Bas Kar Bassi review: Anubhav Singh Bassi finally graduates

At 83 minutes, Bas Kar Bassi begins strongly. Bassi manages to hold tight and pack a punch for the first 20 minutes when he delves into his time working at the Supreme Court and whatever little that he practised of law. It is when he starts with his experience with a startup that the material begins to sag. By the time he begins with his entrepreneurial journey, his stories become so absurd, you begin to question it all.

The disclaimer at the beginning informs you that the special—shot in Mumbai’s Royal Opera House on August 14 last year and directed by Abhishek Upmanyu—is unscripted. It shows. There is a beginning, somewhat of a middle, and no end. When it does finally come, it’s abrupt and unexpected. Some stories, which should have been edited out, go on and on. Meanwhile, others that he builds painstakingly crash all of a sudden. The special starts with someone asking Bassi his stage time at the cities he recently toured. We find out that all his shows lasted for over two hours. Is that a compliment, something to brag about? Or, at a time when even feature films have become cautious of their duration; is it just overconfident and silly? I don’t know.

Sure, a stand-up comic should be funny. But they should also have something to say. Is that too much of an ask? A special shouldn’t feel like a cousin sharing his buddy stories over drinks at a wedding afterparty. Bas Kar Bassi is just that. It chooses to be juvenile and slapstick when it could have been so much more. I was waiting for Bassi to talk about how he got into stand-up comedy. But he doesn’t. Maybe that’s a special for another day.