Ali Asgar steals the show in Comedy Nights with Kapil!

Comedy Nights with Kapil does make you laugh but it has to improve in certain aspects.

Published: Tuesday,Jun 25, 2013 17:42 PM GMT-06:00

Seema Matoo

The promos looked promising and even the promotion on Jhalak Dikhla Jaa on Saturday just before the actual show went on air looked good, but when the first episode of Comedy Nights with Kapil was launched on Colors there was much left to be desired from Kapil Sharma and his show! The show for which Kapil is the producer, actor and script-writer is an hour long comedy show.

We have been entertained by Kapil Sharma with his comedy gags for so many years but now his debut production for once didn't come across as funny. His jokes and one-liners do arouse laughter but it is clear that he needs to try harder. Also this is not only Kapil's stand-alone show. There are other characters involved who comprise of his family in the show.

So apart from him, there is his dadi, bua, wife, servant, secretary and Sunil Grover who comes in various different avatars. The bua is all grown up but yet to be married, the secretary is the typical bimbo types, the servant does not look the poor, bechara types, the wife is dumb and the dadi is anything but old! It is a typical loud Punjabi family with Kapil enacting the role of the head of the family who runs a magazine for which he gets film celebrities to come and chat up with him.

The show reminds one of the earlier Shekhar Suman shows when Shekhar was in full form in his career. The music band, the guests and the audience is just like one of his shows. The family is an addition in Kapil's show and also the presence of Navjyot Singh Sidhu.

However, Sidhu looks wasted sitting there just to encourage more laughter. Earlier on other shows he has been a judge but here he is just like a male version of Archana Puran Singh who laughs loud and adds to the humor quotient. His role should have been more defined and something which should have added value to the show.

Sumona Chakravorty looks feeble in her comedy acts and sometimes while delivering her dialogues looks like she will laugh on her own jokes even as she says the one-liners. As an actor, Sunil Grover too can manage to do much more if his character is given more scope.

Amongst all the actors, the one who steals the show and keeps you in splits is Ali Asgar as Kapil's naughty dadi. Full of energy, Ali plays a dadi who despite her physical appearance doesn't look old at all. Dressed in a Punjabi salwar-kameez, with her white hair tied in a bun, and sneakers in which she jumps around, this dadi is out to grab men, dance with them and has the best one-liners in the show. Ali has perfectly managed the look, mannerisms and even speaks in a female voice for the show. One just hopes that he doesn't go over the top with his acts because if he does that he will lose his charm!

The show is different in the sense that it has an interactive format where the audience is given a chance to ask questions to the celeb guests and narrate jokes but here too Kapil tries to overdo a bit. Kapil's dialogue delivery too is very fast and sometimes one cannot grasp and understand the words, let alone laugh at the gags. Sometimes he immediately moves on to the next joke without taking a break which is a disaster when it comes to comedy. His making fun of his wife (Sumona) too has not gone down well with the audience, the one-liners based on her and his imitation of the way she speaks look repetitive and bad.

The show is bound to get a dedicated audience since it follows the popular show Jhalak Dikhla Jaa where again Kapil is one of the hosts but all in all, if improved upon in some parts, the show is bound to attract more audience.

Seema Khot Mattoo