“Dekho beta karodon mein naa ek nikalta hai steve jobs ..
teen chaar hote hai Bill Gates..
baaki sab toh Cheema’s saab ke bête ki tarah
mohalle mein hi cyber khol lete hai naa….
Tum bhi khol lena shaadi ke baad Dimple cyber..”
Dimple listens to some real Parent Talk
When shaadi ka pressure is on and teenagers just want to do their own thing! This is Mismatched in a nutshell for you – but there’s so much more than shaadi on the agenda!
Mismatched is an Indian rom-com and an adaptation of a novel by the name ‘when Dimple met Rishi’ written by Sandhya Menon. It is directed by Akarsh Khurana and is penned by Gazal Dhaliwal and is available on Netflix.
Mismatched is a story about two polar opposite teens who have dissimilar expectations from ‘life’, unrelated aspirations & personality types; nevertheless they are both keen to turn their dreams into reality.
It stars Prajakta Koli (who is a famous Indian Youtuber with 5.97 million subscribers as of December 2020) playing the role of Dimple Ahuja. She feels alienated in a world where she is demanded to fulfill expectations of getting married at the right time (and age) and leave her goals behind. She nurtures an unbridled ambition to become a tech giant instead and to lead a professionally successful life. While Rishi Singh Shekhawat played by Rohit Saraf is a hopeless romantic with an obsession with all things Bollywood. He dreams of landing a life partner at a young age and live an ideal marriage like his dada and dadi. The story is set in Aravalli Institute, Jaipur where both the central characters visit for a summer program.
Diverse characters with different story lines
Apart from the central characters Dimple and Rishi, we are introduced to multiple characters who are developed with gripping back stories – each with their own plot, so engaging is the story line that we get caught up in each story, following their emotional meanderings with equal zest and apprehension.
“I am that guy
jo ‘60s wala romance mein believe karta hai”
– Rohit a.k.a Rishi
The story familiarizes us with Rishi’s cousin and also her childhood best friend Namrata Bidasaria (Devyani Shorey), Dimple’s roommate Celina Matthews (Muskkaan Jaferi), Anmol (Taaruk Raina), an egotistical gamer with a sizeable YouTube and Twitch following, Simran (Kritika Bharadwaj) who is a social media influencer and Harsh (Vihaan Samat), who’s from California and has joined the summer program to spend less time with his grandparents. We are also introduced to Zeenat (Vidya Malavade), a woman in her forties trying to embrace life and learn new skills and Siddharth Sinha (Rannvijay Singha) who is their teacher for the program.
Calling out the doctrinaire traditions
The series highlights the unrealistic expectations from young girls and women to have perfect marriages with their primary aim to be the perfect wife and the perfect bahu even if it demands they give up their personal goals. The story also brushes on topics of broken marriages, obsession with fair skin, and the patriarchal divide in the society.
It is okay to dream different?
All the characters have unique personalities and with divergent aims and goals. The series touches base with the youth in sensitive and real ways as it takes us on a consequences based round trip – the choices that we make are a result of our own life experiences, and our ability to take risks, or not! And most importantly, that for each of us, these choices will be different.
Audiences have greatly lauded the story of Dimple & Rishi – connecting with them in more ways than one!
Obsession with mismatched at its height
Audience is desperately waiting for season 2!
New crush in town?
A realistic insight in the lives of teenagers
The show rightly highlights what it is like to be a teenager; from trying to find their own personality, to the pressure of choosing the right career for themselves, to dealing with an overwhelming social media and the unrealistic portrayal of a flawless life.
It shows the teenage struggle of finding their place in society, especially when they get to hear ‘tum to abhi bachi ho’ and also ‘ab bari hogai ho’.
A well-defined target audience.
Mismatched revolves around teenagers and their lives. It solely targets the Zen generation and it might be hard for other age groups to connect with the show, despite the character of Zeenat who is in her forties and is trying to pave her path among a group of adolescents.
Engaging story line with a cliff hanger
The story has an interesting plot with quick development. It also ends with a cliff hanger leaving the viewer anticipating what will happen in the next season.
If you are looking for a short season to watch with a fast-paced story then Mismatched is for you. With captivating characters and a pretty cool story line, the six episodes season will keep you entertained.
