Web show: Hasmukh
Director: Nikhil Gonsalves
Cast: Vir Das, Ranvir Shorey, Suhail Shorey, Raza Murad, Ravi Kishan and Manoj Pahwa
Stand-up comic Vir Das headlines Netflix’s show titled Hasmukh, which is about an ambitious young man from Saharanpur on a mission to prove to his mentor that he is a good comedian. While he is a great writer, he surely lacks comic timing. And his mentor, famous comedian Gulati (Manoj Pahwa), refuses to give him his expected big break.
As Hasmukh tries to fulfil his untamed ambition, he ends up killing Gulati in an unexpected turn of events. But what’s worse? Hasmukh realises that the only way to "kill it on stage", is if he "kills off stage". The premise with which the show starts is enough to make everyone stand up and take notice. Albeit, what starts off by accident soon becomes a necessity as it helps him taste both blood and success. His friend Jimmy, (Ranvir Shorey) the manager of Hasmukh’s former mentor Gulati, is the only one who knows his dark secret. They both join hands and go on a hunt to find new gigs and more harmful people to kill.
Soon, with his mojo being back on the stage with constant murders that he commits, he finally makes his way to Mumbai after being roped in by the programming team of a television channel as a wild card entry on a comedy show. As he ventures into the bigger city, a sword of uncertainty hangs over his head, owing to his grave past that he is hopes will not catch up with him. And why not? He’s been the Dexter of the desi comic world so far, if we can say so.
Nonetheless, the show is full of twists and turns, be it Hasmukh’s on-stage rivalry with insecure comedian Krishna Kumar (a seasoned Comedy Show winner) or his encounter with long-time gangster Jameel Indori or the plot with his lustful aunt ( and the local cop (Inaamulhaq), who is his fan. In fact, it is a delight to watch Ravi Kishan back in action as a sleazy media head. Will he win the comedy show or his past deeds will come bit him, is all that can only be known if you watch Hasmukh yourself.
While the 10-episode series is high on drama and is fabulously written by Vir, Nikhil, Suparn Verma, Amogh Ranadive and Neeraj Pandey, what it lacks is great comic material. Since it is a show about a comedian, the gags are patchy. Vir shines in each frame and he gets the nuance of small town correctly. It is certainly difficult to play a subdued character who has murderous intentions but Vir gets his character’s dark psyche correctly. Ranvir as Jimmy is interesting to see and we cannot get enough of him. Not to miss, the show kind of sidelines its female characters towards the end and it would have been better the other way round.
Nikhil has made sure that the series, which was conceptualised by Vir himself three years ago, is binge-worthy and the teamwork holds it all together. However, Hasmukh might not totally tickle your funny bone, but it will keep you hooked with its appealing storyline and well-etched out characters.
Also featuring Amrita Bagchi, Suhail Nayyar, and Raza Murad, Hasmukh has released on April 17. The Netflix show is produced for Applause Entertainment by Emmay Entertainment.
PeepingMoon.com gives Hasmukh 3.5 Moons
