Chemistry Mashi review: Debashree Roy’s OTT debut is an engaging watch

3.5/5

Chemistry Mashi story: 

After spending 35 years as a homemaker, Sucharita Lahiri decides to teach chemistry to high-school students. She starts vlogging in her unique way. Her vlog becomes so popular that a corporate coaching centre gets threatened. She becomes a victim of a ruthless conspiracy. Her husband Sushovan (Shankar Chakraborty), daughter Pulu (Ritwika Pal), son (Saptarshi Moulik), and his wife (Shreya Bhattacharya) get involved in the fiasco. 

Chemistry Mashi review: 

Sourav Chakraborty is an able storyteller. All his works have so far been well-written and entertaining. Chemistry Mashi is no different. To start with, he has chosen a solid issue – privatisation of education and garnished it with feminism, same-sex relationships, and most importantly, the ongoing reports of scams in the education department. 

Also read: Chemistry Mashi trailer review: Debashree Roy sets to make a comeback with a refreshing vibe 

The story is well-perceived and that draws us into the series. The presentation of the story is realistic without any glitches. The problem, however, is that the series has no novelty. The issues that it deals with have already been showcased in shows like Kota Factory, Crash Course, and others. The narrative of women’s empowerment, toxic masculinity, and dealing with same-sex relationships seems to be more relatable because the family and the characters are pretty well known to us. Despite the used tropes, the show engages the audience with good storytelling and sheer good performance. 

Debashree chose a perfect project to debut on OTT. Her character is well-written and she delivers a very convincing performance. Her two assistants are also sponteneous. Sankar Chakraborty, too, is very convincing as the patriarch whose entire belief system gets challenged by his wife, daughter and daughter-in-law. Shreya is a powerful actress and deserves to get many more chances. Her character is also nicely written and she does a very good job portraying it. Saptarshi is also convincing in his dilemma and angst. Soumya, who plays Aditya in the show, embodies toxic masculinity for the character. Aditya is a buffoon who has no clue of being a buffoon. Soumya largely does a good job of portraying the character. However, Aditya’s encounter with his father seems a little loud. 

Also read: Exclusive! Chemistry Mashi: Ritwika Pal replaces Swastika Dutta in Saurav Chakrabarti’s series 

However, it is Vinay Sharma and Ritwika who emerge as the showstoppers in the series. Ritwika is a pure joy to watch on the screen. She doesn’t make it look like acting. She is natural and sways the audience with her subtlety. Vinay, on the other hand, is the bad man in the show. He is seamless in his performance. These two made the show a pleasurable watch. 

Chemistry Mashi verdict: 

This is surely one of the better shows on Hoichoi. It is gripping and entertaining. It is surely a must-watch.