Meet Cute Season 1 Review : A sweet and light-hearted anthology about love and relationships

Story: What is love? Is it having to compromise or having trust? More than that, is it all about having respect and being empathetic? Five stories explore the meaning behind the emotion.

Review: Deepthi Ghanta, actor Nani’s sister and producer, turns director with the series Meet Cute that explores love. The term ‘meet cute’ is often used to describe ‘an amusing or charming first encounter between two characters that leads to the development of a romantic relationship between them’. Modern relationships bring with them a set of challenges both old and new. While sometimes the solution lies in looking forward, it’s not always a bad thing to look back, the series seems to say.

Meet the Boy is your typical pelli choopulu story. An independent Swati (Varsha Bollamma) is forced by her mother to meet ‘dude no 11’ aka Abhi (Ashwin Kumar) for dinner. He might look sweet and be chivalrous but she’s wary of anyone who seems too good to be true. Will they click?

Old is Gold tells the tale of an old man, Mohan Rao (Sathyaraj), keeping a young woman, Saroja (Ruhani Sharma), company as they wait in a long line at the consulate. The former might have a lot to teach the latter, especially when it comes to her relationship with her husband Jay (Raja Chembolu).

In L(aw)ove sees Padma (Rohini) on a mission to find out more about Pooja (Aakanksha Singh), the girl her son Siddhu (Deekshith Shetty) is apparently dating. While sceptical about her at first, she finds out they just might have more in common than their love for animals and her son.

Star Struck plays out like a fairy tale romance. Dr Aman (Shiva Kandukuri) offers a lift to popular actress Shalini (Adah Sharma) on a rainy night. He doesn’t know who she is and she revels in the anonymity, even if for a few hours. The two get talking about love, romance and everything in between.

The final segment in this anthology, Ex-Girl Friend, tells the story of Anjana (Sanchitha Poonacha), frustrated with her stoic husband Ajay (Govind Padmasoorya) who’d rather take her on expensive dates than express his feelings. One fateful day, she finds herself in the company of his ex-girlfriend Kiran (Sunainaa). Will this person from his past be the key to Anjana finally understanding Ajay?

All the stories in the anthology seem really interesting on paper but the result is a mixed bag that sometimes works, sometimes doesn’t. As good as Varsha and Ashwin are, they can only do so much to add to the flat material that doesn’t showcase anything novel. The conversations revolving around a woman’s agency feel cliché and while you might connect to the characters, the segment doesn’t really leave you feeling much.

Sathyaraj really elevates the material he’s given and brings a smile to your face. His character is rooted and realistic while the length of the episode doesn’t really give you enough time to explore what’s plaguing the young couple. Ruhani is a delight to watch, even when she’s exasperated at how her husband is behaving. Raja Chembolu’s performance could’ve definitely been better. It’s one of the most relatable segments in the anthology.

The next segment stands out when it comes to the performances and storytelling. The story is set at an animal shelter so the cute puppies also help. Rohini is delightful as a mom who just wants to understand what her son sees in the woman he loves. Aakanksha puts forth a mature performance that’ll leave a mark. They both steal the show and will leave you smiling. Deekshith also holds his own.

Shiva and Adah have a comfortable chemistry and put forth performances that make their characters work. But the way the segment expects you to suspend disbelief a little too much puts a damper on the flow of the series. Things pick up later in the episode but the ending also reminds you of just how illogical it all seems. Alekhya Harika’s performance is also plain okay.

Also one of the best segments in the series, Deepthi ends her anthology with a bang. While you might be able to predict where it’s all heading, it’s still satisfying to know you were right. Sunainaa and Sanchitha deliver stand-out performances that’ll make you want to listen to them forever. Govind is pretty good too.

For a series that depends so much on dialogue, Meet Cute, definitely could’ve done with some sharper writing in that department. For example, a dialogue about cooking in one of the segments and a pearl in another one are meant to be thought-provoking, but they don’t really end up doing that. While the stories have potential, Deepthi never does enough to help them reach their full potential. That is not to say they don’t work at all because when these stories grab your attention, they do it well. Vijai Bulganin’s music and Krishnakanth’s lyrics do a pretty good job in providing an insight into these characters, so play close attention.

On the whole, Meet Cute is a sweet but flawed series about love and relationships. If conversation-heavy, light-hearted stories of love are your cup of tea, do watch this one.