Half Love Half Arranged Review: The romantic comedy series Maanvi Gagroo as Riya, Karan Wahi as Jogi, Pulkit Makol as Arf, Shruti Jolly as Tanvi along with Supriya Shukla, Grusha Kapoor, and Amit Singh Thakur. Written by Karpoor Gaurav, the Amazon miniTV series is directed by Simarpreet Singh. The show consists of 6 episodes of 25-30 minutes.

Half Love Half Arranged Trailer

Amazon miniTV’s Half Love Half Arranged Review Contains No Spoilers

Set in Delhi, we meet Dr. Riya, a gynaecologist who had an ugly breakup with her boyfriend on her 30th birthday. She spends the entire day being delusional that her boyfriend is going to propose to her. When that doesn’t happen, and things go haywire, Riya challenges her ex that she will get married within six months to someone better than him. Riya’s family starts looking for a suitable boy for their daughter, who is very picky and particular about everything in life. The series focuses on the different kinds of men Riya meets and has several other admirers around.

Half Love Half Arranged Review: Discussion

Love has always been complicated, but in today’s time, the fixation is more on perfection in the “one”. In miniTV’s Half Love Half Arranged, Riya wants someone who checks all her boxes of expectations. Despite knowing what she wants, some guys she meets are weirdos or mama’s boys. Even when she meets a guy who is neither of these, the difference in opinion and expectation play spoilsport. Through these various rishtas, the show highlights how the arranged marriage process is challenging, at least in today’s time.

Half Love Half Arranged isn’t just limited to Riya’s search for a partner in an arranged set-up. There’s a love quadrangle between Riya and the one who might be, the one who is already there, and the one who just entered her life. Riya shares an unexpected kiss with her friend Arf, which causes too much confusion in her mind. In the Gez Z term, Arf can be cited as her “situationship”. She also becomes friends with Jogi, a well-behaved, well-mannered gentleman with a moustache. Jogi doesn’t even come closer to the man of Riya’s dreams.

All the scenes between Riya and Jogi were heartwarming. They both had such sweet chemistry, even as friends. However, another open question that was hanging around was what would happen to Arf and Riya after that kiss. The duo was affected after that night. But after some time, it doesn’t matter. There was never anything offered to us initially to invest in Riya and Arf’s equation. But the makers decided to bring in a twist at the end that kills the sweet joy of everything that happened in the last episode.

The web series Half Love Half Arranged on miniTV aims to tell us that sometimes the one you seek isn’t always like you imagined. There is no perfection, and one doesn’t have to be obsessed with their plans to lead one’s life. I liked how our girl went from being “delulu” to accepting what’s real and in front of her. As a viewer, I found nothing wrong with Riya’s hopes and expectations for a man. However, I wasn’t a fan of her stubbornness and controlling behaviour.

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Half Love Half Arranged‘s last episode was a mixed bag of sentimental and pleasant exchanges. But the last-minute twist and the cliffhanger ruined the fun. It is baffling that nowadays, even when the characters get an apt closure and all they desire, makers bring in a twist to shatter everything they build their main premise on. The same has happened with the Maanvi Gagroo starter.

Maanvi Gagroo is quite natural in her performance as Riya, who is sometimes relatable and sometimes too much to handle. The actor hits the notes right with her character’s Delhiness, feistiness, and loudness. Karan Wahi, as Jogi, charms you easily with his lovable and amusing personality. His calmness helps to balance the show, which is filled with over-the-top people. However, I wish we were shown more about Jogi, instead of wasting time on the plot of Riya’s colleague, who offered nothing meaningful to the story. The rest of the cast also delivers a good performance.

Half Love Half Arranged Review: Final Thoughts

Overall, miniTV’s Half Love Half Arranged is enjoyable as it shows the hassles of finding the one in an arranged marriage set-up that’s not the same anymore, compared to what it was a decade or more ago. Riya is quite a relatable character, seeking a companion in a world that wants the same but has conflicting expectations. Along with the quest for love, the series entertains you with Riya’s family dynamics. In times when our generation is drowning inside the ships of delusion and situations, the series takes us back to the time when someone sought an actual relationship.

The series is now streaming on Amazon miniTV.

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