purposes, the story completes a full circle.
If season 3 happens, it will most likely cover a different story arc than the first two seasons. Obviously, the next season can’t feature Gatoinde, so it will center around Sartaj.
In terms of reception, ‘Sacred Games’ has done marvelously. One one hand, television critics have loved the show’s take on Mumbai’s gritty underworld, with the Rotten Tomatoes critics’ consensus reading, “Gorgeous, grim, and unexpected, ‘Sacred Games’ is saved from its procedural premise by its dense plotting and superb cast.” Season 1 of the show enjoys a stellar score of 92% on the review aggregator website. On the other hand, among audiences, ‘Sacred Games’ has been a hit of astronomical proportions, and the show boasts a brilliant overall rating of 8.9/10 on IMDb, based on over 51,000 votes. Understandably, expectations from Season 2 are at an all-time high.
Sacred Games Season 3 Release Date: When will it premiere?
‘Sacred Games’ season 2 premiered on August 14, 2019 in the US and August 15th in India. Now, to address the question on everyone’s mind, which is, when is Sacred Games season 3 coming out? But before that, we must address will there be Sacred Games season 3?
Those who have seen both the seasons know that the story arc of Gaitonde is complete by the end of season 2. So, it won’t be wrong to state that the makers conceived the series as two season-show. Actor Saif Ali Khan, confirmed this in an interview with PTI, “This story ends at the end of this season. So I don’t know if they will extend it. (But) There is always scope for more.” Showrunner Motwane also acknowledged that theoretically season 2 is the end, but in the same breath he did also confirm to Hindustan Times, “Should things go on we’ll make things up.”
Well, that’s almost a confirmation that there will be a season 3. And if that happens, Sacred Games would follow the tradition set by Game of Thrones, which initially was conceived as an adaptation of George RR Martin’s novels, but later took on its own course. Obviously, that would mean writers of Sacred Games will have to start working on an original script that takes the story of first two seasons forward in a meaningful way. Which means, we might have to wait for quite some time before the next season arrives. The best cast estimate for ‘Sacred Games’ season 3 release date could be of July, 2021.
Sacred Games Trailer:
While we wait for an update on ‘Sacred Games’ season 3, here’s season 2 trailer to refresh your memories. If you haven’t seen the show yet head over to Netflix to catch all the episodes of the previous seasons.
Read More: Sacred Games, Fully Explained
