Sunflower Review: Sunil Grover's quirky murder mystery is an entertaining yet bumpy joyride

Sunflower 

Sunflower Cast: Sunil Grover, Ranvir Shorey, Mukul Chadda, Girish Kulkarni 

Sunflower Director: Vikas Bahl and Rahul Sengupta

Sunflower Rating: 3/5 

With the pandemic wreaking havoc for yet another year and delaying our return to the cinema, we have no option but to consume content on streaming platforms. With every Friday there's new content and this week it is ZEE5's Sunflower. Starring Sunil Grover, Ranvir Shorey, Mukul Chadda, Girish Kulkarni, Ashish Vidyarthi and Shonali Nagrani among others, this murder mystery may just find its way on your weekend binge watch list.

Directed by Rahul Sengupta and Vikas Bahl, Sunflower is set in Mumbai and named after the society where all its characters reside. From the minute you hit play, the quirky murder mystery tells you the what, when, where, how and who is behind the murder of one of its residents. What follows, however, is an entertaining joyride into each of the society's residents that is spread across eight episodes.

The show's plot revolves around the Kapoors and Ahujas while rest of the residents add drama, comedy, suspense and even some filmy Bollywood masala. After the murder of one of its residents, Sunflower Society inevitably comes under the radar of the Mumbai Police and two interesting cops played by Ranvir Shorey and Girish Kulkarni begin to pursue the case.

Sunflower's creators are in no hurry to rush you through the murder investigation. Instead, they take their time to build the narrative and give more than just a sneak peek into each character. Goes without saying, almost every episode has a new character but it never gets difficult to keep track of it all.

One of the most well written characters of the show is undoubtedly Sunil Grover who plays Sonu Singh. An eccentric character who works at a cosmetic firm, Sonu Singh is an OCD freak and samples beauty products only because he can sell them better. He is a naive, weird and fun loving person who speaks to his mum several times a day. You may find it hard to hate him and Sunil Grover stands out in his act.

Another impressive act is by Mukul Chadda who plays Mr Ahuja and one of the prime suspects. A university professor on the surface but dark, deep inside, makes him one of the most twisted characters which only adds to the drama and keeps you guessing.  

With several characters, the show also tracks parallel storylines making it feel dragged. Sunflower will keep you hooked in the first four episodes, but it starts going downhill in the second half only to pick up pace in the last episode. Sunil Grover and rest of the cast provide ample comedy but the screenplay tends to feel stretched during the last few episodes. This could have easily been a six-episode series. From Ranvir Shorey's deadpan face to Girish Kulkarni's goofy cop avatar, Sunflower has a lot to entertain but is also patchy in parts making it a half-baked show.  

Hilarious dialogues, upbeat music and some spectacular performances are the high's of Sunflower and it is definitely a residential society you may want to visit. But be warned it's not all fun and games in this 'perfect society'. Sunflower, even though a murder mystery, makes for a breezy watch. 

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