26 January,2021 07:15 AM IST | Mumbai | Letty Mariam Abraham
A still from Aapkey Kamrey Mein Koi Rehta Hai
Horror-comedy is a tough genre to crack, though we've had successful attempts in Go Goa Gone (2013) and Stree (2018). Taking a stab at the genre is writer-director Gaurav Sinha with his latest release, Aapkey Kamrey Mein Koi Rehta Hai. The five-part series revolves around four friends - portrayed by Sumeet Vyas, Amol Parashar, Naveen Kasturia and Ashish Verma - who aim to build a start-up while hoping to find a home in Mumbai. The dilemma of finding a suitable place on rent in this city of dreams is not lost on anyone who has dealt with brokers and flat owners. Having first-hand experience in that department, it was an instant connect for this writer as it began. However, the story soon went downhill.
A bit on the men who individually have a respectable body of work and may have wanted to tackle a new genre with this show: Vyas as the playboy Nikhil attempts to pick up Mausam (Swara Bhasker) at a Diwali party organised by Verma's character Sanki, who is desperate to get laid. Subbu (Kasturia) is navigating a long-distance relationship with his childhood sweetheart, and Kavi (Parashar) falls in love at first sight with Mausam. Not blessed with the gift of gab or confidence, the simpleton loses her to Nikhil's charms, but before he can confront his friend, things turn grim.
Watch the trailer of Aapkey Kamrey Mein Koi Rehta Hai:
Horror outings usually elicit two reactions - they either have you glued to your seat, too scared to make a noise, or make you laugh. Indian spookfests have often evoked the latter sentiment. But this series does neither.
Sinha weaves in several humorous scenarios into the narrative, but fails to keep it rolling. Situations such as Nikhil being compelled to marry a ghost or Sanki trying to get intimate with a ghost may have seemed funny on paper, but fall flat on screen. While the boys portray their parts with conviction, Bhasker's performance is disappointing. Don't even get me started on her look after she is possessed by the ghost!
Sinha gets a few nuances right - be it the struggle of living out of your car or the joy of finally finding a four-bedroom bachelor pad. But one can't overlook the problematic scenes that normalise spiking women's drinks, hoping to get them in bed or preying on a woman in the garb of consoling her.
The background score by Dhruv Dhalla is pitch perfect. If you insist on watching this series, do it only for the Indian web's original boys. Barring that, this is a desperate attempt to evoke chuckles and chills.
