Namacool Season 1 This comedy-drama falls flat with crude humor
Namacool Season 1 Story: Mayank and Piyush, who are close friends and attend the same college in Lucknow, have different paths taken in life. Mayank meets a notorious local goon named Chakku Pandey, while Piyush develops feelings for the wife of the college dean. Nevertheless, a murderous scheme brings their lives together once more.
Namacool Season 1 Review: Despite having all the makings of a fast-paced, exciting series, “NamaCool” falls flat due to its ridiculous and cliched screenplay, which leaves us with ridiculous scenarios and offensive humor. The series falls short due to its forced humor and lackluster acting. To illustrate a man rushing to fulfill his natural urge and ending up in a toilet seat store or a student falling in love with the dean’s wife is just nonsensical. The ridiculousness intensifies when the student finds himself seated at the dining table at the Dean’s wife’s college lecturers’ party. “NamaCool” is full with these kinds of unbelievable situations.
The show revolves around the friendship of Mayank (played by Abhinav Sharma) and Piyush (Aaron Arjun Koul), who are classmates at the same Lucknow college. Their lives change when they meet the infamous local goon Chakku Pandey (Abhishek Bajaj) and see him defeat a rival goon on his own. Mayank, impressed, ends up being Chakku’s confidant very fast and is elevated to group administrator of his WhatsApp group. Piyush is in the midst of falling in love with the college dean’s wife, Rubiya (Hina Khan). When the local MLA requests that the Dean set up student elections ahead of the state elections, the issue gets more heated. When the Dean declines, it is Chakku Pandey’s duty to see that the Dean agrees.
The script of “NamaCool” mainly relies on “matters related to convenience” and takes numerous liberties. The series interweaves forced elements throughout the storyline to create interest and amusement. The show is also full of innuendos, like in the scene where a worker at Piyush’s father’s sanitary equipment business extols the benefits of a toilet seat, clearly hinting at what the creators are getting at. Another instance is when Minty, the girlfriend of Chakku Pandey, chooses to utilize a “human pole” rather than an iron pole to create a reel for her social media.
The portrayal of Mayank by Abhinav Sharma has a lot of Shah Rukh Khan hangover, which gets annoying after a while. Piyush is portrayed by Aaron Arjun Koul, who gives a merely mediocre performance. It seems that the performers that play the characters are the ones who redeem the show. As Samarth, Shayank Shukla is a natural, and Abhishek Bajaj does a good job portraying the slightly exaggerated goon Chakku Pandey. The characters Anushka Kaushik as Minty and Hina Khan as Rubiya give the series a boost.
You can only appreciate this series if you can put up with its shortcomings, which may prove to be difficult. Though it’s a comedy, there aren’t many truly funny or even somewhat entertaining parts in it. This ridiculous show’s humor frequently comes off as inadvertent.
Also Read | THE BIG CIGAR SEASON 1 REVIEW: THIS THRILLER DELIVERS A RIVETING ESCAPE SAGA FROM HOLLYWOOD TO HAVANA
