Kumudini Bhavan review: Ushasi Ray and Ambarish Bhattacharya’s whodunit is simplistic yet engaging

3/5

Story: A boarder of a girls’ hostel Kumudini Bhavan is poisoned and killed on her birthday. Inspector Hochi Sarkar (Ambrarish Bhattacharya) and his team come to investigate. Anushree (Ushasi Ray) – a new boarder – joins him to help from the inside. A couple of more murders take place. 

Review: Kumudini Bhavan is a mediocre whodunit. Following the latest fad, it has comedy and mystery in equal measures. The best bit is that the story ends in one season – a rarity in Hoichoi these days. There are a few positive things and a number of falters in the series.  

The show is uncomplicated. It follows a simple track and doesn’t overwhelm with characters and plot twists. It is an easy watch. While predictable, the story has a strong suspense element. 

Also read: Kumudini Bhavan-actress Ushasi Ray: Without television work, I get less number of designer handbags, but I am creatively satisfied | Exclusive 

Besides, Ushasi and Ambarish overall deliver a good performance to keep you watching. The show doesn’t claim to be subtle and hence, the presentation follows the mood of a telefilm. The show starts with a catchy tune but the song used in the show is not impressive. Ambarish’s character sometimes makes him a little clownish and illogical and yet he entertains. Ushasi, meanwhile, is largely impressive with her restrain and poker-face sense of humour. However, she falters at the end during a high-octane emotional outburst. Weak dialogues and an unconvincing storyline don’t help her there either.

On the other hand, Anashua Majumdar is fabulous. Her character gives a hint of a Christie-esque twist that rounds up her character very well. 

Also read: Kumudini Bhavan trailer: Ushasi Ray and Ambarish Bhattacharya emerge as the new sleuth-duo on the block 

The problem zone is the doctor’s (Biplab Bandyopadhyay) character. The character is unconvincing and hence, the actor has little to offer. Similarly, Rishav’s character is underexplored and does not leave any resolution. It is a waste of talent as the character on the screen is not half as important as the idea of the character is.

Another problem is an overtly elaborate ending. The typical curtain-drawing sequence doesn’t seem to end. Lastly, Hoichoi has a number of user-unfriendly issues that need to be mentioned. Unlike most of their shows, this one has the option of forwarding 15 seconds. However, it doesn’t offer an option of skipping the intro. 

Verdict: We don’t have many female detectives in Bengal and Kumudini Bhavan puts up a good effort to create one. If it wants to survive the super-competitive genre of whodunit in Bengal, it has to come up with a stronger conviction and smarter stories in the future. Until then, it is an engaging light watch. Give it a shot!