Deli Boys - Anticipation

[BetterButter]

Deli Boys

Comedy

Hulu

March 6

Quote

A pair of pampered Pakistani-American brothers lose everything when their convenience store magnate father suddenly dies. They are forced to reckon with their Baba's secret life of crime.

 

[AnimeMania]

Deli Boys is a 10 half-hour episode Comedy TV series streaming on March 6, 2025 on Hulu. Deli Boys is a "rags to riches" tale of a Pakistani immigrant, Mr. Dar, that comes to American to achieve the "American Dream". Settling in New York, (I believe the story takes place in New York, even though the TV Series was filmed in Chicago) Mr. Dar creates successful multi-million dollar corporation, DarCo, that is mixture of legitimate companies and illegal activities. 

Mr. Dar has two grown sons, Mir and Raj, that have no idea about their Baba's (father) criminal activities, since they have only been involved with/working at one of Mr. Dar's legitimate businesses, the highly successful "ABC Deli". 

Although both pampered Pakistani American brothers have grown up in the "lap of luxury", they could not be more different from each other. Mir, the younger brother, is a hard worker, enthusiastic to a fault, and eager to adopt his father's business acumen to take the family business to the next level. Mir has plans to marry the smart and ambitious Bushra, who acts more like Pakistani Royal, even though Mir's fiancée's mother, Seema, believes her Princess "could do better". 

While Raj, the older brother, has embraced the millionaire playboy lifestyle, Raj is an outrageous hipster who smokes his joints in gold wrapping paper. Raj has an entourage that includes Prairie, Raj's personal shaman, 

and Nandika, who is into cosplay and has a crush on Raj. Nandika and her family, Patika, her father, Latika, her mother and Dadaji, who is elderly, infirmed, and slightly racist, they own the financially struggling, "Essence of India" Indian restaurant.

When Mir and Raj's father suddenly dies, the "Deli Boys" realize that their lives have completely changed as they finally get to see their father's associates in a new "criminal" light, when they are made aware of the illegal side of their father's activities. There is Lucky, Baba's right-hand woman.

Ahmad, who wants the top spot at DarCo and Mir and Raj are in his way. 

Ralph, the chemist/"Chef" in charge of cocaine production. The sophisticated 
Ali, the Maalik (Head) of Distribution. Feraz, the Maalik (Head) of Bribes, an enforcer, who is not very bright, but is always ready for a little violence. Murderwalla, diminutive, calm, and always impeccable about his job and his clothing, he knows where the bodies are hidden, because he hid them.

There are also rival mob bosses and the FBI that have to be dealt with.

Asif Ali as Mir Dar, Raj's brother, the hardworking younger son who is eager to impress his father (Baba), a scrappy immigrant who arrived in the U.S. broke and built an empire from scratch. Mir is desperate to keep the unsavory details of his  criminal activities from his fiancée, Bushra.

Zainne Saleh as Bushra, Mir Dar's fiancée, smart and ambitious but carries herself as if she were a Pakistani princess.

Sakina Jaffrey as Seema, Bushra's mother, a powerful woman who thinks her daughter can do better.

Saagar Shaikh as Raj Dar, Mir's older brother, a pot-smoking and entitled playboy who lives the high life on his father millions. Raj is a wild character, the antithesis of his younger brother Mir. Raj lives the high life off his Baba's millions. Spoiled since birth, he has never had to lift a finger and thinks Mir is a sucker for taking life so seriously. 

Alfie Fuller as Prairie, Raj's shaman, an "Afro-futurist" hipster who lives with him and various other hangers-on in stoner heaven luxury.

Amita Rao as Nandika, a cosplayer with a crush on Raj, She works the front counter of her parents' Indian restaurant.

Anish Jethmalani as Patika, Nandika's father, the kindhearted owner of the "Essence of India" Indian restaurant, has been known to fly into a rage.

Minita Gandhi as Latika, Nandika's mother, a server, the shrewd quick-thinking real boss at the restaurant.

Poorna Jagannathan as Lucky, Baba's right-hand woman. She can be very caring or a take-no-prisoners boss lady, depending on what's needed. Her loyalty to Baba is tested along with her patience for Raj's and Mir's naïveté. And, she will shoot you.

Brian George as Ahmad, Baba's colleague who has always had his eye on the top spot at DarCo and is willing to play whatever game he has to in order to take it. There's no love lost between him and the entitled boys he's resented since birth.

Geoffrey Arend as Ralph, who oversees cocaine production, “chef” of the DarCo operation.

Shahjehan Khan as Ali, the Maalik/Head of Distribution for DarCo., an intelligent and serious man with a combative nature and a taste for the finer things in life. 

Azhar Usman as Feraz, the Maalik of Bribes, combative, scary, kinda stupid. He handles enforcement and is prone to violence.

Kevin Corrigan as Chickie Lozano, an old-school, Italian crime boss in Philadelphia. He is terrifying yet charming. 

Monty Bankston as Mob Boss

Lanre Idewu as Nigerian Mob Boss

Tim Baltz as Director Simpson, the regional director of the FBI and Agent Mercer’s boss, who fancies himself an American hero.

Alexandra Ruddy, as Agent Mercer, an ambitious female FBI agent, excluded from the boys club of the agency and on a mission to prove herself.