Mind the Malhotras Review: Like Any Family, Mini Mathur and Cyrus Sahukar’s Comedy Works Despite Its Flaws

Mind The Malhotras, a light-hearted family comedy series, is the latest offering by Amazon Prime's Indian division. The show has been developed by Applause Entertainment and co-produced by Dia Mirza. It is based on an Israeli TV series, La Famiglia, and co-written and directed by Sahil Sangha. Mind the Malhotras stars Mini Mathur and Cyrus Sahukar as the eponymous Malhotras, who are a couple as quirky as they come. The couple has three kids, who are not just there to increase the family size and expenditure but also the troubles for the overwhelmed parents.

Then there is also an overbearing mother-in-law who keeps entering the Malhotra house like an annoying commercial in the middle of an interesting show. Mind the Malhotras is a web-series exclusively available on Amazon Prime so you don't have to worry about the commercials.

Mind the Malhotra's central plot is about Rishabh (Cyrus) and Shefali (Mini) taking their couple therapist, Dr Gulfam Rastogi (Denzil Smith) through the misadventures of their life. The couple is quite happy and doesn't seem like they need a therapist, but Shef and Rish don't want to take any chances. After all, four of their five couple friends are now separated. Made in Heaven, Delhi Crime, Gandi Baat: 5 Most Talked About Web-Series of the First Quarter of 2019.

Every single episode features multiple tiny misadventures that the Malhotra household goes through. In the process, we learn about the psyche of Shef and Rish.

Firstly, I have to go gaga over impeccably talented Mini Mathur. I have only seen her work as a host for reality TV shows and she aces her game at it. But, boy, she is a charming actress. She hits all the right notes of being crazy without an iota of loud acting. She brings grace to a character you'd otherwise want to stay away from. Mini Mathur is hands down the best thing about Mind the Malhotras. Cyrus Sahukar is good but seems toned down in this show, we have seen better of him. But that's not a complaint. He is still very loveable as the pacifist hubby and the father of three kids.

The lack of a linear narrative is my biggest complaint with Mind the Malhotras. While I have been a fan of episodic comedy series like Sarabhai and Khichdi, it just doesn't seem to work with the Malhotras. Maybe because, in a span of one episode, the story jumps several plot lines. The writers and director try to bind every plot point in one episode with a theme but fail to do so. It seems like you are watching funny skits one after the another. Nevertheless, the TV show has so many jokes that work hilariously with spot-on one-liners.

Another bone of contention for me is the whole therapy angle. While it has its moments, that therapy is not shown in a very positive light in the show which might just help the stigma a teeny tiny bit. All the therapy sessions are pretty useless and have no effect on the lives of the Malhotras.

While the show is about the Malhotra family, no other family member apart from the parents gets their moment to shine under the sun. It would be better if the show milked the other quirky characters more.

All said, Mind The Malhotras is still pretty enjoyable being a breezy comedy that could easily be your weekend binge. It is a show that you can watch with your entire family together.

Watch the trailer of Mind the Malhotras Here:

Yay

- Mini Mathur absolutely hits it out of the park

- There are plenty of funny moments that you'd think about later and laugh

Nay

- While those good moments are plenty, there are just enough dull moments to neutralise it

- It's way far from having a narrative which is not everyone's cup of tea

- Minus Shef and Rish, no other characters are allowed to bring much to the table in terms of comedy

Final Thoughts

Mind The Malhotras has not really tapped into its full, crazy potential yet. But we'd look forward to a season 2, because the first one had some fun moments. The comedy is family-friendly, which is the coolest thing about the show. When they are in form, The Malhotras will tickle your funny bone, so give them a chance.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 10, 2019 07:51 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).