It's Not That Simple is a 2016 Indian comedy-drama web series starring Akshay Oberoi, Vivan Bhatena, Karan Veer Mehra, Swara Bhaskar, Sumeet Vyas, Purab Kohli, Manasi Rachh, Neha Chauhan, Rohan Shah and Devika Vatsa in the lead roles.[1] It was written by Charudutt Acharya and directed by Danish Aslam. It originally premiered on Voot on 21 October 2016.[2] Swara marked her web series debut with this and received praise for her performance.[3]

It's Not That Simple
GenreComedy
Drama
Written byDanish Aslam
Charudutt Acharya
Directed byDanish Aslam
Starring
Country of originIndia
Original languageHindi
No. of seasons2
Production
ProducersVaibhav Modi
Tabassum Modi
Production companyVictor Tango Entertainment Pvt. Ltd.

Cast edit

Main edit

Episodes edit

Season 1 edit

SeriesEpisodesOriginally released
1721 October 2016 (2016-10-21)
2714 December 2018 (2018-12-14)
No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byOriginal air date
11"Machhli Ki Aankh"Danish Aslam21 October 2016 (2016-10-21)
22"War Cry #Trolls"Danish Aslam21 October 2016 (2016-10-21)
33"Risky Chemistry"Danish Aslam21 October 2016 (2016-10-21)
44"Clash Of The Ego"Danish Aslam21 October 2016 (2016-10-21)
55"Boardroom Vs Bedroom"Danish Aslam21 October 2016 (2016-10-21)
66"Hell Hath No Furry"Danish Aslam21 October 2016 (2016-10-21)
77"Rise Of The Phoenix"Danish Aslam21 October 2016 (2016-10-21)

Season 2 edit

No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byOriginal air date
11"Season Premiere"Danish Aslam14 December 2018 (2018-12-14)
22"TwitterWar: Mira vs Angad"Danish Aslam14 December 2018 (2018-12-14)
33"4 kisses, 1 party and a 30-sec pitch"Danish Aslam14 December 2018 (2018-12-14)
44"Man vs Woman: The ego tussle"Danish Aslam14 December 2018 (2018-12-14)
55"The wounded tigress"Danish Aslam14 December 2018 (2018-12-14)
66"Kaun sahi kaun galat"Danish Aslam14 December 2018 (2018-12-14)
77"Sher ki sawari"Danish Aslam14 December 2018 (2018-12-14)

Release edit

The series was announced to consist of 7 episodes as part of the first season on 6 October 2016 and started airing on Voot on 21 October 2016. It was written by Charudutt Acharya.[4] The second season was announced by Voot on 30 August 2018 along with 16 other new original series.[5]

Reception edit

Season 2 reviews edit

The series received mixed responses from critics. It was praised for its performances by Swara Bhaskar and Sumeet Vyas while it was criticised by some for its story.

Sreehari Nair of Rediff.com gave 2 stars, criticizing its plot while praising the performance of the cast "What holds the show together is the cast; performers who frequently rise above their stodgy lines to bring something personal to the table." She added "It's Not That Simple is, at its core, a speeded-up, foul-mouthed version of shows like Shanti and Swabhimaan -- those Doordarshan soaps where business magnates had secrets that only their slavish butlers knew about."[6]

Soumya Rao of Scroll.in mentioned "Strong performances come to the rescue when the dialogue and plot fall flat. The surface-scratching observations about gender bias and stereotypes are complemented by a couple of genuinely strong moments."[7]

A reviewer for Firstpost said "Performance wise, It's Not That Simple season 2 earns brownie points. Vivan oscillates perfectly between the obsessive friend and repulsed, homophobic lover. Sumeet is unsurprisingly on point. His predatory nature is well-fleshed out, all the while keeping it understated. Swara Bhasker does justice to a role tailor-made for her"[8]

The Indian Express gave 3 stars, saying "the focus here is on Swara who looks svelte and gives her character a heft and heave that never seem manufactured. Some of the dialogues do sound like bumper sticker wisdom and WhatsApp forwards."[9]

References edit

  1. ^ "Swara Bhasker Is Excited About It's Not That Simple Season 2!". Koimoi. 2018-12-06. Retrieved 2022-09-20.
  2. ^ "Unhappy marriage or perfect affair? It's not that simple - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 2022-09-20.
  3. ^ "Swara Bhaskar's web series 'It's Not That Simple' to have a second season". DNA India. Retrieved 2022-09-20.
  4. ^ "VOOT launches all-new web series, 'IT'S NOT THAT SIMPLE'". www.adgully.com. Retrieved 2022-09-20.
  5. ^ "Voot Announces 17 New Originals, International Expansion". Gadgets 360. Retrieved 2022-09-20.
  6. ^ Nair, Sreehari. "It's Not That Simple: Foul-mouthed Soap Opera". Rediff. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
  7. ^ Rao, Soumya. "More men and more problems in season two of web series 'It's Not That Simple'". Scroll.in. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
  8. ^ "It's Not That Simple season 2 review: Swara Bhasker does justice to a role tailor-made for her". Firstpost. 2019-01-11. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
  9. ^ "'It's Not That Simple' season 2 review: This Swara Bhasker-starrer not that complicated". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2022-09-26.

External links edit