'Bandwaale' Web-Series Review: Shalini Pandey and Zahan Kapoor are fine, but Swanand Kirkire steals this show about music and madness

Cast: Shalini Pandey, Zahan Kapoor, Swanand Kirkire, Ashish Vidhyarthi, Anupama Kumar, Sanjana Dipu

Director: Akshat Verma, Ankur Tewari

Language: Hindi

Bandwaale is the new show on Prime Video. It has been reported that this is a show about a bunch of misfits. Basically ordinary people trying to do something extra extraordinary. It’s directed by Akshat Varma, the man who wrote the ingenious Delhi Belly. One of the writers is Swanand Kirkire, a gifted composer and actor who can dabble with any genre. He can be the heartfelt voice of Three Of Us and also play to the gallery like he does here. There’s Zahan Kapoor, the breakout star of last year’s Black Warrant. And then there’s Shalini Pandey. She always seems to be challenged by overwhelming circumstances. We have Arjun Reddy and Jayeshbhai Jordaar as examples right in front of us.

She plays a character who is very passionate about music. And plays on anonymously. This is basically a much more heightened and over the top version of the 2017 Secret Superstar. But she’s not alone as she soon gets the company of Kirkire and Kapoor. The former plays a character we mostly see Ranveer Singh as off camera. He wears flashy clothes (literally) and carries his zest on his sleeves. Co writers Ankur Tewari and Akshat craft a series that doesn’t break grounds even if it does seduce you in its world in spurts. This could have been a film or even a tweet that unfolds over multiple episodes.

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The backdrop is Ratlam and one will genuinely try not to mention _Jab We Met_. There are a lot of boxes that Bandwaale tries to tick. But most of them now feel tried and tested. When was the rise from ebb to the top was easy? When have family members not acted as conflicts? When has financial crunch not crept in? The show gets an added advantage of existing in 2026 so we also get the social media punches these misfits take on repeatedly. But all the actors give their best shot. Pandey spoke about her character recently and said, “Poetry becomes her most honest form of expression, a space where she can be vulnerable without fear.”

But Bandwaale never becomes more than a sum of its ideas. The makers have tried to create a plan of heartfelt and humorous. The concoction may not be entirely tasteless or bland, but it is definitely not delicious either. It cannot be called a refreshing breath of fresh air as well. It follows the same tropes that could have been refreshing had it come out many moons ago. But what keeps the spirit of the show alive and kicking is Swanand Kirkire. The actor genuinely attempts to breathe all the fun he can and somewhat hits the bullseye. Only if the show did the same.

Rating: 2.5 (out of 5 stars)

Bandwaale is now streaming on Prime Video