The Royals Season 2 Gets a New Director: Delhi Crime’s Tanuj Chopra Takes Charge

Netflix’s The Royals is getting a behind-the-scenes shake-up. According to a report by Variety India, carried by Cinema Express, director Tanuj Chopra has boarded the second season of the Ishaan Khatter-led series as its new director.

Chopra replaces Mitakshara Kumar, who had herself taken over from Jasmeet K Reen only weeks ago — making Chopra the third director attached to the season. The US-based Indian filmmaker previously directed episodes of Netflix’s acclaimed Delhi Crime across its second and third seasons, a credential that suggests the streamer wants a steadier, more grounded hand on the palace drama.

The production has also shifted gears logistically: the shoot, earlier underway in Jaisalmer, has now moved to a Mumbai schedule, with Rangita Nandy on board as producer. On the casting front, Bhumi Pednekar will not return for season 2. Miss India World Sini Shetty and Gurfateh Pirzada — recently seen in Lust Stories 3 — have joined the ensemble, and the new season will reportedly revolve around a love triangle involving Ishaan’s character.

Season 1 followed Prince Aviraaj Singh (Khatter), a young royal, and ambitious entrepreneur Sophia Kanmani Shekhar (Pednekar) as they tried to turn his struggling palace into a luxury homestay — a rocky romance wrapped in designer wardrobes. The season drew a lukewarm critical response; Cinema Express’s own review noted that “there’s just nothing to salvage the perpetual dullness.”

Three directors on one season is never a great sign — but it is an honest one, and that is what makes this development worth watching. Netflix clearly knows season 1 didn’t land, and is rebuilding the show in motion rather than letting a weak follow-up slide out quietly. Hiring a Delhi Crime veteran reads as a deliberate tonal correction: less gloss, more grip. The real test won’t be the new love triangle or the Mumbai schedule; it will be whether the writing gives Ishaan Khatter something sharper to play than palace intrigue in pretty clothes. Streaming audiences have shown they will forgive a shaky first season — but only if the second one feels like a different show.

For context on how films and shows travel after release, read our explainer: When Do Films Come to OTT After Theatres? India’s Streaming Windows, Explained.

Source: Cinema Express; Variety India