Rangeen Season 1 Review: Confused about its own identity, this gigolo-based drama goes nowhere

Time of India

24-07-2025

Story: The life of Adarsh, a small-town newspaper editor, spirals into chaos after discovering his wife's affair with a gigolo, and he decides to become one himself. His journey into this secret world forces him to confront his pride, broken marriage, and fading dreams.
Review: 'Rangeen' sets out to be a bold, small-town tale with a provocative hook—a newspaper editor turned gigolo—but ends up meandering through a confused narrative that never fully commits to its tone or themes. What could have been a darkly comic, layered exploration of masculinity, ego, and revenge becomes a half-hearted mishmash of subplots, tonal inconsistencies, and shallow character arcs. The series wants to be many things at once: a satire, a personal journey, a relationship drama, and a quirky portrait of a secret local underworld—but it achieves none of them with conviction. With its uneven pacing and underwhelming central performance, 'Rangeen' feels more like a first draft than a finished product.
The plot of the series revolves around Adarsh Johri (Vineet Kumar Singh), a passionate journalist in a small town who runs a weekly newspaper and dreams of converting it into a daily. His world turns upside down when he discovers his wife Naina (Rajshri Deshpande) with a gigolo named Sunny (Taaruk Raina). Distraught and humiliated, Adarsh seeks revenge in the most unexpected way—by becoming a gigolo himself. Sunny introduces him to Sitara (Sheeba Chaddha), who runs a discreet gigolo service behind her clothing boutique. As Adarsh begins this new journey of self-discovery, fumbling through awkward encounters and personal doubt, his marriage crumbles further, and his professional aspirations slip into the background. The show teases a sharp, absurd character arc but loses steam quickly, with entire episodes—particularly the sixth—feeling like complete filler.
Vineet Kumar Singh struggles to anchor the series. His Adarsh is meant to be a man unravelled, conflicted, and evolving—but the performance rarely moves beyond a few notes. There's neither the charm nor the desperation needed to make his transition into a gigolo convincing. Rajshri Deshpande, an actor with impressive range, is saddled with an ill-sketched character who's reduced to repeating the same emotional beats. It's in the supporting cast that 'Rangeen' finds some energy. Taaruk Raina is excellent as Sunny—cheeky, smooth, and layered—and his scenes provide much-needed spark. Sheeba Chaddha delivers a quietly commanding performance as Sitara, balancing warmth and shrewdness with ease. Several quirky side characters appear along the way and bring some colour to the narrative, but they are never given enough room to truly shine.
Ultimately, 'Rangeen' is a show that can't decide what it wants to be. It flirts with daring ideas but doesn't follow through. The themes of wounded masculinity, small-town hypocrisy, and sexual politics remain undercooked, buried under inconsistent writing and direction. Even visually and tonally, the series wavers—sometimes capturing the small-town atmosphere with wit, sometimes slipping into generic city-slicker aesthetics. In a streaming landscape where shows have already explored the gigolo trope with more bite and focus, 'Rangeen' feels oddly tame. There's a good idea buried here, along with a couple of strong performances, but the storytelling never quite rises. What remains is a muddled series that promises spice but delivers something blandly forgettable.