Gullak Season 5 Review: The Mishras Are Back and More Heartwarming Than Ever

Gullak Season 5 returns to SonyLiv on June 5, 2026, and proves once again that the most powerful stories are the ones closest to home. TVF’s beloved middle-class family drama is back with fresh walls, a new face, and the same soul-stirring warmth that has made it one of India’s most cherished streaming originals. If you’ve ever shared a cup of chai with your family on a quiet afternoon, this season will feel like coming home.

Gullak Season 5 is a gentle, emotionally rich chapter in the Mishra family’s journey — set against a home renovation that mirrors the quiet changes happening within each character. With outstanding performances from Jameel Khan and Geetanjali Kulkarni, a compelling new arc for Sunita Rajwar’s Shalini, and warm writing that finds depth in the everyday, this season reaffirms Gullak’s place as the gold standard of Indian slice-of-life storytelling. Anant V Joshi steps in for Vaibhav Raj Gupta as Annu and earns his place with sincerity and heart. No dramatic climaxes, no manufactured twists — just life, beautifully observed.

Cast & Crew

Role	Name
Santosh Mishra	Jameel Khan
Shanti Mishra	Geetanjali Kulkarni
Aman Mishra	Harsh Mayar
Annu / Anand Mishra	Anant V Joshi
Shalini / Bittu Ki Mummy	Sunita Rajwar
Dr. Priti	Helly Shah
Pinky Mama	Gopal Dutt
Narrator (Gullak)	Shivankit Singh Parihar
Created by	Shreyansh Pandey
Written by	Vidit Tripathi
Directed by	Abhay Raut & Shreyansh Pandey
Streaming Platform	SonyLiv
Release Date	June 5, 2026

Plot Summary

Mishra Niwas is getting a long-overdue whitewash. Paint buckets, rollers, and scrapers signal that change — however reluctant — has arrived at the doorstep of this beloved middle-class household. A Wi-Fi router joins the family setup, nudging even the earthen gullak narrator from his usual corner. Elder son Annu now needs uninterrupted internet for work meetings. Younger son Aman returns from hostel with experiences and a small secret tucked away. Neighbour Shalini discovers a new appetite for public attention that the internet is all too happy to feed. And through all this renovation and restlessness, Santosh and Shanti Mishra navigate life with the same quiet dignity they always have — holding the house together, one cup of chai at a time.

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Performances

Jameel Khan (Santosh Mishra) delivers yet another masterclass in understated acting. His portrayal of a middle-class father — proud, occasionally stubborn, but endlessly loving — feels so lived-in that it ceases to feel like performance at all. Season 5 gives him moments of quiet introspection, and Khan handles each one with effortless grace.

Geetanjali Kulkarni (Shanti Mishra) remains the emotional spine of the series. Her chemistry with Jameel Khan is the kind that only comes from seasons of deep, committed work together. Watching her navigate the chaos of renovation while holding her family together is a genuine joy — she brings warmth, wit, and real depth to every scene.

Harsh Mayar (Aman) returns with his signature bumbling charm fully intact. Aman’s homecoming this season carries quiet emotional weight, and Mayar handles the character’s layered secrets with a light touch that never tips into melodrama. He remains one of the most likeable young actors on Indian streaming.

Anant V Joshi (Annu / Anand Mishra) faces perhaps the toughest challenge of the season — stepping into a role that Vaibhav Raj Gupta made his own over four seasons. Joshi meets that challenge with honesty and patience. He doesn’t try to imitate his predecessor; he finds his own rhythm with the character, and by the season’s midpoint, he has made Annu genuinely his own. His scenes with Helly Shah carry an endearing, awkward sweetness.

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Sunita Rajwar (Shalini / Bittu Ki Mummy) is the season’s most surprising highlight. For four seasons she has been the quintessential nosy neighbour — loud, opinionated, perpetually in everyone’s business. Season 5 peels back those layers to reveal a woman with real ambitions and a hunger for recognition. Rajwar walks a nuanced line, making Shalini frustrating and fascinating in equal measure without ever reducing her to caricature. This is career-best work from one of Indian television’s finest character actors.

Helly Shah (Dr. Priti) brings warmth and quiet charm to her role. Her scenes with Annu are delightfully low-key — built on small gestures, dental camps, and unspoken feelings — and Shah handles them with a natural ease that fits the show’s gentle tone perfectly.

Gopal Dutt (Pinky Mama) is a thoroughly entertaining addition to Mishra Niwas. Arriving with gifts, an agenda, and a T-shirt that reads “Kaleshi Aadmi,” Dutt brings a burst of fresh energy into the household without disrupting the show’s warmth. He is funny, likeable, and slots right into the Gullak universe.

Shivankit Singh Parihar (The Gullak / Narrator) once again provides the show’s philosophical heartbeat. His narration feels less like commentary and more like wisdom overheard at a family gathering — gently landing on truths about nostalgia, regret, ambition, and the dreams parents quietly tuck away for their children.

Technical Analysis

Direction — Abhay Raut and Shreyansh Pandey keep the storytelling calm, observational, and deeply human. They resist the temptation to manufacture emotional peaks, instead trusting the accumulation of small moments to do the heavy lifting. It’s a difficult tonal balance to maintain across five seasons, and they achieve it beautifully.

Writing — Vidit Tripathi’s writing is Gullak’s most consistent strength. Season 5 continues the show’s tradition of finding profound truths in the mundane — a family argument about a router’s placement, a parent’s buried dream, a sibling’s kept secret. The dialogue is rooted, real, and occasionally hits with the quiet force of something you didn’t know you needed to hear.

Narrative Structure — Rather than episodic peaks, Gullak Season 5 builds meaning cumulatively. No single scene demands a social media clip, but together the episodes create a tapestry that feels rich and full. This structural patience is increasingly rare in Indian streaming content.

Music & Sound Design — The background score remains understated and complementary, never competing with the performances or dialogue for attention. The sonic texture of Mishra Niwas — its ambient sounds, its domestic rhythms — remains one of the show’s most effective tools.

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Strengths & Weaknesses

Strengths

• Career-defining work from Sunita Rajwar in a long-overdue character expansion
• Jameel Khan and Geetanjali Kulkarni continue to set the benchmark for ensemble acting on Indian OTT
• Sharp, grounded writing that finds meaning in the smallest domestic moments
• Anant V Joshi earns his place in the Mishra family with a sincere, confident transition
• The renovation backdrop is a clever, resonant metaphor for the season’s emotional themes
• Pinky Mama is a delightful addition who refreshes the ensemble without disrupting its balance

Weaknesses

• Fans of Vaibhav Raj Gupta may need a few episodes to warm up to the recast
• The season intentionally avoids dramatic highs, which may feel slow to viewers seeking plot-driven tension

Final Verdict: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ — 5/5

Five seasons in, Gullak remains one of the most quietly extraordinary shows on Indian streaming. Season 5 doesn’t reinvent the formula — and it doesn’t need to. Like the piggybank it takes its name from, it collects small, precious moments and returns them to you enriched. A repainted house, a shifted router, a new face at the dinner table — and yet, somehow, everything that matters remains exactly where you left it.

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