‘Court Kacheri' review: Show about a reluctant lawyer has minor laughs and basic truths

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2 days ago

In a city in North India, a young man is trying hard not to be a nepo baby. Param is expected to follow his father and grandfather and pursue law at a district court. Only, for Param, the collar that advocates are supposed to wear is like a noose.
Param (Ashish Verma) would rather do anything else – hotel management or even move to a foreign country. Anything but join the hugely successful practice run by his widely worshipped father Harish (Pavan Malhotra).
Param is disgusted by Harish's amorality, his questionable tactics in the courtroom, his flexible notions of justice. Although Param lacks the courage to unburden himself to Harish, his dyspeptic visage and shambolic appearance give away his feelings.
Court Kacheri is out on Sony LIV. Created and written Arunabh Kumar and Puneet Batra and directed by Ruchir Arun, the Hindi series follows Harish's fumbling attempts to crawl out from under Harish's massive shadow.
A sub-plot looks at Harish's assistant Suraj (Puneet Batra), who wants to set out on his own. The outcome of a divorce case revolving around Ratna (Kiran Khoje), who is represented by Anusha (Priyasha Bhardwaj), provides the link between the five episodes.
The show carries the stamp of its producer TVF, which claims to have a firm finger on the pulse of the Hindi heartland ethos through micro-narratives revolving around regular people. Court Kacheri is crisp enough to be consumed in a single gulp, with barely an aftertaste.
The characters are relatable, as is the show's realistic, casually cynical view of the Indian legal system. Nobody is under any illusion that whatever goes on the courtroom is actually for the public good, except perhaps a conscientious judge and Param when he isn't navel-gazing. The show does try to provide a moral compass, but the courage of conviction is fleeting.
Harish's ruthless pragmatism – smoothly portrayed by a controlled Pavan Malhotra – always goes down better than Param's waffling. Even Suraj who, like Param, is feeling suffocated by Harish's influence, is more interesting than Param. Given how much is stacked against Param, Ashish Verma does well in the scenes in which Param's despair over his situation tips over, especially in a police lock-up.
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