Show Time Telugu Movie Review

Hotstar launched a new web series called ‘Showtime’ in multiple languages. It stars Emraan Hashmi, Mahima Makwana, Mouni Roy and Shriya Saran in crucial roles. Let’s see what the series is like.

History:

Viktory Studios has a 40-year legacy in Bollywood. Although Victor Khanna (Naseruddin Shah) is its founder, his son Raghu Khanna (Emraan Hashmi) manages the studio’s activities and takes the decisions. Victor Khanna and Raghu Khanna are polar opposites in their thought processes and ideologies. The differences between father and son continue to develop, and that is when Raghu Khanna’s new film, Pyaar Dangerous, releases. Raghu’s team offers a bribe to Mahika Nandy (Mahima Makwana), a film critic, to give him a good rating. Mahika denies this and criticizes the film, making it the talk of the town. In the midst of this, Victor Khanna makes a shocking decision. Showtime is about how that decision changed the lives of Mahika and Raghu Khanna.

Plus Points:

Showtime tries to show what happens behind the doors. It touches on various elements of the showbiz industry, such as giving more importance to box office and review manipulations, the topic of outsiders versus insiders. Nepotism is one of the most discussed topics after the lockdown and the show revolves around it. There was a time when South films did more business than Hindi films, leading to discussions about whether South cinema would take over Bollywood. Elements like these catch our attention.

Those who are interested in knowing what goes on behind the doors of the industry will connect with some aspects of the series. Emraan Hashmi gave a solid performance as a person who tries his best to assert his control and power in the industry. Mahima Makwana, Mouni Roy and Rajeev Khandelwal are impeccable in their respective roles.

Bad points:

The show starts off on an interesting note and there are many good moments in the first few episodes, but the other two are very poorly written and boring. The potential is visible, but the execution is not satisfactory. A subplot about domestic violence is unnecessarily included. It feels out of place and doesn’t evoke any emotion.

Some things happen hastily and very little attention is paid to details. For a series that attempts to depict real-life events, some developments are unconvincing. For an inexperienced person to become CEO of a 40-year-old company overnight sounded strange and is somewhat similar to Nithiin starrer Bheeshma.

There is another season for Showtime, but the series doesn’t have the right ending or the suspense to wait for the second installment. Shriya Saran’s role does not have much importance in this first season. The cameos by Janhvi Kapoor, Mrunal Thakur, Hansal Mehta, Nitesh Tiwari and a few others don’t add much value to the proceedings.

Technical aspects:

Anand Bhaskar’s music is not great. Vivek Shah’s visuals are rich and the show has good production values. Manan Ashwin Mehta’s editing is bold and the best thing is that the episodes are not too long.

The direction by Mihir Desai and Archit Kumar is not satisfactory. Despite a promising start, the show loses steam in the final episodes. It doesn’t generate enough interest to wait for the remaining episodes.

Verdict:

Overall, Showtime sheds light on the dark side of Hindi cinema, but some important aspects seem unconvincing. While the first two episodes are engaging, the other two are not. Emraan Hashmi gives a splendid performance and the other actors are impeccable in their roles. The choice to have two seasons is not understandable and the suspense is weak. Showtime joins the list of shows that don’t reach their full potential despite the interesting premise.

123telugu.com Rating: 2.5/5

Reviewed by 123telugu team