Mai Hero Boll Raha Hu Review: A Perfect Combination of Glitz, #GunsAndGlamour With Parth Samthaan Shining Through

Parth Samthaan’s OTT debut, Mai Hero Boll Raha Hu is finally out and we can’t keep calm! This ZEE5 original is everything you had hoped for and more. Set in the ’90s Bombay, Mai Hero Boll Raha Hu follows the story of Nawab, who comes to Mumbai, all the way from Bareilly with only one desire in his heart, ‘To rule over Bombay’. What happens as he enters the underworld and gets involved in the film industry is what follows the rest of the story.

Check out the trailer for Mai Hero Boll Raha Hu right here:

The show starts with a smashing entry by our hero, Nawab(Parth Samthaan) who’s being chased by the police, who takes refuge in a police station. Nawab along with his men also take a few policemen hostage in there. Right from the first scene itself, Nawab’s intelligence is clearly evident.

The show plays out in two different timelines, with one being in the present i.e. 1995, and the other moving from 1990 towards the present. Nawab starts narrating his story of how he came to Bombay with his father Harilal(Gurbaxani) from Bareilly and how he ended up getting involved in this Dhanda. Here, Nawab is shown as a street-smart man with a loving father.

Also Read: Main Hero Boll Raha Hu: Parth Samthaan’s Look As Nawab Reminds Us Of Shah Rukh Khan From Raees And The Professor From Money Heist

Meanwhile, in 1995, we’re introduced to Inspector Sachin Kadam (Ankit Gupta) who is a no-nonsense cop, on a mission to eradicate crime from Bombay. He’s the chief of the crime branch who gets a kick from killing criminals in encounters. Now, he’s gearing up to attack the police station Nawab is in, in his attempt to kill him. Whereas Nawab is on a hunt to find the traitor within his gang.

While Nawab and the gang hold the fort in the police station, we’re taken through Nawab’s journey of becoming Nawab Bhai. Right from his initial days, Nawab is shown to be a sweet taker who easily manages to get Inspector Rajan (Ganesh Yadav), a police officer who arrested him, on his side. He even makes Rajan help him to exact revenge on a don. In fact, Rajan turns out to be one of those allies who stand by Nawab throughout his reign.

With his daring attitude and fiery personality, Nawab also earns himself another great friend in the form of Mumtaz (Meenal Sahu). She’s often seen giving him great advice and never shies away from hitting him with the truth. With these two by his side, Nawab then begins his journey into the world of #GunsAndGlamour.

Nawab starts by befriending the right people such as Hussain Bhai (Krishna Kotian) and getting himself trained under them. He waits for the right opportunity and always strikes when the time is right. And that’s how Nawab manages to quickly make his way through the gang, becoming everyone’s favourite.

Meanwhile, he meets with Manasvi (Arshin Mehta) and feels an instant connection with her. Manasvi impresses Nawab with her sharp brain which helps him gain everyone’s respect in the gang. In a quick turn of events, Nawab ends up getting married to Manasvi, while Inspector Kadam keeps a close eye on him.

Nawab solves every problem with his quick thinking and ends up impressing Lala (Arsalan Goni), who in turn introduces him to the world of Bollywood. Nawab, who started his journey in Mumbai by dealing in pirated cassettes and cable TV had now entered the OG market of films. He immediately gets awestruck by the glamour of the industry and decides that now he wants to rule Bollywood as well.

Just as Nawab was beginning to flourish in Mumbai, enter the two big Dons of Bombay, Mastan Bhai (Chandan Roy Sanyal) and Dadabhai (Danish Hussain). It is then revealed that Mastan and Lala became the dons they are today, by betraying Dadabhai. Nawab who sees this as an opportunity, dejected by the treatment he received in his current gang, decides to play double games with them.

With his sharp brain and witty ideas, Nawab quickly gains control over Mumbai. Moreover, he also gains Mastan’s trust. That’s when he meets the love of his life, Laila (Patralekhkaa) and falls head over heels for her. They meet multiple times before having a proper conversation with each other but eventually end up falling for each other.

Also Read: Did You Know Main Hero Boll Raha Hu Actor Arsalan Goni Is Jeet Ki Zid Actor Aly Goni’s Brother?

Just as Nawab rose to new heights, he also ends up making a lot of enemies on the way, including his once boss, Lala. Jealous of everything Nawab has, Lala vows to ruin him. He even goes to the extent of harming everyone that matter to Nawab.

With Lala hellbent on destroying him, will Nawab give up everything he has worked so hard for? Or will he fight back and rise as a hero? Well, that’s for you to watch and find out! All we can tell you now is that the 1995 Nawab will surely find out who the traitor is, and then god save him from Nawab’s wrath.

Parth Samthaan has truly broken out of his ‘good boy’ image with Nawab’s character. He has portrayed every emotion, right from rage to pain and even the effortless flirting in between with sheer brilliance. Right from the way he dresses to his dialogue delivery and expressions, everything oozed of the confidence we expected from our anti-hero Nawab.

Another gem from this series is Arsalan Goni. When you genuinely hate an antagonist, that’s the success of an actor and Arsalan Goni has definitely delivered on that front.

All the three leading ladies, Meenal Sahu (Mumtaz), Arshin Mehta (Manasvi) and Patralekhaa (Laila) have given exceptional performances in their respective roles. Mumtaaz’s in-your-face attitude, Manasvi’s loving yet annoying character and Laila’s bold and beautiful avatar, all were brilliantly portrayed by these actresses.

The show is a total package with incredible performances by Ankit Gupta, Indraneel Bhattacharya(Bakshi), Chandan Roy Sanyal, Danish Hussain, Krishna Kotian, Tarul Swami(Pradeep) and more. But two characters that deserve a special mention are Nawab’s most trustworthy men, Jaggan(Errol Marks) and Yakub(Anubhav Nanda). Both the actors have definitely done justice to their characters.

Apart from the brilliant performances, another factor that adds to the experience of watching this show is the aesthetics. The makers have perfectly captured the essence of the 90’s Bombay. Right from vintage cars, to floral costumes, everything reminds you of that golden era. The background music of Mai Hero Boll Raha Hu is also remarkable and amps up every scene that the instrumental is played in.

Direction by Siddhartha Luther is another crucial factor of this show. He has a done fine job in putting across these characters that will instantly grab your attention. Editing is equally crisp, especially since the storyline moves back and forth in time and hence it is not linear.

All in all, it’s definitely worth a watch for anyone who loves this genre. And for the people who are not a fan of the gangster genre, give this a try and you’ll surely fall in love with it.

Watch Mai Hero Boll Raha Hu streaming now on ZEE5.