"Modern Love Hyderabad" is the latest Telugu web series streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
The series is based on the weekly column of the same name published by The New York Times and first premiered on Amazon Prime Video in 2019 and the second season came out last year.
The streaming company placed launched an Indian version with "Modern Love Mumbai" and "Modern Love Hyderabad".
The Hyderabad's version, filmed in the Telugu language, is also based on The New York Times stories but is written by Nagesh Kukunoor, Shashi Sudigala, and Bahaish Kapoor with Hyderabad being the milieu.
The six episodes with English titles explore in various forms.
The first episode deals with a mother and daughter in a Muslim colony in the old city of Hyderabad. The mother (Revathi) visits her daughter (Nithya Menen) who got married to her lover against their wishes. The mother stuck in her daughter's because of the Covid-19 lockdown in 2020 becomes the 'Unlikely Pandemic Dream Partner' in this story. Directed by Nagesh Kukunoor, the story has fine performances from Revathi and Nithya Menen. This one is the best among the six stories.
"Fuzzy, purple and full of thorns..." featuring Ritu Varma and Aadi Pinishetty explores dating rules and love but the result is underwhelming.
"Why did she leave me there…?" is a melodrama starring Suhasini Mani Ratnam and Naresh Agastya. "What clown wrote this script" is all about comedy and comedians but hardly evokes laughs. 'Bigg Boss' winner Abhijeet and Malavika Nair star in this episode. The father-daughter story "About that rustle in the bushes" has some sparks here and there. Naresh shines as a father.
Venkatesh Maha of "C/o Kancharapalem" fame has directed "Finding Your Penguin" which is about a girl trying to find a steady date. It has a quirky angle to its narrative.
In nutshell, "Modern Love Hyderabad" is no match to the original American version. The first story was the better, the rest range from average to mediocre. A better selection of the stories that truly reflect Hyderabad's culture and life would have made a lot of difference.
