Web Series: Four More Shots Please Season 3

Cast: Sayani Gupta, Kirti Kulhari, Maanvi Gagroo, Bani J, Simone Singh, Prateik Babbar, Samir Kochhar, Amrita Puri, Neil Bhoopalam, Prabal Panjabi, Jim Sarbh,  Sushant Singh, Shilpa Shukla, Rohan Mehra

Director: Joyeeta Patpatia 

Rating: 3 Moons

After making 'flaws look perfect' in the previous seasons, Sayani Gupta, Kirti Kulhari, Maanvi Gagroo and Bani J are back to say cheers to friendship with Four More Shots Please! Backed by Pritish Nandy Communications Private Ltd., the third season of the show has premiered today on Amazon Prime Video. With 10 episodes (almost 40 minutes each), director Joyeeta Patpatia takes the story of Damini Rizvi Roy (Sayani), Anjana Menon (Kirti), Umang (Bani) and Siddhi Patel (Maanvi) forward. 

Four More Shots Please Season 3 picks up from the point where the previous season ended. Siddhi has lost her best friend and confidant- her father to a heart attack. She has to nurse her heartache while standing by her mother's side like a rock. Anjana is struggling to strike the right balance between her muddled-up personal and professional spaces. After calling off her wedding with Samara, Umang is restarting her life by working towards her goals. Damini, who was once fearless and bold with her editorial pieces, is now forced to follow the instructions of her senior and make do with unexciting and trivial stuff. 

Over a period of 10 episodes, director Joyeeta and writer Devika Bhagat explore the changes these characters and the people around them have undergone. One of the key highlights of the season is how Simone Singh as Siddhi's mother Sneha has been portrayed. While coping with the irreparable loss of her partner of 27 years, she holds herself strongly. So much so that even during the most vulnerable moment, she knows how to maintain her dignity and poise. The relationship between Siddhi and Sneha undergoes a massive transformation after the life-altering incident. As Four More Shots Please 3 starts picking pace, we are introduced to a professor (Sushant Singh). His track with Simone is dealt sensitively and flavourfully. 

While Four More Shots Please 3 has its moments, one cannot unsee the flaws and how the series has nosedived from the previous edition. People watched the franchise to see women having fun, leading their lives like bosses and making flaws look perfect. However, the third season comes across as a pale version of its predecessors. In a bid to get darker and more symbolic, the fun and colourful element has gone missing. 

As waves of melancholy are felt more often, Four More Shots Please 3 seems to have lost the path it had set onto years ago. The story tries to do the major heavy lifting but gets crumbled under its own weight. The connection they had established with their viewers is somewhere lost. Maybe because it is trying to say more than what can be digested. 

The star of the season has to be Simone Singh. She is simply brilliant and elevates the script with her elegance, grace and fine acting talent. Kirti Kulhari exhibits the emotions of a messed-up woman who tries to strike a balance while juggling many things. She shines as Anjana. Maanvi Gagroo, who stood out as Siddhi in the second season, gets a darker and gloomier edge over the rest. Still one of the poignant and powerful characters of the entire season, Maanvi communicates with the audience through her vibrant presence. She is brilliant in the role that she owns. Bani J, once one of the strongest characters, does a strictly decent job. Overall, the character sketches this time around water down the pleasing quotient of the franchise.

The rest of the cast including Prateik Babbar, Samir Kochhar, Amrita Puri and Neil Bhoopalam perform to the best of their abilities and lend strong support to the women. Neil is magical as always. The new entrants- Jim Sarbh, Sushant Singh, Shilpa Shukla and Rohan Mehra are memorable too. 

Four More Shots Please 3 is a diluted version of the previous seasons, maybe because it tries to fit too many aspects into one show. We wish it has been more fun, crazier, colourful and more adventurous as it was earlier. 

PeepingMoon gives Four More Shots Please 3 3 Moons