Tintin in Goa, Hirani Style!

Pritam & Pedro (JioHotstar): Tintin in Goa, Hirani Style!

That makes it an Arshad Warsi hat-trick for me. After Welcome to the Jungle and Dhamaal 4, I thoroughly enjoyed Pritam & Pedro. Three completely different outings, one common denominator… Arshad proving yet again that effortless comic timing is a rare superpower, the kind that lands like a perfectly timed cricket shot in the final over.

Rajkumar Hirani makes his OTT debut as creator-producer, while Avinash Arun (Paatal Lok) directs the series. Officially, it isn’t a Raju Hirani directorial, but every frame carries the unmistakable “Hiraju” stamp. It feels as though his writing DNA has been sprinkled generously over the screenplay, like a master chef dusting just the right amount of spice over a familiar dish. You can almost hear his trademark whisper, “हँसाते हँसाते सीरियस बना देना…” and the series happily obliges.

In fact, it reminded me of reading a Tintin comic… except this adventure unfolds in Goa instead of Europe. Light, breezy, adventurous, funny, and suitable for the entire family, it moves like a cheerful scooter ride along a coastal road—easy, breezy, and never in a hurry to prove a point.

The story pairs Pedro Gonsalves (Arshad Warsi), an old-school cop whose relationship with technology is best described as “It’s complicated,” with Pritam Parker (Vir Hirani), a young coding prodigy who treats firewalls like speed breakers. Together they navigate phishing scams, OTP frauds, kidnappings, and cybercrime that’s refreshingly grounded instead of the usual Bollywood version where frantic keyboard tapping somehow hacks satellites and launches a moon mission.

The cybercrime cases feel relatable because we’ve all received those suspicious links promising instant riches or fake KYC updates. Sometimes the biggest villain isn’t a mastermind… it’s the innocent-looking SMS asking for your OTP, dressed like a harmless guest but carrying the keys to your digital house.

Another huge plus is the runtime. At around 30 minutes an episode, each episode is shorter than many Crime Patrol investigations, making it an effortless weekend binge with virtually no filler. It doesn’t sprawl like an overfed buffet; it stays compact, crisp, and easy to digest.

The humour stays clean, situational, and charming. No forced slapstick, no desperate punchlines. Just good writing and even better performances, like a well-oiled machine that knows exactly when to purr and when to roar.

And speaking of performances…

Arshad Warsi is simply brilliant. Pedro is lovable, funny, vulnerable, and wonderfully human. He plays the role like a seasoned magician pulling rabbits out of a hat without ever making the trick look like a trick.

Vir Hirani makes a confident debut. Nice to see another Hirani comfortably in front of the camera, and he shares good chemistry with Warsi. The pairing almost feels like Circuit and Short Circuit solving cybercrimes together—one bringing the swagger, the other bringing the spark.

Vikrant Massey is an absolute scene-stealer. Every time he appears, the temperature drops a few degrees. Calm, menacing, and effortlessly convincing. Simply wow. He enters like a quiet storm and leaves behind the kind of chill that lingers long after the scene is over.

It was also delightful seeing the familiar Hirani universe assemble once again. Boman Irani, Mona Singh and Sanjay Dutt make memorable appearances, proving that some reunions don’t require a family WhatsApp group. They arrive like old friends at a wedding—brief, warm, and impossible to ignore.

The series isn’t flawless. The villain occasionally stays several software updates ahead of everyone else, and a few breakthroughs arrive a little too conveniently.

But those are small speed breakers on an otherwise enjoyable ride. The show still cruises smoothly, with enough charm in the engine to forgive a few potholes on the road.

If you’ve grown up devouring Tintin comics, think of this as “Tintin in Goa.” Add Rajkumar Hirani’s trademark ability to make you laugh before quietly tugging at your heartstrings, and you have a charming, wholesome family entertainer that feels like a warm cup of chai on a rainy evening.

Watch it if you miss clean entertainers that don’t mistake noise for storytelling. Sometimes all you need is Goa, good humour, relatable cybercrime… and Arshad Warsi reminding us why he remains one of Hindi cinema’s most naturally gifted performers.