Overtime: Aliens Are in India, and It’s a Story You Shouldn’t Miss

This is a review of the first three episodes of Just Human Things’ new web-series Overtime.

I’ve always wondered (okay, only like... twice) why when it comes to the movies, the world only starts to end in America. The apocalyptic horrors of the world seem to be reserved for the western world, and maybe, for the most part, I said, heck, they probably have the most damage-inflicting weapons, so let ‘em handle it. But sometimes, something new comes on, and one person manages to take on the challenge. Can cinema merge the third-world with American horrors? Just Human Thing’s Overtime does exactly that. They brought the aliens to India and managed to NOT make it a cringe-fest.

Directed by Ashwin Lakshmi Narayan, the story is about Ramya Saxena and Manoj Bhardwaj who are stuck in office as aliens attack the world outside. The story - like every other alien story that isn’t Koi Mil Gaya - is about survival. This story - like every other piece of content around aliens that isn’t Koi Mil Gaya - has a lot of references to Koi Mil Gaya. What’s different, is the approach. It doesn’t make the experience thrilling, instead, the story is a comedy and a strangely wholesome one at that.

What Works

For starters, it is easy to tell the budget wasn’t too big on this one - and perhaps, that’s what makes it all the more interesting for me. The setting - the insides of a boring, insipid workspace makes you instantly connect with the emotions the place brings. We know, quite quickly, that nobody wants to willingly be there, aliens or not. The frustration, hence, becomes easily recognisable. You also quickly realise the lack of a face for the unknown, but the managed pace of the story easily lets you marry your inquisitiveness with patience, settling for a draw. The story then becomes about the people themselves, hardly about the “aliens” that lurk. These aliens might as well be a neighbourhood lynch-army, the terror is easily understood.

The direction is commendable. It covers for the loose end, fills every crack in available resources. The director very cleverly uses his actors, who themselves prove to be excellent at their craft. At no point do you find yourself questioning their comic reactions to what otherwise would be considered a grave situation. Would I generally consume content where a man cries about missing paneer when aliens are thirsting for his blood? No. Did I laugh my head off at his trivial desires? No. Did I mind it? Also, no. Overtime then is a completely mindless show that lacks a head or tail, but what makes it interesting is that it doesn’t even try to be anything else.

What Doesn’t

I hate to say this, but although they tackled it well, the low budget sometimes shows. A particular scene with a lot of blood literally pouring out of a man’s head had me pause and look at it for a straight two minutes because it looked that fake. It doesn’t thankfully become a deal-breaker. Another factor that unnecessarily pinched me was Ramya Saxena’s personality. While the show is very (evidently) detached from reality, her reactions (which are not comic) often seem extreme, unrealistic and had me feeling peevish. She’s aggressive at random times, and rude and uncouth without much explanation. What’s the background? The fact that her boss ill-treated her for being a woman?

The messaging seems forced and out of place and makes the female character almost unlikeable...for no reason. In effect, doing perhaps the exact opposite of what it wanted to do. (Here’s hoping more is made clear as the show progresses..)

Finally, the story line is mostly just about the settings, and plays on our very Indian desires to feel represented in the ..alien (?)...world. And while it is honestly interesting just to see that, the story-line and twists and turns are something we’ve seen ten billion times. I suppose what I’m saying is...man, I wish there was a little more “new” to this than just the nationality of the protagonists. But is it something I would recommend against? No. This is exactly the kind of content you need for a day in with your friends, perhaps with an intoxicant or two.

It will make you raise your eyebrows at the sheer absurdity of it, and somehow that is just what I needed. This isn’t the show you need to watch. It’s one you won’t regret watching.