The fifth episode of The Great Indian Kapil Show, featuring the fabulous wives of Bollywood had all the ingredients for success — glamour, celebrity culture, and potential for gossip. But it ultimately lacked the zing. It felt like the fabulous lives were too fabulous to be funny.
In the much-anticipated Karwa Chauth special episode, the titans of tea-time tattle also known as Fabulous Lives vs Bollywood Wives (the Netflix show) — Bhavana Pandey, Maheep Kapoor, Neelam Kothari Soni, Seema Kiran Sajdeh, Riddhima Kapoor Sahni, Shalini Passi and Kalyani Saha Chawla — descended upon Kapil’s stage,
First things first, let’s talk about the pace. Imagine Karwa Chauth fasting, but you’re not breaking it until next Karwa Chauth. That’s how slow this episode felt! Despite the lineup of celebrity guests, the show crawled along like a melodramatic daily soap waiting for its commercial break. The audience, much like Kapil, kept hoping for a punchline or two. Instead, it felt like the episode was on a perpetual tea break.
The star wives shared stories of their Karwa Chauth celebrations, which, let's be honest, felt more like Instagram captions being read out loud than anything truly funny or insightful. “We dressed up, we fasted, we broke the fast with our husbands…”— yes, ladies, we got that from the festive hashtags.
Ah, but then, a hero emerged from the depths of comedic limbo. Enter Krushna Abhishek, who dusted off his classic Jackie Shroff impersonation and provided the episode’s rare mirthful moments while interacting with the stars of what he called the “Chuglio ka show” (a show of gossip girls).
The interactions felt scripted, lacking the spontaneous humour and energy that typically define a Kapil show. Sure, there were heartwarming moments — if your heart happens to warm to tales of Karwa Chauth ceremonies involving champagne glasses, lavish saris, Instagram-perfect celebrations, and finding out which shade of red lipstick Maheep Kapoor prefers to wear while fasting!
If there's one thing this episode had, it was glamour — outfits that could rival a Karan Johar movie set, shiny smiles, and just enough celebrity sparkle to keep fashion enthusiasts happy. But as any seasoned Great Indian Kapil Show viewer knows, even the glammest gown can't substitute for a solid punchline or lively banter.
The wives and their fabulous lives were showcased, but unfortunately, the jokes weren’t. Kapil and his team usually have the magic touch when it comes to marrying celebrity gossip with humour, but this time, the marriage seemed more like a trial separation.
