There is a huge uproar on the social media with people calling out people for promoting and branding nepotism. But quietly so, a small production house is taking the OTT platforms by storm. That production house is Yoodlee Films and is fast becoming my favourite. The reason for it lies in the stories that they wish to tell with each story being different from the previous one. Last week they had released Axone which dealt with the discrimination that migrants from the NorthEast have to go through. This week releases Chaman Bahaar, a different love story. Is this worth your time…..lets find out.

Set in a small town in Chhattisgarh, Chaman Bahaar is the story of Billu who opens a Paan shop in the middle of nowhere until a pretty girl with her family shift to a house opposite to his shop, which attracts alot of attention including Billu himself. The story is simple. Now, some might argue that this is a watered down version of Kabir Singh. No, it is not. The screenplay is a slow burn. It takes you a good 40 minutes to absorb into the drama. Probably, the makers wanted you to get a feel of the small town organically. So, things here are done at a leisurely pace and do get slightly repetitive as well. But once you are in, the subtle humor gets to you and then you are invested in the drama until the end that just drops a notch. But the makers do well to showcase the small town politics that might be prevalent and basically the atmospherics. The dialogues are sharp. The music is pretty good here. Director Apurva Dhar Badgaiyann does well to explore the subtle nuances of a small town. Director is pretty good.

It is the performances are primarily drive the film. Alam Khan(you have have seen him in Kota Factory) as the local politician Shila is outstanding. Ashwani Kumar as Ashu Bhaiyya also has his moments. Bhuvan Arora as Somu is uncannily hilarious and aptly represents a youth from a small town. Dherendra Kumar Tiwari is also aptly cast as Chhotu. Ritika Badiani as Rinku does not have a single dialogue in the entire film but she has this sweet screen presence that makes you take attention of her. She is the bright spot in an otherwise dusty landscape. And apne Jitu Bhaiyya, Jitendra Kumar as Billu is outstanding as usual as he tries to make his way to the top of the long list of people who are after Rinku. He balances comedy with tragedy perfectly. Such amazing acting, boy is he in control of his craft!

Chaman Bahaar was again made and ready in 2017 but found no buyers. This was supposed to be Jitendra Kumar’s debut film onscreen. This may not be as good as Panchayat but is a one time watch primarily due to its performances. Yes, it is a slow burn but still worth your time. Available on Netflix!