After a lacklustre musical episode with Badshah, DIVINE, and Karan Aujla, Kapil Sharma and his team redeemed themselves spectacularly with the season finale of their Netflix show. Thirteen proved to be lucky as episode 13 of The Great Indian Kapil Show was a triumphant return for Kapil and Co., powered by the delightful presence of Kartik Aaryan and (especially) his mother, Dr Mala Tiwari.

Youth heart-throb Kartik was happily overshadowed by his mother, a gynaecologist, who stole the spotlight with her witty anecdotes and unfiltered humour. Picture this: a quintessential Indian mother who seems to have taken a vow of ‘speaking-only-the-truth’ about her celebrity son. Every anecdote about Kartik’s childhood was laced with effortless candour and easy wit, leaving Kartik, his father (paediatrician), his sister (dermatologist) and the audience in stitches.

We learned some truly ‘unknown’ facts about Kartik. Apparently, the man who delivers punchlines with precision couldn’t impress his mother with his acting skills in his first few movies. There were stories of his not-so-stellar school grades, his attempts (and epic fails) at becoming an engineer, and let’s not forget his escapades to a video game parlour instead of tuition during school days.

The show included an amusing bride-hunt segment for Kartik, with his mother on the lookout for a doctor. There was a woof-and-wag segment too, with Kartik's dog, Katori, making a special appearance on the couch, soon joined by Kapil's dog, Chico!

And then came the final flourish of the finale – the most ROFL act of The Great Indian Kapil Show Season 1, with Sunil Grover (Karan/ Salman), Krushna Abhishek (Arjun/ Pathaan), and Kiku Sharda (mother of Karan-Arjun). The trio – who often do the heavy-lifting on the show – were on fire in this episode. Krushna’s impersonation of Shah Rukh Khan in his ‘jhoome-jo Pathaan’ avatar had us rolling, Sunil Grover’s antics as Salman Khan were as delightfully bizarre as ever, and Kiku Sharda nailed it as, er, Raakhee from Karan Arjun.

With The Great Indian Kapil Show ending on a rip-roaring note, we do hope the show will be back with better lines and more laughs in Season 2.