Broken launched with much fanfare. Almost the whole of B-town posted about it on their social media. It trended on Twitter, from Hritik Roshan to Mr. Amitabh Bachchan tweeting about it. This show is the latest offering on ALTBalaji. Coming from the Ekta Kapoor stable, the expectations are always high. Let's find out if the show lives up to the hype.
The show is produced by Murad Khetani, Ashwin Varde, and Sarita A Tanwar, and directed by Santosh Singh. It is about Veer and Samira, played by Vikrant Massey and Harleen Sethi respectively, who are dealing with broken hearts, and how they come together and help each other heal. While the concept is fairly simple, the characters are complex; Veer talks to his dead wife and Samira is the psycho ex.
But I must warn you that if you are going to watch the show with high expectations, you might be disappointed. The screenplay in the first few episodes is weak and even the story does not seem to connect, but if you continue watching it post the fourth episode, this show will have you glued. The characters grow on you. The story, though predictable, is mushy and sweet, and some dialogues are real and touch your heart. Here, the credit must go to Reshu Nath. If you are in love or are dealing with a broken heart, some lines will even bring tears to your eyes. While the story and screenplay are weak, the dialogues make up for it to a certain extent.
Music plays an important part in the show, and fresh tracks are underlaid to add to the situations, reminding you of classic Ekta Kapoor daily soaps.
Overall, the show has some nice casting. Vikrant Massey, who was recently seen in Mirzapur, has yet again done a stellar job, and Harleen Sethi is a great find. She is not just beautiful but also plays the role of a girl-next-door to near perfection. They both share a great chemistry, and the scenes come alive because of their performances. Jatin Gulati, Poppy Jabbal, and the rest of the cast are good but not great and therefore fail to leave much of an impression on you.
The production values of the show are rather average and can be compared to any other television production. So all in all, while the show picks up pace in the later episodes, the lead pair is to watch out for and the music adds to the show. I would conclude by saying that had the show been on television, it would have probably sent the ratings through the roof. Broken is a great product on the wrong platform.
I give Broken a rating of 3 stars.
★★★★★ Masterpiece
★★★★½ Remarkable
★★★★ Great
★★★½ Very Good
★★★ Good
★★½ Average
★★ Soulless
★½ Bummer
★ Snooze fest
½ Failure