Gram Chikitsalay review: TVF's tried and tested Panchayat formula prescribed in a new bottle, saved by Amol Parashar

Gram Chikitsalay review

Cast: Amol Parashar, Vinay Pathak, Akansha Ranjan, Anandeshwar Dwivedi, Akash Makhija, Santoo Kumar

Director: Rahul Pandey

Star rating: ★★★

TVF's new show Gram Chikitsalay will most definitely give a sense of déjà vu for viewers who love Panchayat. These stories of India's heartland, told with a mix of humour and satire, never hurt. I want to see more of them, told with nuance and heart. However, the problems arise when the same template becomes a bit too visible to the eye of the viewer, which is just the case with the new show Gram Chikitsalay. You know how this going to go even in the first episode. That sense of predictability is the main symptom of this new show created by Deepak Kumar Mishra and Arunabh Kumar. Turns out, it is both a blessing and a curse. (Also read: Like MCU, why not a village cinematic universe?: 'Panchayat' director)

The premise

Gram Chikitsalay begins on an ardent note, as the first episode places the viewer in the village of Bhatkandi. People have their own rules here, that our city-bred protagonist Dr. Prabhat (Amol Parashar) will have to learn rather quickly. Dr. Prabhat is here on a mission, driven by the hot-blooded conviction of doing something noble for the people of Bhatkandi by making sure the local healthcare unit runs smoothly. His high hopes mounted on a high pedestal soon crashes when he sees the condition of the unit- where the blood pressure cuff has become a teething toy for rats, the equipment for operation left to rust, and the government-prescribed medicines missing entirely from the registry.

Compounder Phutani (Anandeshwar Dwivedi) and ward boy Govind (Akash Makhija) are Dr. Prabhat's local wing men. They inform Dr Prabhat of his main adversary- Vinay Pathak's Chetak Kumar, the ‘jholachap’ doctor who confidently runs his medical unit without having any clue of healthcare or medicines. Prabhat will realize that he needs to gain the trust of the villagers first. Only then will they trust a new doctor.

Then there is Dr Gargi (Akansha Ranjan Kapoor), the other resident local doctor who serves as an occasional reminder for Dr Prabhat that there will no end to his problems if all he wants to do is complain about how bad things are here. His dimaag ki batti moment needs that push. Thankfully, the makers don't add an unnecessary romantic angle here and keep the bond strictly professional. The solo voice of reason and duty comes with nurse Indu (Garima Vikrant Singh), but things get complicated when her son Sudhir (a terrific supporting turn from Santoo Kumar) enters the mix.

What works

Gram Chikitsalay is boosted with a winsome sense of tone. The screenplay and dialogues by Vaibhav and Shreya find a specificity for how conversations unfold in a place like Bhatkandi, where solutions are never found in a day. The plot mechanics might feel stretched, but it aptly mirrors the everyday realities of this rural socio-economic fabric, where Dr Prabhat will truly need to shed his inhibitions and prejudices, and try to place himself in the context of these underprivileged people. Girish Kant's lens finds the right distance in placing Prabhat amid these distant surroundings, while Chandrashekhar Prajapati's editing never betrays the unhurried tone of the show.

Amol Parashar is unsurprisingly sincere and wonderful as the man trying to accommodate his sense of ambition with his status as an outsider. He injects life into a role that is slightly underwritten, which becomes an issue for the show's overall impact. Vinay Pathak is given too less to make a mark, while Akanksha Ranjan Kapoor's supporting turn solely exists to show Prabhat how unprepared he is to face the reality of his situation. 

The missteps arise in the meandering subplots, one involving rival local politicians, and another in the search of a missing box of vaccines. The show seems to have been envisioned in a compartmentalised fashion, where one episode deals with one issue and then moves on to the next episode with another thread. Gram Chikitsalay suffers from a case of narrative inertia, where the show thinks through every detail but rarely acts upon it with a stricter gaze. Why hurry, then? Good intentions alone cannot suffice for a show like this. This is a diagnosis the makers need to take into account if Gram Chikitsalay aims to make a second run at prescribing good, wholesome television for viewers.