Runaway Lugaai (MX Player 10 Episodes). Directed by Avinash Das

Rating : 1 star

Without even trying too hard Runaway Lugaai(the word for a bride) succeeds in insulting a whole civilization and humanity. To begin with , it insults our intelligence by trying to dress up cheap libidinous pothots (such as son Naveen Kasturai on his suhaag raat asking father Sanjay Mishra if the latter has ever had sex) as humour.

It then insults seasoned actors like Sanjay Mishra, Naveen Kasturia(remember his excellent comic timing in Pitchers?), Pankaj Jha and Ravi Kishan who should remember he is a member of the ruling party. Such undignified projects reflect badly on his political allegiance.

The series which is like an extended ragging session with the gags borrowed from the dark web section on ‘How To Kill Audience With Ribaldry’, is set in Bihar and was shot in Patna and neighbouring areas. Sanjay Mishra whose family home is two streets away from mine, should be ashamed of being part of this sleazy series which shows Biharis speaking in that weird way which got patented during the Lalu regime. Now it’s impossible to get rid of that image.

Serials such as this only add to the dismal image of Bihar as a den of cheesy antics , petty criminals and paan-chewing corrupt politicians. Kasturia’s wife Bulbul played by Ruhi Singh seems a thirst cousin of Fatima Sana Sheikh in Ajeeb Dastaans. She just can’t get enough of it. If you know what I mean.Not from her poor husband who tries hard.But Bulbul is insatiable.She ups and leaves , triggering off a cheesy chase and a horny hunt-down that involves a bunch of leery cops, and sundry elements that suggest a deep-rooted connection between politics and sex.

Sanjay Mishra as the runaway lugaai’s leery father-in-law seems akin to Kulbhushan Kharbanda in Mirzapur.Small North -Indian cities mean cheap clandestine forbidden sex? Should I as a Bihar take offence to the excesses indulged in by the architects of this roadside tamasha? Runaway Lugaai is like one of those plays staged on Diwali night for drunken revelers where men dress up as women to ensure no member of the audience(pun intended) jumps off the seat.

Every actor seems to be in this for a lark, and few lakhs. Let me remind them that web serials are no longer a playground for puerility. You can’t put anything you want in that space just because some producer wants make a quick buck by indulging in a fast f…k. Disgraceful.