The Chutney Sambar Web Series is a 2024 Tamil-language family drama that is currently streaming on Disney Plus Hotstar. Its a latest addition to the impressive line up of web series available on Disney Plus Hotstar. With each passing year, I can definitely conclude that Disney Plus Hotstar is the most valuable OTT platform to date, since they always bring the best from the Indian entertainment industry.
I am sure most of the viewer’s love to watch the original masala content from Indian cinema. Therefore, directors throughout the country focusses on making content that is both profitable and mass audience-centric. They frequently create two-and-a-half-hour movies with similar content, as demonstrated by the Chutney Sambar Web Series. However, creating an OTT out of it is the most challenging task. Chutney Sambar has successfully achieved that feat.
It’s a skilfully crafted piece of story about true love, compassion, sacrifices, and some hidden secrets in one’s life that, when unveiled, can either consolidate or break a family. Let’s examine whether the myth holds true or not.
Some essential details of Chutney Sambar Web Series are listed below:
| Details | Description |
| Genre | Comedy Family Drama |
| Written by | Radha Mohan |
| Directed by | Radha Mohan |
| Starring | Yogi Babu as Sachin aka Sachu, Elango Kumaravel as Peter, Chandran as Karthik, Vani Bhojan as Sophie, Nithin Sathya as Ilango, Myna Nandhini as Amudha, Nizhalgal Ravi as Rathanaswamy, Samyuktha Vishwanathan as Jensi, Meera Krishnan as Jayalakshmi |
| Music by | Ajesh |
| Country of origin | India |
| Original language | Tamil |
| Dubbed Language | Hindi, Telegu, Malayalam, Kannada, Marathi, Bengali |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 6 |
| Producer | Ishari K Ganesh |
| Production Company | Vels Film International |
| Cinematography | Prasanna Kumar |
| Editor | Jijendran |
| Running time | 40 to 45 minutes per episode |
| IMDb Rating | 8.1/10 |
| OTT Platform | Disney Plus Hotstar |
| OTT release date | 26 July 2024 |
Chutney Sambar Web Series Summary
The story starts with a scene from the Amudha cafe, where a news reporter from a local news channel is interviewing customers about the food quality and what makes Amudha different from the rest of the eateries. Customers cheerfully reiterated that their Sambar’s taste is what makes their food special. Nobody around Ooty makes such delicious sambar. Some said it’s not only the food but the whole cafe ambience that makes this place a most sought-after restaurant in the vicinity.
The reporter also conducted interviews with some out-of-town customers who expressed a fondness for returning to this establishment. They asked the chef’s and general staff, most of whom had been working with Amudha Cafe for a long time, about their opinions, and they categorically stated that the owner, Mr. Rathnaswany, is a wonderful employer, treats them like his own family, and takes good care of them. Therefore, they have deep respect for his values and decisions.
That’s too many favourable words for a food joint. Huh, indeed! But that’s the amount of trust and respect that Mr. Rathnaswamy has been able to garner all these years from people around him and the local community.
Next, the reporter asked Rathnaswany why they don’t have branches across the state or elsewhere. He responded positively, stating that opening branches elsewhere would dilute the authentic taste they offer here at Amudha. Therefore, although they have the capacity to expand, they prefer not to do so for the sake of taste and to uphold the reputation of Amudha Cafe.
If somebody wants to have food from Amudha, then they have to visit the Amudha cafe at Ooty. Rathnaswany also said that he has no plans to expand his restaurant chain, but his son Karthik and his son-in-law, Ilango, are working to enter the manufacturing of masala-based and ready-made mix products for retailing them across the state.
Mr. Rathnaswany is a proud family man and lives with his wife Jayalakshmi, an unmarried son, Karthik, a married daughter, Amudha, a son-in-law, Ilango, and an adorable 5-year-old grandson, Appu. During the interview, Mr. Rathnaswany suddenly became ill while at the dining table. He was immediately rushed to the hospital, where the doctor informed his family members that he was in the final stages of cancer. It would be futile to give him any further treatment.
The doctor urged the family members to keep him cheerful during his last days so that when he bids adieu, he will feel content with his life. Soon, Rathnaswany became bedridden. During this period, he remembered that for the majority of his life, he has done beneficial things for the family, the people, and the community as a whole, but there is this one secret that he seeks to reveal to his son so that he can die peacefully.
Rathnaswany thinks that Karthik is the only member of the family who would understand his concerns and make his last wish come true. Therefore, he calls Karthik and confides in him that during his prime years, when he went to Chennai looking for a job, he came in contact with a woman named Amudha. They were deeply in love with each other. However, fate had other plans for them, leading him to return to Ooty, only to never return again. Here in Ooty, he married Jayalakshmi, and the rest is history.
However, Rathnaswany did send a letter to Amudha through his common friend, asking for her forgiveness. Given the prevailing circumstances, he suggested that Amudha consider marrying someone else and settling down in life. Little did he know that his true love never got married. He got this information only recently, when he had gone to fix a marriage for his only son with the girl he was in love with and wished to marry.
Unfortunately, the girl’s father (Mohan Ram) is his long-lost friend from Ooty, who was with him in Chennai during his struggle days and knew Amudha closely. During this unexpected meeting, his friend became irritated with Rathnaswany, urging him to leave his house and refrain from ever asking his daughter’s hand in marriage for his son. He reiterated, “How can he send Jensi to a house where his prospective father-in-law himself has a history of betrayal?”
