BOTTOM LINE
A Show with Its Moments
PLATFORM
Jio Hotstar
RUNTIME
4 hours (10 Episodes)
What Is the Film About?
The lives of Mir and Raj Dar, two Pakistani-American brothers, change overnight with the father’s sudden death. They inherit DarCo, his seemingly successful convenience store chain, only to discover it’s a front for a sprawling drug empire. Soon, they’re thrust into a dangerous world, navigating the mafia, chased by the FBI. Lucky, a key figure in their father’s operation turns an unexpected ally.
Performances
Never Have I Ever fame – Poorna Jagannathan is clearly the star of the show. She’s quite aware of its tongue-in-cheek, sarcastic tone and has great fun with the action sequences – stepping into the shoes of a badass woman with a purpose. Both Saagar Shaikh and Asif Ali have contrasting oddball characters that complement each other, but their verbal banters don’t tickle your funny bones consistently enough.
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Brian George is a genuine surprise – underplaying himself, but delivering the goods when it matters. Alfie Fuller has a meaty part and she does her bit to help the character come alive, despite the writing constraints. Among other actors – Amita Rao (as Nandika), Iqbal Theba (in a brief yet recurring role as Baba Dar) and Alexandra Ruddy (as Agent Mercer) make a reasonable impact.
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Analysis
Deli Boys is exactly what you would call a paper tiger, giving a playful spin to the gangster drama genre and reimagining it as an absurdist comedy through two misfit protagonists. Blood oozes out of industrialist Baba Dar’s head at the golf course when a ball smacks him out of the blue, leaving him dead on the spot. His sons, the Dar brothers Raj and Mir are left to safeguard an empire that’s murkier than it seems.
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Raj and Mir (do we say man-children?) are desperate to take charge of his father’s chair, only to realise they have some solid competition. An aunt suddenly comes to the rescue of the men and the food business – which has served as a mask for the illegal drug trade. Packed with many goofball characters locked in edgy situations, Deli Boys takes itself lightly despite the chaos, gore and the fight for the throne.
The brothers nearly get killed, and later kidnapped; one of them is engaged to a Hindu girl as part of a deal and an ex is an FBI covert. An FBI head is an unabashed male chauvinist. There’s talk of Islamophobia, and tensions between India and Pakistan in unusual situations. Interestingly, it’s a woman who is the saviour of two men who are blissfully unaware of the dangers around them.
The creative choices are indeed unique, for it deals with potentially tense situations with a refreshing lightness. It doesn’t exactly redefine norms in the gangster arena and is bathed in familiarity but smartly alters its pitch and breathes new life into the characterisation. The action choreography is cheeky, there’s visual humour and the ambience is far removed from the larger-than-life vibe associated with the genre.
Though there’s a lot to appreciate about what it tries to do across multiple departments – the writing, the decision to make an action comedy with two South Asian leads, the staging of the action sequences, the playful take on the genre – it really falls flat in terms of its humour quotient. The pop-culture references are strictly catered to the US audience and the pitch of the performances and pointless exaggeration don’t help its cause.
Once the show’s premise and the inner workings of the DarCo business are established in the initial episodes, it loses its mojo and stops surprising you. Episode after episode, Raj, Mir and others are surrounded by a bunch of shady men who want to exploit their vulnerable situation – and the duo keeps finding unconventional ways to escape hellish consequences. The chaos, after a point, turns into a formula sans any purpose.
Deli Boys is like the teenager desperate to be the cool dude, though the tricks lose sheen quickly. The show has its moments – with the humour and action – but isn’t funny enough to be binge-worthy.
Music and Other Departments?
Wendy Wang makes the most of the opportunity to churn out a vibrant music score with ample variation across episodes – it undeniably lends a new dimension to the result. Within the budgetary limitations – the cinematography (by Nathan Ray Salter, Andrew Wehde), production design and costumes lend authenticity to the setting. The dialogues, laced with sarcastic humour, are a mixed bag though.
Highlights?
New spin to the gangster genre
The smart writing, characterisation
Imaginative staging of sequences
Drawbacks?
Humour lacks the punch
Loses its freshness after the initial episodes
Strictly okayish performances
Did I Enjoy It?
In parts
Will You Recommend It?
Only if you have a taste for absurdist humour
Deli Boys OTT Series Review by M9
