Tandav Has Lofty Ambitions but Remains Trite and Lacklustre The show nods at contemporary events and politics, but is marred by poor acting. A still from the web series Tandav. Photo: Amazon Prime The nine-part Amazon Prime series Tandav, created and directed by Ali Abbas Zafar, opens to a quote by a Polish philosopher â âIn politics, being deceived is no excuseâ â as a mawkish romantic song, reminiscent of â90s Bollywood, plays in the background. This postmodernist flourish, a blend of âhighâ and âlowâ art, is a smart bit of foreshadowing, as the show is pulled by two different forces. One is centred on the campus politics of Vivekananda University (or VNU, obviously modelled after you know what). The other is set in Raisina Hills, depicting the internal power struggles in Indiaâs ruling party, Jan Lok Dal (JLD), that has governed the country for three consecutive terms. The college and the country, the Left and Right, the two-faced nature of power: duality is embedded in the very essence of