Call Me Bae

Directed byColin D'CunhaStarringAnanya PandayCountry of originIndiaOriginal languageHindiNo. of episodes8ProductionExecutive producersRunning time30–40 minutesProduction companyDharmatic EntertainmentOriginal releaseNetworkAmazon PrimeRelease6 September 2024 (2024-09-06)

Call Me Bae is an Indian Hindi-language comedy drama television series written by Ishita Moitra, Samina Motlekar and Rohit Nair directed by Colin D'Cunha.^[1] Produced under Dharmatic Entertainment, the series stars Ananya Panday in the title role, alongside an ensemble cast that includes Vir Das, Gurfateh Pirzada, Varun Sood, Vihaan Samat, Muskkaan Jaferi, Niharika Lyra Dutt, Lisa Mishra and Mini Mathur.^[2] It premiered on Amazon Prime on 6 September 2024.^[3]

• Ananya Panday as Bella "Bae" Chowdhary (neé Rajvansh)
• Gurfateh Pirzada as Neel Nair
• Varun Sood as Prince Bhasin
• Vihaan Samat as Agastya Chowdhary
• Vir Das as Satyajit Sen
• Muskkaan Jaferi as Saira Ali
• Niharika Lyra Dutt as Tammarrah Pawwarh
• Lisa Mishra as Harleen Babbar
• Sameer Malhotra as Sanjay Rajwansh, Bae's father
• Mini Mathur as Gayatri Rajwansh, Bae's mother
• Shiv Masand as Samar Rajwansh, Bae's brother
• Beila Gupta as Reva Rajwansh, Bae's grandmother
• Sahil Shroff as Mukul Sawla
• Riya Sen as Mitali Sawla, Mukul's wife
• Suchitra Pillai as Mira Roy, Neel's mother
• Ashmita Jaggi as Ira Bose, Neel's ex-wife
• Riya Sisodiya as Anisha Mehra
• Naman Arora as Shobhit Adhikari
• Karishma Tanna as Naina Khanna in a special appearance
• Urvashi Rautela as Diva Kapoor in a special appearance
• Sayani Gupta as Madhulika Sahay/Anamika in a special appearance
• Harman Singha as Tarun Kapoor in a special appearance
• Faye D'Souza as herself in a special appearance
• Orhan "Orry" Awantramani as himself in a special appearance

The series was announced by Dharmatic Entertainment on Amazon Prime Video.^[4] The principal photography of the series commenced in March 2023, with Ananya Pandey joining the cast.^[5] In August 2023, Vir Das was confirmed to be a part of the cast.^[6] The filming was wrapped-up in October 2023 after 55 days^[7] and post-production was completed in July 2024.^[8]

Shubhra Gupta of The Indian Express rated it 2.5 stars out of 5 and stated that "Ananya Panday's show is self-aware to the right degree by sending itself up just enough, not letting self-righteousness weigh its exaggerations down. It’s only when it starts getting too woke and serious that it bites off more than it can chew."^[9] Saibal Chatterjee of NDTV also gave 2.5 stars out of 5 and said "Ananya Panday etches out a relatable figure who is worth rooting for".^[10] Sukanya Verma of Rediff.com rated 3.5 stars out of 5 and gave a positive response saying "Call Me Bae is a spirited new addition in guilty pleasures for the fashion-loving, rom-com starved soul".^[11] Shilajit Mitra of The Hindu criticised the writing of the series, saying "Aiming for the snacky frivolity of Western sitcoms, this riches-to-rags comedy, led by Panday and Vir Das and created by Ishita Moitra, needed better writing".^[12] Devansh Sharma of Hindustan Times stated in his review that "Ananya Panday owns her privilege in Ishita Moitra, Collin D'Cunha's self-deprecatory show that grows to have a purpose like its protagonist."^[13] Archika Khurana of The Times of India rated 3.5 stars stated in her conclusion that "Call Me Bae is a stylish comedy-drama that stands out by frequently mocking its absurdities, adding an element of self-aware humor. While the show boasts strong performances and high production values, it doesn’t offer much new storytelling."^[14]

• Call Me Bae at IMDb