Conan O’Brien has returned with his travel show Conan O’Brien Must Go, and as expected, it’s a goofy, good time. Season 3 of the HBO series starts with a trip to India, where he learned how to play street cricket and, for a few minutes, became a Bollywood star.
The trip in Episode 1, which premiered on August 22 in the Philippines, starts with a train ride in Mumbai, where one commuter called O’Brien’s show “fake ass liberal media.” Another commuter told the comedian that to get on and off the cramped trains, one only has to stand in front of the crowd, which would push them in and out of the car. When he gets down, he meets a local named Veer Pandey, who teaches him how to play street cricket.
O’Brien then meets a fellow comedian and actress, Aditi Mittal, who runs him through the basics of greeting in India, from saying “Namaste” with a loose bow to touching an elder’s feet as a sign of respect.
In a commercial segment, O’Brien says that monkeys are a common sight in India and have been known to steal phones. So, he employs the help of a robotic red-haired monkey named Chok Chok to lure the free-roaming primates to a small AT&T store made just for them to steal from.
Conan Meets Fans in Mumbai and Bangalore
He also goes to Bangalore to meet up with a fan, Nikhil Kini, who was previously featured on his podcast, Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend, and takes him to a pub called Toit. In the bar, O’Brien finds a framed photo of himself on the way right next to the restrooms. He also teaches Kini how to host a talk show, as it’s been his dream to do so. “The conversation is almost too interesting,” O’Brien says, jokingly interrupting a conversation between Kini and Roopa, a patron at the pub. “In America, we literally talk about nothing.”
In other parts of Mumbai, O’Brien visits a textile shop and buys sheets of fabric for his wife, Liza Powel O’Brien, and a dhobi ghat, or open-air laundry space.
He also visits another fan from Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend, Rustom “Rusty” Irani, who briefly talked about the difficulty of navigating Mumbai in a wheelchair. “Mumbai roads and Mumbai infrastructure [are] not even meant for regular pedestrians,” Irani had told him on the podcast.
To complete his Indian bucket list, he met with actors Ali Fazal and Richa Chadha, who frankly told him he cannot be a Bollywood star. But in true chaotic fashion, O’Brien did a dance number anyway, with a brief action sequence to really sell this Bollywood fantasy. As a final word of advice, Fazal tells him, “Nama-stay in your lane.”
In the coming weeks, we will also see O’Brien take on the Netherlands, Morocco, and the Philippines. Conan O’Brien Must Go is available to stream on HBO Max.
Frequently Asked Questions
Season 3 of the HBO travel series follows Conan O’Brien on international trips, opening with an India episode. The premiere covers street cricket, Mumbai train culture, a staged Bollywood dance number, and reunions with past podcast guests, continuing the show’s mix of travel comedy and cultural immersion.
O’Brien rides Mumbai’s commuter trains, learns street cricket from local player Veer Pandey, visits a textile market and an open-air laundry, meets comedian Aditi Mittal, and closes the episode with a staged Bollywood dance sequence alongside actors Ali Fazal and Richa Chadha.
Comedian and actress Aditi Mittal introduces O’Brien to Indian greeting customs early in the episode. Bollywood actors Ali Fazal and Richa Chadha appear in the closing segment, telling him plainly he isn’t cut out to be a Bollywood star before he attempts a dance number anyway.
Season 3 of Conan O’Brien Must Go streams on HBO Max. The India episode premiered on August 22 in the Philippines, with upcoming episodes set in the Netherlands, Morocco, and the Philippines rounding out the season.
O’Brien meets two past guests from his podcast Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend: Nikhil Kini, whom he takes to a Bangalore pub and teaches to host a talk show, and Rustom “Rusty” Irani, who discusses navigating Mumbai’s infrastructure as a wheelchair user.
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