anything like me, in our rooms, we all need something to get us by. So here is a list of short web series, that you have probably heard about before; but because not a lot of people have watched them there’s nobody to force you to give them a try instead of re-watching F.R.I.E.N.D.S or The Office for the 15th time while you eat hoarded snacks at 2 am in the morning even though you’d planned to sleep at 10.
Pretentious Movie Reviews (Available on Youtube)
If Rahul Modi (watch the Kya Kehna review for reference) sat to write a film a review series that would leave people laughing so hard their jaws hurt, he still wouldn’t be able to come up with something this entertaining. Pretentious Movie Reviews is a series of videos wherein Kanan Gill and Biswa Kalyan Rath review popular movies but find a way to make the reviews more entertaining than the movies themselves. This is one hilarious series that has Rajeev Masand turning in bed thinking about how to make movie reviews this cool. It also teaches us lessons like the importance of the ‘Dad’ cap and positivity (From Main prem Ki Deewani Hoon); The importance of Saif sex and the coincidences that go into making Bollywood music (From Kya Kehna) and even ideas for voice recognition apps like Siri, Alexa,etc.(Prem Aggan review). Kanan and Biswa, if you ever come across this, I GET THAT I’M STILL REWATCHING EPISODES FROM YEARS AGO BUT THAT DOESN’T MEAN I DON’T NEED MORE PLEASE GIVE US MORE EPISODES I BEG OF YOU. PLEASE.
Taj Mahal 1989 (Available on Netflix)
This is a simple, sweet show that talks about love, friendship, and other Series relationships. It is set in a college in Lucknow. The show revolves around the stories of different characters, rather than sticking to a single protagonist. These characters all attend the same college and keep crossing paths with each other. With beautiful scriptwriting and even more beautiful poetry, this show is a comforting (for the most part) series and is a must-watch.
Made in Heaven (Available on Amazon Prime)
It sheds some light on the social dynamics in big cities and how most relationships just turn out to be facades. It is a well thought out series that portrays crumbling relationships that contradict the backdrop of big fat, happy Indian weddings. It follows Tara (Played by Shobhita Dhulipalia) and Karan (Arjun Mathur) as they organize weddings and simultaneously deal with the problems that they face. Tara is portrayed as a girl who has managed to claw her way up to the high society ‘elites’, and Karan who is a gay man in a country where homosexuality is illegal. The series takes you through the intricacies of relationships while also showing you super cool weddings that will make you want to either immediately get married or become a full-time wedding planner.
Behensplaining (Available on Netflix)
This series is a high-budget version of pretentious movie reviews, Starring Kusha Kapila and Srishti Dixit. They review movies to show a ‘Behen’ perspective on things. It’s a pretty funny series consisting of witty, sarcastic comments, and occasional sketches. They review Netflix movies/series. On youtube. Every once in awhile, there will be bad puns, but you’re lying if you didn’t laugh at them.
Hasmukh (Available on Netflix)
Starring Vir Das, this is a Dark comedy series that focuses on the life of a struggling stand up comedian named Hasmukh. The first episode shows Hasmukh killing his mentor, who he finds out is a fraud and giving an absolutely blockbuster comedy show. Over the course of the show, he goes on a ride with his manager Jimmy, to find what gives him the ‘Feel’ that enables him to give a good show. His dream Series is to eventually win a popular reality show for stand-up comedians and become famous for his jokes. This series makes you think about the worth of your dreams and how far one can go to fulfill them. It also portrays to the viewers, a man’s transition from village life to a big city lifestyle. It highlights the existence of politics even in the entertainment industry and takes a look into human emotions like guilt, fear, and even emptiness. All in all, it is a good show, and you must at least give it a shot.
Panchayat (Available on Amazon Prime)
On a scale of Meethi Kheer to Bavaseer (you’ll get it when you watch the show) I’d say this is the former. Panchayat is about Abhishek, an engineering graduate who is unable to find a job, other than as a secretary for the Panchayat in a village in Uttar Pradesh. There he experiences rural life, the lack of facilities, superstitions, and politics at play. He, although while sulking about it, works Series for the betterment of the village, and of his own life, because life at Phulera just isn’t his cup of tea. Over time, the village slowly grows over him. This comical series shows that not much is needed to live a happy life and that everyone has different ideas of joy.
Image sources-
Pretentious Movie Reviews- inuth.com
Taj Mahal 1989- gadgets.ndtv.com
Made in India- outlookindia.com
Behensplaining- deadant.co
Hasmukh- gadgets.ndtv.com
Panchayat- Theweek.in
