The Great Weddings of Munnes Review: "Has a crackling start but sinks into derivative humor"

If Bad Luck had a face, it would be that of Munnes! The most eligible bachelor of the town is best described as a man of marriagable age but a divorced face. Yes, that's the ugly fate of Munnes enshrouding his prospects of getting married. 

 

The Great Weddings of Munnes is a 10-episode comedy created by Raaj Shaandilya( of Dream Girl fame) and directed by Sunil Subramani which sees Abhishek Banerjee as the fateless protagonist working as a clerk in the marriage registrar office, a serviceable irony to the plot.

 

When the beautiful Mahi who is seeking her granny's death certificate in Munnes's office falls for him, the latter sees his fortunes turning in his favour but Pankaj Berry's Panditji imposes a severe 'manglik' restriction in their impending marriage due to horoscope misfit.The plot unfolds with a series of outrageous pursuits of Munnes and his baffled family to get an alternate one-day bride so that the 'dosh' in his 'kundli' can be washed off and he can get finally hitched to Mahi.

 

Shaandilya and Subramani find the sweet spot at the start to create a relatable story - the milieu of the small town, the middle class people and their dilemmas, the hilarious and inventive dialogues ( penned by Shobhit Sinha) , but the crackling humor soon succumbs to a repeatitive and derivative one.You would like to invest in the journey of Munnes and Mahi and their fumbling misadventures but as you navigate towards the third and fourth episodes and beyond, the fun fizzles out.The narrative is also hurdled with some unnecessary song numbers.

 

It's the fine and consistently amazing performance by Abhishek Banerjee that keeps you invested in the storyline. Though his physicality is quite unremarkable, it's the humor and honesty that he infuses into the character that makes him si likable. Banerjee is ably supported by Barkha Singh playing Mahi, Sunita Rajwar and Paresh Ganatra playing his paternal auntie and uncle, Sunil Chitkara as his Dad, and Aakash Dabhade playing his cousin, doubling up as his sincere sidekick.