Episode 3 of Season 2 of "Paatal Lok" kicks off with a glimpse into the chaotic household of Max Rizu, a notorious Nagaland-based drug dealer. Amidst a heated dispute with his wife, Max casually lays out drugs on a side table, revealing his neglectful fatherhood. His troubles escalate as he faces the wrath of Thom's associates and scrambles to find a tie suitable for an impending funeral—a task made all the more daunting when his son, in a moment of naivete, grabs a drug-laden tray and accidentally inhales cocaine.
Meanwhile, Chaudhary and Ansari arrive in Nagaland, where Chaudhary promptly lands in hot water for smuggling alcohol into a dry state. After navigating this sticky predicament, the duo encounters Isaac and Meghna, local officers handling the scene. They quickly encounter a wall of bureaucracy, with the investigation shut down tight due to the tensions arising from Thom's death on Nagaland soil.
As Nagaland residents converge on the funeral, whispers spread of Max's disappearance, with local police also on his trail. At the funeral, Reuben, Jonathan Thom's son, arrives to a reception of immediate hostility, guns drawn, and Reuben seething with rage. Uncle Ken, the same man who diffused tensions at the board meeting in Episode 1, steps in to calm Reuben. The air is thick with tension as Kapil Reddy, Special Advisor to the Government of India, also makes his presence felt.
Back home, Chaudhary's personal life remains turbulent. Renu, his wife, is visibly upset, her irritability compounded by their child's repeated bedwetting, despite the child's best efforts. Renu's frustration is putting a severe strain on their marriage.
Chaudhary and Ansari then venture to visit Rose's parents. Her absence for eight years, without even a phone call, speaks volumes about the estrangement between her and her mother. When questioned about Rose's connection to Thom, her mother dismissively labels him a monster. Yet, this doesn't align with the grieving scene at the funeral, where Rose's father was visibly distressed. We soon learn that Rose's father had been loyal to Thom for 14 years, adding another layer of complexity to this tangled web.
However, the detectives have secured a crucial lead in this case, rooted in Rose's past employment at a hotel named the Ruli for several years. Intriguingly, the hotel is owned by Kapil Reddy's wife, Grace. Ansari engages in a conversation with Grace, who discloses that Rose, a drug addict, had been terminated for stealing from a guest room. Ansari's instincts immediately kick into high gear. The murder of Thom at a conference venue organized by Reddy, with the prime suspect being an ex-employee of his wife, cannot be mere coincidence. Rose's face is plastered all over the news, yet no one from the venue has come forward until now. Meanwhile, Chaudhary uncovers that Rose frantically called a rehab doctor, Esther Shipong, that fateful night. Esther reveals that Rose was fleeing and desperately sought refuge, but she refused to provide her shelter. To add another layer of complexity, Rose was involved in an affair with Thom. As the officers depart, Meghna harbors doubts about the reliability of this information, but it's evident that Ansari and Chaudhary are inching closer to uncovering the truth. Upon reviewing phone records, they discover that Max Rizu was the one who called Jonathan Thom at the bar that evening. As they continue their discussion, the duo becomes aware that they are being tailed by the State Police. Meghna's subsequent call informs them that Max's body has been found, hung by his tie, lifeless.
