Veteran filmmaker Sooraj Barjatya, 60, has come a long way since that line in Hum Saath Saath Hain (1999) ‘jahaan ghar ki ladies aur bacchiyan humein apne haathon se, pyaar se khaana khilaayein, vahi ghar ghar hai’— to a boy serving food to a girl in Bada Naam Karenge without any preaching or glorification.
Prepare to be surprised with how much you are going to like an OTT show which has zero foul language, nudity, thrill or suspense. It’s a Rajshri production after all. But that in no way means that this is a borefest- it’s the opposite, in fact.
Also read: Sooraj Barjatya on working with Salman Khan again: ‘It’s on the card, creating a fresh Prem for him’
The story is a breath of fresh air (ironic since the story is set in the Covid times). It revolves around Rishabh Rathi (Ritik Ghanshani), who hails from a wealthy family from Ratlam. He meets Surbhi (Ayesha Kaduskar), in an arranged marriage setup, along with their families. But they already know each other, and the flashback forms a major part of the story: the two were in Mumbai when Covid struck. One thing led to another, and she got stuck at his house when the first Covid lockdown was announced. The two came close- but is their union going to be as easy in the present day? Rishabh especially hails from a strict family, where even drinking is prohibited. How would they react to him living with a girl?
These questions sound old school, no doubt, but many a time in the past, flimsy material on paper has been brought to life beautifully by the director and actors. And that is exactly where Bada Naam Karenge scores.
The runtime of each episode in this nine-part series is 30 minutes (except the last two). Immensely watchable and binge worthy material, this slow, simple love story in the era of dating apps connects instantly. Directed by Palash Vaswani, ample time is devoted to each character, and nothing feels ancient.
There is a legit story here, which gets too real. The recreation of the Covid times- when we had to line up for essentials every day and were confined to our homes- is perfect, and sets the premise for an interesting love story. Certain moments stand out, purely because they speak volumes without dumbing it down or screaming ‘see we are so progressive’- from a girl asserting her right to decide her life partner, to the younger generation putting forward their POVs without offending anyone.
About the performances- the two leads have such natural chemistry with each other, it is hard to pick where they lack. Both have a bright future ahead, and one waits to see what they choose next.
Kanwaljit Singh as the patriarch of the Rathi family, Rajesh Tailang as the scheming uncle, Deepika Amin and Jameel Khan as Surbhi’s parents, Chaitrali Gupte and Rajesh Jais as Rishabh’s parents- each and every actor has contributed to making this show work. It makes you laugh, cry– feel good in the truest sense.
Overall, Bada Naam Karenge is a much-needed step in the direction of romantic stories for OTT, which mostly thrives on blood, gore and dark content. A rare one which the entire family can watch together. We assure it isn’t in the Baghban 2.0 territory.
Bada Naam Karenge is now streaming on SonyLiv.
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