He’s truly shining here! It’s become something of an art form for Vikrant Massey to give life to such flawed, desperately human, vulnerable characters that yearn, and he seems to be doing just that in the latest offering from Netflix, Musafir Cafe, which has been the receiving a well-deserved ovation.
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A ‘Subtle, Old-School Romance’ Available to stream on Netflix as of this afternoon, the eight-episode series is the screen adaptation of Divya Prakash Dubey’s bestselling Hindi book, which presents itself as a nuanced take on today’s love and choice, one that impacts one’s lives profoundly. In keeping with the premise of its source, this series co-created by Sharanya Rajgopal and directed by Ruchir Arun, travels in both space (Bhopal and Mussoorie) and time to weave the story of three separate lives whose stories converge in various complex and significant ways.
The show revolves around Massey’s character, a software engineer yearning for escape and for a life beyond the ‘daily rat race’ with dreams to open up a mountain-side cafe. His narrative revolves around his two relationships that, quite literally, shape his perspective and outlook of life as love: Sudha (Vedika Pinto): A bold lawyer, who was at first, involved in Chander’s arranged marriage trial run back in 2018; and Preeti (Mahima Makwana): a resilient young blogger with a gentle soul who, in his later life, finds her way to the hills as a co-worker and companion.
‘Not too bad, is it?’
The cast has had universal praise bestowed on them individually for their acting – critics may be a little divided (some praise it for its ‘lived-in, authentic emotional depth’; others are more put off by the slow pace and predictable romance formulas; many believe the acting carries the show entirely)-but almost every single reviewer is raving about the chemistry between Massey and his leading ladies, Pinto and Makwana.
He seamlessly blends passion with stability, capturing all the chaotic vulnerability of an honest, unconditional sort of love that swings between a careless zest and a stable, unspoken loyalty from start to finish. We even got ourselves some official music from the series which, of course, features the aforementioned three in a lyrical montage.
