PremiumHumorously Yours Season 3 Review – Vipul Goyal starrer gets a step closer to being called India’s rooted Seinfeld but...
The mini-series format will only take an IP to a limited distance, and one that has all the ingredients to be a winner deserves more.
Last Updated: 01.07 PM, Dec 27, 2023
Vipul Goyal is now a married man trying to make ends meet and spread his stand-up comedy realm. He owns a house in Mumbai and pays EMIs every month. His wife (Rasika Duggal) is supportive of him but also keeps giving him little but impactful reality checks. Amid this, when he is invited to a college alumni meet, drama begins and life strikes him.
Humorously Yours Season 3 Review:
While the world was still busy understanding what the digital medium was and what content needed to be served on it, TVF was already making shows that were experimental and made Indian audiences consume content like the West. These weren’t rip-offs of English TV shows, but respectfully inspired shows. Under this umbrella, Arunabh Kumar brought onboard some of the brightest minds. One show from the mill is 'Humorously Yours'.
It is a drama so meta that almost everyone is playing themselves, but there is also a fictional storyline, with some actors playing fictional characters. The attempt was to give India its Seinfeld. But in the process, they ended up creating a show about the standup comedy world, and true to the landscape it is set in, it spoke even to Seinfeld loyalists in a way that they didn’t feel they were watching an Indian version of their favourite sitcom. However, 'Humorously Yours' is always going to be a niche show that may not be as widely consumed as 'Permanent Roommates' or resonate with a wide number of people like 'Triplings' did. But whoever got the point of this concept was up for the ride.
So now that Anant Singh ‘Bhaatu’ sets out to tell the new phase in the life of this comedian after a ‘glass half full’ second season, what new approach does he have to offer? In Season 3, the focus shifts from the stage to the backstage and takes us into the life of Vipul Goyal, who is busy cracking the code to be a successful comedian with accolades and money while also managing his married life now. 'Humorously Yours' Season 3 is technically coming-of-age for its protagonist, who so far has only been talked about about his hustle with his career. Now this is his life.
Initially, Anant was introduced as a very vulnerable Vipul, with his jealousy, the guilt of not making it big yet, his craving for the limelight his co-comedians enjoy, and a marriage he has yet to completely dedicate himself to. All of this was conveyed well and stayed with the audience. Amid all this, there is also humour, which landed pretty well. There is enough to be entertained and moved by because this hero resembles most of us and is not one with abs even when he is at his lowest.
The show also makes efforts to give us a gateway into the world of stand-up comedy and how it is a commercial job now. We see the growth in the comedy scene throughout the show. There is Anubhav Singh Bassi, who says he has a show booked every day and that he is going on tour to Australia. All this makes it seem real and meta. The writing delivers what it is supposed to without really trying to break the mould or change something.
The acting performances are great because most actors have a brief role to play, but they stick to the storyline. Vipul Goyal brings the right amount of everything to his performance and yet again, he is a very intriguing protagonist. Rasika has a brief but impactful role and is all heart. Abhishek Banerjee returns and has the best comic timing with his one-liners; it is a treat to see him do something easy-going and fun amid his recent heavy roles. Everyone else gets to bloom as actors.
What doesn't work is the speed with which 'Humorously Yours' tries to become India’s Seinfeld. While the second half of the show takes a dip in between and becomes repetitive, it quickly gathers itself. But as a complete season, it plans to take the story a lot ahead but doesn't manage to get there. Also, a show that has yet to garner a massive audience taking a break for 5 years doesn't help. I also wish there was more to this season in terms of runtime. The mini-series format will only take an IP to a limited distance, and one that has all the ingredients to be a winner needs to be more fleshed out.
Humorously Yours Season 3 Final Verdict:
'Humorously Yours' season 3 is indeed rewarding to the old fans who have been craving it. But it should be able to welcome newer audiences rather than catering to just the existing ones. The third season does very little in that direction.