The first episode of Pushpavalli season 1 begins with Sumukhi Suresh as Pushpavalli getting ready in her room. Other girls living as paying guests in the same house have a scuffle with the landlord in the hall. They haven’t been getting food for five days despite paying for it. Pushpavalli comes and adds fuel to the fire telling everyone that even the water heater isn’t working. 

Pushpavalli seems to be a hideous person. She receives a reminder on her phone which says “Call Nikhil” and we see a flashback of Pushpavalli at a stall in Food Expo at Bhopal serving jam to a trader called Nikhil Rao. After her encounter with him at the Food Expo, there is a sudden montage of clothes being packed in a suitcase. Perhaps, indicative of Pushpavalli coming to Bangalore in pursuit of Nikhil.

Pushpavalli sneaks into the other girls’ room and looks for a phone. She finds one under the pillow and calls Nikhil with it. It says the user is unavailable. Tara and Srishti, the girls whose room Pushpavalli has sneaked into, arrive. They know Pushpavalli has been trying to call Nikhil using different people’s phones. However Nikhil is not in the country, so they tell Pushpavalli that she won’t be able to contact him.   

Pushpavalli’s phone vibrates. It’s her mom. She wants Pushpavalli to come to Bhopal and meet a potential man to marry. Pushpavalli tries to excuse herself. She says she won’t be able to manage her leaves. Her mom however reminds Pushpavalli of the promise she made to her before leaving Bhopal. Pushpavalli promised that she will not stop talking to men which her mom shortlists even if she is in Bangalore. Anyway, Pushpavalli’s mom thinks she wasted her food science degree to work in a children’s library in Bangalore. So with no choice left, Pushpavalli agrees with her mom.

In the next scene, we see Pushpavalli sitting at a tea stall. She has been waiting for the tea boy to bring her information about Nikhil from his office. The tea boy informs her that Nikhil is returning from his trip today, in return for contacts for his cousin’s business. She asks for the details of Nikhil’s arrival. The tea boy assures her that when he sees Nikhil’s car arrive at the office, he’ll let Pushpavalli know. (Nikhil’s office is in front of the tea stall). 

Next, we see Naveen Richard as Pankaj lashing out mercilessly at the receptionist of a library for not keeping a book at the right place. Pushpavalli tries to sneak in from behind but gets caught by Pankaj. She also receives her share of yelling for not being on time.

Then a mother enters the library with her child. Pushpavalli guides her through the shelves. While doing so, her phone vibrates again reminding her to call Nikhil. It’s strange but Pushpavalli asks the customer if she can borrow her phone. She goes out and makes the call to Nikhil with the lady’s phone. She calls him twice. He is still unavailable. Then she calls once again. Nikhil picks up. Pushpavalli hangs up and looks ecstatic.

Pushpavalli enters to return the phone. She sees Pankaj with the customer so she turns around. Pankaj is an irritable man and he would definitely not approve of Pushpavalli borrowing customers’ phones to make calls. However, the customer sees her and asks for her phone back. Pankaj gives Pushpavalli a look. 

Just after returning back the customer’s phone, it rings. The lady says it must be for Pushpavalli. Pushpavalli is reluctant to take it because she is aware Nikhil must have called back. She is following Nikhil but it seems she doesn’t want him to know about her. However, Pushpavalli takes the call on Pankaj’s command and talks in a bizarre voice. It is definite that she doesn’t want Nikhil to know that she has been calling him all this while. 

In the next scene, we see Pushpavalli running towards the tea stall. She asks the tea boy if Nikhil has arrived at the office as she has learnt that his flight has landed. The tea boy tells her that he hasn’t yet. Pushpavalli requests him to let her know when Nikhil reaches the office but the tea boy is not that easy to please. He asks Pushpavalli for more contacts for his database and only then will he inform her.

Pushpavalli has been stealing contacts from the library’s database. She tries to convince the receptionist, Gauri who is in charge of the database, to take a break so that Pushpavalli can sit at her place and copy contacts. Gauri, however, is not convinced.

Pushpavalli comes up with a crafty plan. She picks up the book Pankaj was reading while he is away and keeps it in Gauri’s bag. When he doesn’t find the book at the place he left it, Pankaj involves all the kids and Gauri and Pushpavalli to look for the book with his seething energy. While everyone is busy looking for the book, Pushpavalli cleverly copies contacts to give them to the tea boy. 

Meanwhile, a boy finds Pankaj’s book. It was in Gauri’s bag. Pankaj is furious. He accuses Gauri of stealing books from the library and asks her to leave. Pushpavalli asks Pankaj if she can go and check on Gauri, but she goes to the tea stall instead. She sips on tea while waiting at the stall. She sees Nikhil with his employee coming towards the stall. She immediately brushes her hair and propers her clothes as if going to finally meet Nikhil. However, Pankaj is seen walking towards the same stall. Pushpavalli was not prepared for this. In order to hide, she wears a helmet lying on the bench next to her. The owner of the helmet comes and asks for it. Pushpavalli runs away with it instead. 

It is strange how petrified Pushpavalli is of her boss who is also her friend perhaps.

Episode Rating: 3.5/5

Episode 2 Recap: Eagle Attack