‘Choona’ Review: A Magnificent Cast Lifts a Show That’s Unaware of Its Own Merit

Do you ever watch a series that feels more like an audiobook? Choona teeters very close to that edge. Writer-director Pushpendra Nath Misra paints an alluring (seemingly) lead character with politician Avinash Shukla (Jimmy Sheirgill) in the first episode. I say, paints, because a lot of the frames feel that way – pretty to the point of feeling rather artificial. 

On that note, the cinematography and production design eventually find their footing, structuring a significantly more artistic setting.

Shukla, nicknamed “Calculator” for his conniving mind, believes in two things above all else – astrology and money. He uses both of these as tools to complete his mission to overthrow the government. At the face of it, Choona feels like another typical political drama full of drama and subterfuge. But soon, new players emerge. 

Likened to “six planets” that could ruin Shukla’s plans, six people the politician has wronged before, come together to plot his downfall. The first few episodes, though lackadaisical in pacing, set up an interesting premise. The visual language becomes less artificial and the actors begin to show their true mettle. 

The writing is extensive and exposition heavy. Every “planet” gets a backstory but one man stands out the most, an ambitious student leader Yakub Ansari (an immensely watchable Aashim Gulati). As Ansari, Gulati has a charm and charisma that somehow both complements and contrasts the stoic swagger with which Sheirgill carries himself.

Despite multiple characters overpopulating the screen, these two actors manage to keep attention spinning around themselves. 

Who are the other characters? There is Ansari’s childhood friend Baankey (Gyanendra Tripathi), Pandit Upadhyay (Atul Srivastava), Avinash’s brother-in-law Bishnu (a humorous Chandan Roy), a contractor JP (Vikram Kocchar), and an omnipresent informant Triloki (Namit Das). Monica Panwar, who did an exceptional job in Jamtara, features as Baankey’s sister Bela and the one other woman with agency in this story is Jhumpa (Niharika Lyra Dutt), the tech genius in the mix. 

Choona has an underlying whimsy to it that sometimes distracts from the heavy exposition. I wondered if the introduction of one character after another would become tiresome but surprisingly, it does not. Every backstory plays out like a separate set piece and each is mounted well in the grand scheme of things – Choona is a show whose setting is infinitely more inviting than its climax. 

Regrettably, the narration (by Arshad Warsi) is so frequent that it feels like the makers don’t expect the audience to understand anything if it isn’t presented to them bit by bit. For instance, the narrator informs you that a woman sitting in a hospital is there to get tested.

The screenplay isn’t unpredictable; the feeling of novelty arises from the innovative structure.

When the show focuses on the plotting and planning, the engagement returns because that is where the magic is – a ragtag bunch ready to take on a seemingly menacing politician is ample fodder for a comedic drama (or satire even) but the punch rarely comes. Some of the scenes hold some natural humour and that, combined with the actors' enjoyable comedic timing, adds a welcome light-heartedness. 

At some point, some characters seem to emerge from the cracks, already having left your memory because of the number of narrative threads you have to follow. And often it feels like the show is lost in its own translation – it's so drawn out that style becomes gimmick. The writing touches the surface of several themes but seems reluctant to actually dip in – for instance, two men argue over one dating the other’s sister but their dynamics remain unexplored, the implications get lost.

To add to that, a politician who will stop at nothing to attain power isn’t given the space to become terrifying enough– he seems to be positioned solely to become an easy-to-deceive target. 

This significantly reduces the stakes of the sequences where the final showdown is to occur which is a pity considering the fact that the writing of Shukla’s downfall is rather astute. You don’t get a showdown filled with blood and violence; the plot is more wit than it is brawn, a refreshing take. If the stakes had been adequately set up (a shorter run-time would have helped immensely), the show would’ve held on to its strengths. 

Choona is in no way a bad show – it’s just planned chaos that loses its footing at times.