Season 1
NDTV's Saibal Chatterjee gave the show 4 stars out of 5 and praised the acting, saying, "Freedom at Midnight isn't driven by A-list stars but by actors who painstakingly and confidently flesh out the towering historical figures". [11] Shubhra Gupta of The Indian Express rated it 2.5 stars and said that "...sprawling yet pacy, the Nikkhil Advani series brings to life the story of India and Pakistan, which came into existence at that stroke of the midnight hour immortalised in the haunting words of Nehru." [12] Arushi Jain of India Today gave it 4 stars out of 5 and observed that "The Nikkhil Advani show has a light, easygoing way of telling the story, weaving together different threads that build up quietly. The dialogues and performances strike emotional chords effectively." [13] Nandini Ramnath of Scroll.in wrote in her review that "Freedom at Midnight doesn't want to be a show that you curl up to watch on Independence Day, a flag by your side and happiness in your heart. Rather than pride about the struggle that led to the end of British rule in 1947." [14] Devansh Sharma of Hindustan Times wrote that "Nikkhil Advani's period drama captures the road to India's Independence and Partition and the sprawling, layered show is India's answer to The Crown ." [15] Firstpost's Vinamra Mathur stated that "As much as the filmmaker should be lauded for stepping away from the world of big stars, the ensemble he has created for his show are both hit and miss". [16]
Season 2
Shubhra Gupta of The Indian Express gave the show 3.5 stars out of 5, writing, "I was riveted in this season of Freedom at Midnight, which manages to sustain its tone — as serious as befits the subject without getting all heavy about it, lacing it with a degree of levity — and it will be one of my favourites this year, which has just about begun." [17] Radhika Sharma of NDTV gave it 4 stars out of 5 and said, "The second season of the Sony LIV series [ sic ] as intricate as the first one and pretty much bingeable." [18] Deepa Gahlot of Rediff.com rated it 3/5 and observed that "Whether Freedom at Midnight 2 has a political agenda, a bias or two will be read into it, depending on the affiliation of who is watching." [19] Rahul Desai of The Hollywood Reporter India stated that "The second season of Nikkhil Advani's ambitious dive into Partition-era politics is bigger, smarter, fuller and fuelled by a terrific cast." [20] Abhimanyu Mathur of Hindustan Times gave it 4 stars out of 5 and said that "Freedom at Midnight's victory lies in its ability to present this as a human drama, instead of a historical epic. The stakes are high, but our focus always remains on what those stakes mean for our protagonists, not the nation at large." [21] Anuj Kumar of The Hindu observed that the show is "Intense, reflective, but selective in its depiction of events and agent provocateurs, the series humanises political icons and puts their era-defining decisions in perspective." [22]
