- By Sukanya Saha
- Sat, 26 Nov 2022 06:41 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
Story: Girls Hostel Season 3, starring Parul Gulati and Ahsaas Channa in the lead roles, attempts to go deeper into the everyday struggles and issues faced by students of a medical institute living in a hostel.
Created by Shreyashi Sharma and helmed by Harish D Kalia, the complete cast of the show includes Srishti Shrivastava, Simran Natekar, Trupti Khamkar, Jayati Bhatia, Kareema Barry, Tanvi Lehr Sonigra, Akash Thapa. Furthermore, the show is produced by Arunabh Kumar and written by Anuya Jakatdar, Alka Shukla, and Shreyasi Sharma.
The five-part series begins with Zahira (Parul Gulati), who became the the president of the student council after defeating Ramya (Shreya Mehta) in the elections, fighting for basic amenities in the hostel like inclusive policy, mental health campaigns, transparency of funds, water conservation and lower hostel fees.
Richa (Ahsaas Channa) and Mili (Simran Natekar) work together with Zahira to strengthen their position in the student council. In order to deal with the lack of resources such as water and electricity in the dental college hostel, they announce a 'Talent Show.' However, they also have to deal with the obstacles put in place by none other than Sarla Desai (Jayati Bhatia), the college dean.
But what’s most disappointing to watch is how the show’s focus shifts from highlighting the struggles of students living in a small cramped place with water shortage, regular power outages to the talent show and the girl’s inner conflicts.
Also, there is little to no academic pressure on the students in the hostel rooms, with the exception of a few books scattered around. This is hardly possible in the area of medicine! Their exams and attendance seem to be the last thing on their mind.
Jo (Srishti Srivastava), a rebel from last season wants to walk off because she would rather join a party in Pune than finish her education and the dean gives her an ultimatum to choose between her degree and her political aspirations.
Even though Sarla Desai has been portrayed as an awful, devious and manipulative person throughout the series, she was right to ask the students to focus on their slipping GPAs.
The focus of the latest instalment is the gender fluidity of Vipassana (Tanvi Lehr Sonigra). However, organising a talent show just so that students can express themselves and fund a power backup for the hostel was totally unnecessary and a strange plot twist that allows the series to be mocked.
Final thoughts: Even though the actors have given powerful performances, they have been let down by the indifferent script. While some dialogues are witty and hard-hitting, Richa’s arguments of life and death on the show, when the duties of council president are forced on her, are pathetic. Unlike the last two instalments, there is no mention of any family members by the characters this season. Streaming on Sony Liv, this show is strictly a one-time watch.