Chutzpah
Director: Simarpreet Singh
Cast: Varun Sharma, Manjot Singh, Elnaaz Norouzi, Tanya Maniktala, Gautam Mehra, Kshitij Chauhan
The web series Chutzpah, which revolves around the battle between balancing several personalities, one offline and the other on the virtual platform, at times tries too hard to appeal to Gen Z. Throughout the seven episodes, there are moments that might make one think that the makers simply looked up the urban dictionary and included top ten words they liked into their script, just to find relatability among the youth. And for a series that extensively focuses on the role of social media and depicts the fast-moving virtual world, some of the scenes are painfully and unnecessarily stretched.
But Mrighdeep Singh Lamba and Simparpreet Singh’s Chutzpah on SonyLIV stands out in a way that it treats the internet as another character rather than just making it a prop; it is a character that sees the most development by the time the series ends. What makes their effort commendable is the makers did not shy away from showing the dark side of this character. A side that is marred with people using the virtual media as an invisibility cloak to pretend, gaslight, manipulate, bully and actually change someone’s life with the click of a button.
The rest of the cast just compliments this development. We do not see the same old banter between Varun Sharma and Manjot Singh, which is a breather because the actors got a chance to experiment with characters they have seldom portrayed. Some of the characters borrow their behaviour from social media influencers around us and we see their quirks lie in stereotypes. However, those are the moments that ensure laughter and uplift the mood. Elnaaz Norouzi oozes confidence and grace as a cam girl, and Tanya Maniktala, yet again, proves her calibre as an actor so early in her career. Debutante Kshitij Chauhan is no less than the experienced cast and Gautam Mehta’s energy remains unparalleled.
The show also attempts to bring out the emotions that we often tend to hide in our online personalities, and that’s where its essence lies.
Chutzpah is a constant reminder of the fact that we are easily visible and accessible; that there is nothing really that can be termed as private in the era of digital evolution. Cyberspace can break you more easily than it can make you. It is a reminder that even if you deny reality or dump your hidden desires into the virtual world, you can never truly escape it. Most importantly, Chutzpah doesn’t let you forget that, in the end, you are left with you, and whatever side you choose to show, be it in reality or on the Internet, the consequences will always catch up.
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