The sixth episode was the second-best episode of the season, after the Aamir Khan one. Sunny and Bobby Deol in the last episode elicited some genuine laughs from the audience and the viewers. For the first time, Sunny Deol seemed casual talking about his failures and successes over the years and how the Deol family had a stellar 2023, with each member delivering path-breaking record-shattering box offices at the cinemas. It was rare to find them comfortable in their own skin, which made the episode memorable, coupled with some intelligent gags put forward by every supporting actor on the show.
The seventh episode of The Great Indian Kapil Show is graced by the leads of the number one trending show on Netflix, Heeramandi. Manisha Koirala, Sonakshi Sinha, Aditi Rao Hydari, Sharmin Segal, Sanjeeda Sheikh, and the amazing Richa Chadha graced the stage to promote their acclaimed web series that is based on the famed Heeramandi of Lahore from before the partition. Heeramandi was a harem run by tawaifs who were also known for teaching men of all ages about romance, good conduct, song, and dance. As stated in the show, the place was frequented by the rich and nobles, who spent a lot of money on the women for their upkeep. This made them the richest women in the city, and they seemingly had a lot of power.
Since both shows are on Netflix, it only makes sense to promote the visionary Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s opulent work on the chat show. Sanjay Leela Bhansali was not present in this episode, but we think the audience would have been surprised if he had made an appearance. Just like the Aamir Khan episode was a surprise to many, Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s presence would have been groundbreaking for the chat show. Sadly, this episode was as lukewarm as the entire show, which was released last week. Heeramandi failed to leave a lasting impression on the audience as the show was overwhelmed by a focus on costuming, cinematography, and production design, but the director just did not pay any attention to the screenplay. The seventh episode also lacks structure. The emphasis on women only liking Paani Puri and Kapil Sharma fixating on the fact that Sonakshi Sinha should consider getting married—these conversational tropes are outdated generalizations about the female sex. As said before in one of the articles about The Great Indian Kapil Show, the streaming platform needed to focus on the quality of the content instead of volume of jokes to deliver an entertaining episode if not filled with laughter. It was very archaic to resort to questions as backward as these, but it was amazing to watch Sonakshi Sinha give back to the host and the audience in her fashion.Â
The only watchable part of the show has to be Krushna Abhishek and Kiku Sharda’s acts as Chuni Babu and Chandramukhi. This was an ode to Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s cult classic film Devdas. This gag had a good ending and generated quite a few laughs, and writing-wise, this gag was written well compared to others that have been repeated so many times. Especially Sunil Grover improvising lyrics to existing tunes, which is honestly becoming boring. The writers of the show need to up their game and deliver good comedic gags instead of sticking to the same old routine seen in earlier editions of the Kapil Sharma show.
The questions asked by Kapil Sharma to the guests were also generic, and there was hardly any camaraderie between the women of the show. Surprisingly, this edition of The Great Indian Kapil Show does not have the segment where they would read comments from the Instagram posts. This was a hilarious segment in the previous editions of the show and there was some originality to it, which is sadly lacking in the Netflix edition of the show. The typical questions about the weight of the ghagra (Indian traditional skirt) have become standard ones during every Sanjay Leela Bhansali release. The show focused on questions about how tough shooting the series was, keeping in mind that Sanjay Leela Bhansali was known for his erratic shooting schedules. Many have heard rumors from several actors about how volatile and demanding the veteran director and the producer could be, and that has also led to many prominent actors breaking down on the sets out of mere pressure and the demanding nature.
Kapil Sharma, sadly, could not get any interesting answers from the women. This could have been because the writers on the show were men, and they could not find a way to make the women comfortable on the show. The fake laughter at seeing Sunil Grover in a weird costume and the jokes that do not even land is a sad sight to witness. The show would have been a hit on television, as the audience of the show still enjoy watching Kapil Sharma on satellite channels. Netflix will probably have to come up with a plan to expand in the two- to three-tier cities and towns of the country to get their eyes on The Great Indian Kapil Show. They makers and the streaming watch some Laapata Ladies for some inspiration; incidentally, the movie now streams on Netflix.
Overall, the show was a dull affair, with the women unable to openly speak about their journey on Heeramandi as Netflix owns both shows. If only Kapil and his writers had come up with better questions to engage all the beautiful and brilliant women on stage instead of reducing them to just their good looks and nothing else. The next episode of the show would be an interesting watch as Ed Sheeran, the international pop star, graces the stage of The Great Indian Kapil Show. It would be interesting to watch if that episode was fun or just cringeworthy. Ed Sheeran does not speak Hindi and we wonder what they would talk about on stage. Netflix has made sure The Great Indian Kapil Show would become famous worldwide, catering to the diaspora audience.
