Kapil Sharma’s The Great Indian Kapil Show lacks the zing despite the return of Sunil Grover

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It’s a huge thing for stand-up comedian and actor Kapil Sharma to run a celeb talk show, titled The Great Indian Kapil Show, on OTT giant Netflix. In many ways it’s also symbolic, considering he started off in 2007 by winning a similar-sounding comedy reality show — The Great Indian Laughter Challenge Season 3.

Notably, every Netflix show that has the word ‘India’ — Indian Matchmaking, Indian Predator (series), Bad Boys Billionaires: India, Crime Stories: India Detectives and even stand-up special Vir Das: For India — in the title has brought business to the platform!

After 2022 Netflix special Kapil Sharma: I’m Not Done Yet, he is back but this time his team of comedians wouldn’t be joining in from the crowd, but be on the stage. The stand-up special was less funny and more personal, where he talked about the battle with mental health and his equation with fame. But the Netflix’s latest show, with Kapil Sharma hosting the Indian celebrities from all walks of life, comes across as ‘tele-visionisation’ of OTT.

No lasting impression

For the premiere episode, neither Kapil’s team of comedians and ‘laughing’ judge Archana Puran Singh, nor guests, Ranbir Kapoor, Neetu Kapoor and Riddhima Kapoor Sahni, made an impression. The return of Gutthi aka Sunil Grover was the only high point of the show, especially for the character’s history with celeb-guest Ranbir Kapoor. The banter between Kapil Sharma and Grover (Dafli), which crosses the boundary of reel, taunts and becomes too real, brought back the memories of the infamous ‘mid-air’ fight between the two in 2017.

The choice of guests for the inaugural show didn’t give the comedians, Kiku Sharda, Krushna Abhishek and Grover, much space to work around. Had there been Alia from the Kapoor house, it would have been an interesting twist, especially as the couple never appeared together on any show. Krushna dressed as Animal character Abrar Haque, a la Bobby Deol, and Kiku mimicking Sunny Deol didn’t add to the fun element at all.

Need to up his game

Kapil is the only winner from The Great Indian Laughter Challenge who has made it big in the industry, but he needs to up his game in the coming episodes. After all, it is not easy to keep OTT audience hooked, especially with a sea of options available to them.

However, celebrities from the television industry are all rooting for Kapil’s show and looking forward to the upcoming episodes. 

Celeb speak

It will take time

The audience for television and OTT platforms are different, and since we have the remote in hand there are options galore. Kapil is good at comedy, the freshness is surely retained but it will take time for TV audience to come to an OTT platform to watch a specific comedy show. Angad Hasija, actor

Promising start

Kapil Sharma’s Netflix start was like reliving old memories. His laughter filled the screen, bringing back the joy we all love. Now, I’m excited to see how he keeps the magic alive in this new digital age. It’s a promising start to what looks like a fun season ahead. Varsha Hegde, actress

Need diversified content

Kapil Sharma’s transition to Netflix is interesting. His first episode is entertaining, but I wonder if it will cater to a wider audience beyond his usual fan base. I hope the content diversifies beyond the usual gags. Mrunal Jain, actor

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