Ayyana Mane 2 story:
The threat to Jaji’s (Kushee Ravi) life is far from over, despite the death of the family matriarch Nagalambike (Manasi Sudhir). Jaji’s sister-in-law Poorni (Kushi Chandrashekar) is convinced that the former had something to do with her mother’s death, even as it is revealed that dark magic and occult practices are being used to put Jaji’s life in peril. Who is behind all this?
Ayyana Mane 2 review:
When Ayyana Mane came out in May 2025 as Zee5’s first original Kannada web series, it had a lot riding on it, in terms of setting a benchmark for what’s to come. Unfortunately, producer Shruti Naidu and writer-director Ramesh Indira, who are the most successful TV serial makers for the network, read the memo as an extension of what they were already doing. Take the mega-serial format of storytelling, exaggerated acting and presentation and chop it up into bite-sized episodes.
Ayyana Mane was designed for a certain target audience and, reportedly, became the platforms best performing Kannada series. It was not the kind of content that would have a reach beyond this group. No, no, no… Audiences in other parts of the country were not going to be actively searching for it on the platform. But the network and the makers were okay with catering to only one demographic and have now given them a continuation to that storyline.
While season 1 dealt with the mysterious deaths of the daughters-in-law at Ayyana Mane and the threats to the life of the newest member of the family – Jaji, season 2 picks up after the death of the matriarch Nagalambike, who was responsible for all the strange occurrences in the household. Jaji is now the one running Ayyana Mane and lording over their immense assets, much to the chagrin of her husband Dushyanth’s (Akshay Nayak) older brother, Shiva Swamy (Anirudh Acharya), who has now remarried.
Jaji is all set to hand the keys to the household to Uttami (Ashwitha Hegde), but before she does, the streak of unexplained events begins yet again. Lives are lost, and others put in grave danger. That’s the line that Ramesh Indira picks up this time. One grouse I had about the hurried narrative of Season 1 was the lack of character development. This time, Anirudh Acharya’s Shiva Swamy gets a proper arc and backstory, while the rest remain as underdeveloped as they were back then.
Tulu film industry star Roopesh Shetty joins in the action as Poorni’s former fling and now psychiatrist, who then marries her. The ethical implications of this union be damned. Roopesh’s addition provides zero value add, what with his medical diagnosis later being attributed to the forces of dark magic, in keeping with the show’s supernatural thriller genre.
Ayyana Mane 2 verdict:
In a story revolving around 5-6 major characters, there will be a couple of red herrings, but the finger of suspicion will, eventually, fall on one of them. Any revelation, therefore, will lack impact and so it is this time too. Audiences who appreciate this kind of storytelling may differ in their opinion. So, suffice to say that Ayyana Mane 2 is not meant for everyone; the makers know who they’ve made it for and they will, most likely, appreciate the effort. I don’t!
*All 6 episodes of Ayyana Mane 2 are now streaming on Zee5*
