Dharmatic Entertainment’ latest venture Call Me Bae, starring Ananya Pandey in the lead role, fails to capture the audience’s attention. Unfortunately, it’s not just the performances that fall flat—the lackluster writing drags the show down. From the beginning, the show opens with a 15-minute monologue filled with exposition, spoon-feeding the audience every detail about the situation. The script is so diluted that it constantly narrates what the characters are doing, often detracting from any depth the story could have offered.
The real issue lies in the portrayal of the flawed protagonist. Within the first 15 minutes, Bae cheats on her husband and is thrown out of the house. While it’s possible to build sympathy for such a character by focusing on her emotional conflict and circumstances, the show doesn’t give her enough room to explore her inner turmoil. Instead, it rushes from one plot point to another, leaving the characters feeling underdeveloped and the story disjointed.
I watched all eight episodes in one sitting, hoping to find redeeming qualities. While there are a few decent moments, most of the time, the characters are simply interacting within glossy, shallow settings without offering anything substantial or groundbreaking.
Call Me Bae Story
The premise of Call Me Bae is simple: an elite rich woman has to live like someone from a lower class. The humor is derived almost entirely from this “rich-to-rags” trope. They also weave in a subplot involving the Me Too movement, but it’s presented in a reductive, black-and-white manner, lacking any nuance.
This trope can be enjoyable when done well, allowing the audience to connect with a character as they undergo a humbling transformation. However, in this case, Bae’s adjustment to her new life, which should have been a source of humor and heart, falls flat. The performances, which we’ll address later, don’t do much to elevate the material.
Another glaring flaw is the one-dimensional characters surrounding Bae. The plot conveniently picks up certain elements and discards them without exploring the potential consequences. For example, after Bae is caught cheating with her trainer, she faces the fallout, while the trainer gets off scot-free. Bae briefly mentions in passing that her family would deal with him, but this plot point is never followed up on.
Similarly, Bae’s family is portrayed as always looking out for her, even suggesting that she move to Los Angeles. Yet, when she chooses not to go, and they know she’s still in the city, none of them make an effort to support her, creating another plot hole that undermines the story’s credibility.
Half Baked Characters
Apart from Lisa Mishra’s character, who shares a few meaningful interactions with Bae, the rest of the cast feels half-baked. Most of the supporting characters exist solely to help Bae on her mission, but their motivations and development are weak. While this kind of setup is common to drive a narrative forward, it’s poorly executed in Call Me Bae.
Varun Sood plays the role of Bae’s trainer, who occasionally moonlights as a tech expert. If the show intended for this character to play such a dual role, it would have been wise to establish his technical skills earlier on. Instead, his contributions feel forced, like a deus ex machina that randomly solves problems. The show even throws in a pointless red herring by introducing a new character, but this also leads nowhere significant.
Performances
Call Me Bae boasts a solid ensemble cast, but with subpar writing, the performances bear much of the responsibility for carrying the show. Given the below-average material, most of the cast delivers commendable performances, though they can only do so much with what they’re given.
Vir Das stands out as a caricatured version of a prime-time news reporter. He captures the essence of the script well, fully embracing the over-the-top nature of his character. His portrayal is entertaining, and he manages to infuse a sense of fun into every scene, almost serving as a villain in the narrative. Despite the shortcomings of the script, Das delivers a noteworthy performance.
Apart from Das, five other characters dominate most of the screen time: Gurfateh Pirzada as Neel, Varun Sood as Prince, Muskaan Jaffery as Saira, Niharika Dutt as Tamaraah, and, of course, Ananya Pandey as Bae.
Gurfateh Pirzada’s Neel is portrayed as a no-nonsense, righteous journalist. His character arc is straightforward, though there’s an odd detail about him not knowing how to swim, which feels out of place and unnecessary. Varun Sood’s Prince, on the other hand, is a trainer who morphs into whatever the plot requires. His character serves as Bae’s love interest, then suddenly becomes a tech expert to help advance the story, only to later confess feelings for another character after discovering that Bae doesn’t love him. This kind of convenient, plot-friendly character design feels forced and uninspired.
Muskaan Jaffery’s Saira and Niharika Dutt’s Tamaraah form a “behan code” with Ananya Pandey’s Bae, and while they convincingly play their roles, their character arcs suffer from the same rushed and hollow treatment as much of the show. Jaffery’s Saira starts as a supportive friend helping Bae adjust to her new life but later becomes part of the larger group with no clear motivation. Dutt’s Tamaraah, a working woman who believes in astrology and has clear ambitions, initially shows promise. However, her storyline is pushed aside as the main plot takes precedence, leaving her character underdeveloped.
Ananya Pandey, who should be carrying the show on her shoulders, mostly focuses on playing the out-of-her-element rich girl. While this is the core of her character, it overshadows many other opportunities to deepen her performance. She misses key chances to explore more emotional layers, such as portraying the nuances of a wife in a failed marriage, showing empathy for the Me Too movement, or engaging in the brief detective fiction element that the show introduces. Pandey’s performance remains one-dimensional throughout, failing to surprise or engage the audience in any meaningful way.
What They Were Going For
When the creators developed Call Me Bae, they likely had a vision for a unique and entertaining show. The core idea seems to revolve around the notion that money and wealth are not essential for living a fulfilling life. The show’s genre leans towards comedy, with social media serving as a prominent theme to resonate with modern audiences. In an attempt to craft a memorable climax, they introduce a storyline involving the Me Too movement, eventually turning the protagonist into a journalist.
This approach allows the show to tick several boxes: addressing relevant societal themes, delivering a social message, and leveraging the Bollywood backdrop for attention-grabbing cameos. On paper, it seems like a compelling concept.
However, the show falters because the characters are not developed with enough care or depth. Bae, the protagonist, is not the right fit for a sympathetic lead. Her decision to cheat on her husband does not inspire empathy, especially when the reason given—lack of attention from her husband—feels shallow. Similarly, her friend Shaira’s behavior, dating people for a week just to secure an apartment, undermines the show’s attempts to deliver messages about independence and empowerment.
What They Should Have Done
The basic plot has potential, but the lack of strong character arcs diminishes the impact. Well-crafted characters are crucial to making the narrative resonate with the audience. Every on-screen character should have clear motivations, and even good deeds need to be justified. Without this, the writing comes off as lazy.
The pivotal moment in Bae’s life—her infidelity—needed better justification. The writers should have delved deeper into her emotional state and circumstances, providing the audience with a more compelling reason for her actions. Moreover, the feminist dialogues feel superficial, echoing the often misguided understanding of feminism prevalent on social media. A more nuanced and thoughtful approach to these themes would have elevated the show.
Conclusion
Overall, Call Me Bae is a disappointing watch. Despite its talented cast and attention-grabbing subject matter, it fails to stand out as one of the year’s best releases. The writing is uneven, with the “bimbo” archetype and certain comedic elements working only sporadically. One of the few highlights is the chemistry between Ananya Pandey and Gurfateh Pirzada. Their scenes, particularly those involving genuine moments like Neel encouraging Bae to eat vada pav or Bae teaching him to swim, offer glimpses of what the show could have been.
Vir Das also delivers a commendable performance as a prime-time reporter, but beyond that, there’s little to praise. I would rate the show 1 stars, largely due to the performances and the potential of its premise. However, it ultimately falls short due to weak writing and missed opportunities for deeper character development.