Mismatched 3: Is It Worth The Hype?

Mismatched 3 continues the story of Dimple and Rishi as they face new challenges in their relationship and personal lives. Set in a college, the season explores themes of love, identity, and emotional struggles, while introducing new characters and addressing social issues.

After the amazing success of the first two seasons of the Mismatched series, I had a lot of high expectations from its season 3. The series easily dove into my heart for its relatable storyline and characters. It began with starring Prajakta Koli as Dimple and Rohit Saraf as Rishi, directed by Akarsh Khurana and Nipun Dharmadhikari. Even though it was my favorite at first, Mismatched 3 felt merely like a side story as compared to its previous seasons.

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The pace between two episodes also contributed to the sense of confusion. In the first season, we were introduced to the characters and their individual journeys in a way that made sense. But in Season 3, the flow of events was irregular. The pace was too fast; all the emotions—grief, forgiveness, revenge, self-conflict, identity crisis, romantic tension—felt too rushed, making it hard to keep track of them. In reality, even healing takes time, which the show failed to show. It felt as if there was an aim to finish the storyline in this season only, so they did not have enough time to be real and convincing.

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The show was constantly struggling between its representation and storytelling. While earlier seasons managed to give some clarification together, it wasn't quite enough. The narration constantly jumped back and forth without much progression; however, such narrations are commonly used in movies and series, but Mismatched 3 made it a bit hard to keep track of what was going on at the moment until the very last minutes of the following episodes. One episode interpreted an important moment, only for the next one to feel like a complete setback. This lack of continuity felt like disconnection.

One of the most obvious or overly noticeable issues for me were the show's attempt to dive into LGBTQ+ representation. If they aim to normalize such things, then there should not be a need to constantly try to give the spotlight to the representation. It is commendable when a series or movie tries to normalize diverse sexual identities both individually and as a whole, but in this case, the execution felt more like following a checklist rather than genuinely and authentically exploring those characters' journeys. It felt somewhat like the show was trying too hard to make statements. Even their interactions felt like surface-level interactions.

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Yet another disappointing element for me were the dialogues. Before, in Seasons 1 and 2, the witty and lovely conversations were nice and emotional, and they were real, which allowed me to feel a stronger connection with the characters. In Season 3, though, the dialogues were frequently, if anything, completely unconvincing and too plain. Conversations add depth to the situation; for example, when Dimple's father died, even sidelining the conversation, the acting did not feel personal. The grief she might have been experiencing was so much on the surface that either the connection between her and her father felt unnatural, or the connection with the I should've felt was missing. The emotions were not shown properly, and this made the show feel like it was moving too fast. The time span of the tragic event was so short that it was hard to process her emotions, making it unrealistic. It felt nothing but like acting.

However, it wasn't all bad. There were moments of character growth, especially for Dimple and Rishi. Their relationship, though complex, showed real emotional development, which added a sense of depth to the show at least for some time. Additionally, the cinematography of the show did not fail to shine brighter; it was upgraded from the last seasons with many beautiful locations. Even the shots at the college enhanced the aesthetic vibe of the show. The show explored social issues such as mental health, adding a meaningful layer to the narrative.

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Even some characters who needed a bit more attention, like Namrata, Harsh, Anmol, and Krish, gave the show an ongoing spark of nostalgia. And while the new characters weren’t developed as much as they could have been, they did provide moments of humor and lightness, which helped balance the heavier moments of the show.

Ultimately, while Mismatched 3 had its moments, it failed to connect with me except for the main characters, rather than the entire show. It felt more like a rollercoaster of emotions going up and down in the snap of fingers.

Image Credits: Instagram