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Meanwhile, from his deathbed, Rathnaswany asks Karthik not to judge him based on what he is about to say. He intends to speak only the truth, and that will also be his last wish. Rathnaswany reveals that he recently discovered that he has a son from his previous affair with Amudha, and he wishes to meet him before his final breath. Karthik, in a state of astonishment, promises his father that he will go and find his elder brother, no matter what it takes.
Karthik discloses this secret to his brother-in-law, Ilango, and Peter (a family-like employee of Amudha Cafe). He asks them for their help in locating Sachin, aka Sachu, his elder brother, in Chennai. After a brief argument, they agreed and accompanied Karthik to Chennai. Once they arrived in Chennai, they immediately began to search for Sachin and Amudha at their last known address.
From there, they got to know that Amudha had expired and that his son had moved to a different locality. When they arrived at the location and began searching for Sachin, someone informed them that Sachin owned an Idli Dosa stall on the next street. What they’ll see next is beyond their imagination. Customers crowded the stall, eagerly awaiting their turn to taste Sachin’s prepared food.
His specialty was the taste of his homemade chutney, which contained a secret recipe. Karthik observes that Sachin possesses all the mannerisms and etiquettes of his father, which makes him emotional and strengthens his conviction to meet him. He instantly knew that it was him, so he ordered a plate of idli while waiting for him to finish his day of selling. Finally, at the end of the day, Sachin closed his shop and went home.
Just as Sachin was about to unwind and enjoy a glass of inexpensive wine, someone knocked on his door. Karthik, Ilango, and Peter are waiting outside his house. They reveal Sachin’s true identity, and that he is indeed Karthik’s elder brother. Sachin grew furious upon hearing his father’s name, and in a fit of rage, he threw them out of the house. He informs them that he has no relations with his father, and it was his mother who raised him. In fact, he knows nobody and doesn’t wish to keep any contacts with anyone by the name of Rathnaswany.
But Karthik was adamant, and therefore he knocked again at Sachin’s door the next morning. After a lot of persuasion, Sachin finally agrees to have a last word with them in the evening after his stall closes. As promised, Sachin brought some food for the trio in the evening, while Peter had arranged an expensive bottle of wine for Sachin. Sachin’s eyes lit up as he looked at the excellent old wine, adding momentum to their conversation.
Discreetly, Peter spiked his drink, which made Sachin go dizzy, and the next moment he finds himself in the mountains of Ooty. When he regains consciousness, he threatens them that they will face severe consequences for kidnapping him. He tries to convince them that whatever they are doing is not legit. They should let him go. But who was hearing him?
Finally, just before he passes away, Rathnaswany encounters Sachin and, with tears in his eyes, asks Karthik to look after his elder brother. Sachin found the entire situation uncomfortable, as he struggled to express his anger towards the injustices and hardships he and his mother had endured due to his alleged father. He had loathed Rathnaswamy all his life, and now suddenly, he couldn’t feel anything.
However, Karthik loved his father more than anything else, and his sudden departure left him completely shattered. In spite of such grief, he knew that the eldest son in the family was required to perform his father’s last rites. Therefore, Sachin was asked to remain with them until the Terahvi ceremony concluded. Despite Sachin’s dissatisfaction, he was unable to leave because Peter had confiscated his money and wallet.
Observing Sachin accompanying Karthik at every single father’s last rites ceremony made the family members suspicious. From here, the story takes various twists and turns and shows how Sachin unknowingly gets into their lives, solving family issues, helping Sophie in distress, and becoming a fatherly figure for the little appu, thereby slowly and steadily gaining acceptability from each and every family member.
Lastly, he makes it possible for Karthik and Jensi to get married, which instills confidence in Jayalakshmi to accept Sachin as Rathnaswany’s son. She gives due credit to his mother, Amudha, for passing such ethics on to his son.
Chutney Sambar Web Series Review
Nowadays, each one of us is familiar with Tamil cinema, with movies like Bahubali, Pushpa, and KGF, to name a few. But this is the first time that I have experienced a Tamil web series. It’s exceptionally well-made. The direction is commendable, as it fully utilises each character in the web series, providing ample screen space for each actor to showcase their talent. Even though the plot is quite familiar, the way it has been presented to grab the audience’s interest is phenomenal.
The web series consists of six episodes, each lasting roughly 40 minutes and being medium-paced. Every single shot is a cinematic journey in the valleys and mountains of Ooty. Yogi Babu’s comic timing is well known to everyone, but the other characters complemented and contributed to the humorous aspect of the web series.
The background score in Tamil cinema is always good, and here you will also feel that quintessential touch. The Chutney Sambar Web Series is a perfect mix of selfless love, a strong family bond with the right emotion, and a pinch of humour to add to the effect of the web series.
Chutney Sambar Web Series Verdict
The content is wholesome and enjoyable to watch. The Chutney Sambar Web Series is very much like a family movie extended and made into a web series. The comic timing is good, the emotions are spot on, and a perfect climax sums up the web series. While watching this comedy family drama, you will never feel tired or bored. The story itself is convincing enough to get you to watch the whole series in one go.
If you are a fan of Yogi Babu, then you definitely should watch this gem from Tamil cinema. People in any age group can watch the Chutney Sambar web series. So, turn on your small screen and immerse yourself in this captivating story. Lastly, please share your feedback in the comment section below.
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