Panchayat season 3 is finally out and our favourite characters from the show are back with a new chapter in their individual lives. Here’s a recap of the journey of each character and what they’re up to in the new instalment. (Also Read – Panchayat 3: What makes Faisal Malik’s grief-stricken Prahlad Panday the heart of this season)

Abhishek aka Sachiv Ji

Abhishek (played by Jitendra Kumar) is an engineering graduate from Delhi who is posted as a secretary of a gram panchayat in the remote village of Phulera. While he struggles initially to get used to the slow life, he also concentrates on preparing for MBA entrance exams. He gradually warms up to the people of Phulera, particularly Rinki, the daughter of the pradhan and his wife. Abhishek gets a transfer at the end of season 2, thanks to a run-in with the corrupt local MLA, but circumstances lead to his return to Phulera in season 3.

Pradhan ji

Pradhan ji (Raghubir Yadav) is the de facto head of the panchayat of Phulera. While it’s his wife Manju Devi who won the elections, Pradhan ji acts as the surrogate pradhan. While he’s a nice man, he’s not the best of leaders. His flaws come to the fore in season 3 when he’s accused by the villagers of vote bank politics in the assignment of government-allotted land to the needy.

Manju Devi

Manju Devi (Neena Gupta) is a homemaker married to Raghubir Yadav’s character. She contests elections and becomes the pradhan, only to have her husband serve as the pati pradhan, a surrogate leader, as she keeps herself busy in domestic chores. However, she is no suppressed woman as she makes herself heard in the season 1 finale when the District Magistrate shows up at Phulera. She goes back to being the homemaker in the subsequent seasons, occasionally assuming her responsibility whenever a crisis raises its head. For instance, when the new Sachiv’s joining is thwarted by the men around her, she takes matters into her own hand in season 3.

Vikas

Vikas (Chandan Roy) is a jolly fellow who serves as the sahayak (assistant) to the Sachiv. He seems to be the perfect sidekick to Jitendra’s character in the first two seasons. In season 3, however, he gets an arc of his own when he protests against his low pay and plans to expand his family with a child despite his modest income and savings.

Prahlad Pandey

Inarguably the heart of season 3, Prahlad Pandey (Faisal Malik) starts off as a gentle giant, another sidekick to Jitendra’s Sachiv in the first two seasons. He’s a loyalist to Pradhan Ji. However, after his soldier-son Rahul is martyred in the battlefield in the season 2 finale, Prahlad’s mental health goes for a toss. He starts drinking more, and resigns his fate to serving those in financial need, thanks to the ₹50 lakh cheque he receives as a martyr’s father by the government.