The penultimate episode of Panchayat begins in the Panchayat office. Vikas serves tea to Pradhan ji and Abhishek. Vikas strikes a conversation about the boy from Malkopur, the one Pradhan ji is considering for his daughter. Pradhan ji tells Vikas that this boy’s family is asking for a very high amount of money in dowry. Pradhan ji explains that the family believes if his daughter, Rinki would have been a science graduate they would settle for Rs 15 lacs. But since she is an arts graduate, they have demanded Rs 20 lacs. While the prospective man is an engineer and earns approximately 80k per month. Vikas thinks Rs 20 lacs in dowry for a boy who earns 80k is too steep. He asks Abhishek for his views. Vikas puts across a hypothetical situation in which Abhishek earns 80k per month. Vikas then asks him how much dowry would he ask for in this case. Abhishek responds that he will not take any dowry at all. Meanwhile, Pradhan ji mocks Abhishek and his meagre salary of 20k per month. He thinks the maximum which Abhishek can get is 5 lacs money and a two-wheeler in dowry. Abhishek then tells Pradhan ji that the average salary after an MBA from IIM is 1-1.5 lacs per month. Abhishek declares that if he gets into an IIM, even then he would not take any dowry. Pradhan ji looks at Abhishek in awe.

A villager, Deenbandhu comes to the Panchayat office to submit an application form for his child’s birth certificate. As Vikas goes through the details, he comes across the name of the child, ‘Aatmaram’. Vikas feels the name is very old-fashioned for this generation. He asks Abhishek, sitting on the desk next to him to suggest a modern name for the child. Abhishek suggests the name Aarav. At first, Deenbandhu doesn’t like the name but when Abhishek tells him that Akshay Kumar’s son also has the same name, Deenbandhu exclaims saying this is the perfect name for his child. He takes the form and runs back to his house to discuss the new name with his wife. After Deenbandhu leaves, Abhishek yells at Vikas for involving him in these petty matters, distracting him from studying. 

In the next scene, we see Pradhan ji going back and forth in his house. He asks his wife about marrying their daughter to the village secretary Abhishek. His wife, Manju Devi reverts with the same argument that Abhishek earns a mere 20k per month. Pradhanji explains to her that after clearing the CAT exam and completing his MBA from an IIM, Abhishek will surely earn more than a lac per month. And Pradhan ji is confident that Abhishek will clear the exam, after all he is putting in the hard work. However, Manju Devi isn’t a woman who gets carried away so easily. She brings into light the fact that hard work isn’t the only thing required to crack competitive exams but the person’s mind should also be sharp. Now Pradhan ji is perplexed. He wonders how he can check if Abhishek’s mind is sharp or not.

Meanwhile, Deenbandhu and his wife Sushma have an argument over the name Aarav. Sushma wants to call her child Aatmaram but Deenbandhu is enthralled by the fact that his son’s name would be the same as Akshay Kumar’s if they name him Aarav. Sushma comes to the Panchayat office and reprimands Abhishek for suggesting this name. She believes he has charmed her husband to name their child Aarav. 

As soon as Abhishek begins to study after the raging couple leaves, he is disturbed by Pradhan ji’s Whatsapp message. In order to check if Abhishek has a sharp mind, Pradhan ji sends him a forwarded riddle to solve in one minute. Abhishek ignores the message and continues to solve his questions. When Abhishek doesn’t respond in a minute, Pradhan ji rings him. Abhishek tells Pradhan ji that these are not the kind of questions which are asked in the CAT paper.

Pradhan ji decides to visit Abhishek in the evening. He enquires about the kind of questions asked in the paper. And then he asks Abhishek to solve a math problem from his preparation book in three minutes. Abhishek solves it six seconds before time. The answer is also correct. Pradhan ji is impressed. He is assured that Abhishek has a sharp mind and will be able to get admission in a good MBA college by clearing CAT. 

Right then, Pradhan ji receives a call. He is informed that Sushma and Deenbandhu are still fighting. Neither is ready to back down. Both are adamant with their choice of names. Pradhan ji, Manju Devi and Abhishek arrive at their place to solve the fight. Abhishek suggests Deenbandhu and Sushma to make the child himself choose which name he wants for himself. He tells them to show the child two fingers, representing Aarav and Aatmaram each. Whichever name’s finger the child chooses must be finalised. Sushma and Deenbandhu agree to go ahead with this technique. 

Back at home, Pradhan ji tells his wife about how smart Abhishek is. He wants his daughter to get married to Abhishek. Manju Devi, however, wants her to marry the boy from Malkopur. She feels that this is a quick deal. Her daughter will be married in a year if they go for the Malkopur boy. Contrarily, they will have to wait for Abhishek to complete his MBA if they choose him for Rinki. Pradhan ji think it might be a good idea to ask Rinki herself. 

Pradhan ji uses the same finger technique which Abhishek suggested to Sushma and Deenbandhu. He goes to Rinki who is almost asleep and asks her to choose between Abhishek and the boy from Malkopur through his two fingers. Rinki, unaware of anything, chooses the finger dedicated to Abhishek. Pradhan ji is relieved. Sushma and Deenbandhu’s child chooses Aarav as a name for himself. Deenbandhu is ecstatic. While Manju Devi and Sushma both are disappointed at their respective households.

Two-weeks later, Pradhan ji and Vikas wait eagerly at the office for Abhishek to return. Abhishek went for his CAT exam. However, Abhishek returns sulking. He directly goes into his room and locks himself. Looks like he did not clear the exam for which he put in so much effort.

Episode rating: 3.5/5