Reality Shows

By this Saturday the winners of Nach Baliye 3 will be announced. And the prize will most likely, go to Sanjeeda and Aamir. The chances of them winning, are high. Its not because they are more talented but because they are more a cute couple than Rakhi and Abhishek. And public would vote them more. But the question is does the general public really vote for all these reality shows?

I personally never do! I mean you will have to do a part-time job if one had to vote for so many reality shows. Atleast now voting for Nach baliye will get something back for the voters, in all other cases there is nothing for the voter to win.

Last week I was shocked to see Prachi win Jhalak Diklaaja. I was so sure it would be Sandhaya. But after a short thought it was kind of obvious. Every one knows Ekta's affection for Prachi; she must have sent a corporate mail to all Balaji employees' to vote for Prachi and retain the delivery report for verification.

And whether anyone did notice or not Jeetendra's grudge with Jay Bhanushali was so evident by the way he reacted to Jay's enacting Shaimak. Although, Jay sportingly ignored it, Jeetendra looked like a male Saas of Ekta's serials! Even in the elimination round Jay and Prachi's cold war could be felt.

But, seriously what is the point of having this voting system when influential people can easily manipulate them. Common man will hardly waste money to vote for such reality shows. Anyways, as long as we get good entertainment we are not complaining!

Back to Nach Baliye, I am personally divided over who should win it. I find Sanjeeda and Aamir very very cute and they have danced quite well too. Most of the times though, but not always. And on the other hand, Rakhi and Abhishek are not as good looking but their dance and most importantly their concepts are extraordinarily well done.

But this time people may genuinely vote and why, because they are going to get something in return of the votes. And if I had to vote, I would give both the couple one vote each, so it is as good as not voting at all.

Prithviraj Chauhan

This serial has been on air since last May. And it was going on very well too. However since around Feb-Mar this year, the standards are falling. But now once again, its trying to get back on track. The most crucial and sensitive period for this serial was exit of young Prithviraj Chauhan, played by Rajat Tokas and entry of the grown up Prithvi played by Anas Rashid.

The popularity of Rajat Tokas was getting in the way of the exit. I am myself a big fan of him, but was dead tired of seeing forced scenes into the serial. All of the extra unnecessary drama. And the most psyching was the drama involving Sanyogita. That was like a total brain cells destroying act! Producers should try and move with the script especially for historical like this one.

But one good thing is Anas Rashid looks similar to Rajat Tokas ( now waiting for him to improve his acting.). And still they keep showing flash backs only to please the audience. My advice to the makers would be to stick to the story line. And dont worry about what the audience would think. Because there are many like me who watch this serials for its historical importance. Hope the standards come back to what it was a year back.

And all Rajat Tokas fans can see him in Dharam Veer on NDTV imagine from Jan 2008. So cheer up and watch Prithviraj Chauhan for the great king and to know more about him.:)

I have often noticed that some production houses try to promote its serials by giving some offscreen news about the serial in the news paper.

Like the serial Dulhan on Zee TV, following were the news printed about the serial on different ocassions.

1. Sharad Malhotra (Sagar) had a scene where he is stuck inside the car and his car is burning. According to the news, he wasn’t acting he was really locked and was crying for help. The crew didn’t realise it and thought he was acting too well but later they realized and got him out.

2. The director of the serial motivates the actors by giving Rs. 100 for every brilliant act. And Sharad Malhotra was not getting anything and was very upset about it. So he took the challenge and played one shot so well that the director was speechless and he paid Sharad, a better amount.

3. In another shot, Sharad had to bang a plate on the table and during this scene; he actually broke the glass table.

4. Now something that was not about Sharad Malhotra, but on the main lead of the serial Divyanka Tripathi (Vidya). As per the news, she gave the director some medicines for his viral fever. After taking those medicines he didn’t turn up for two days and all were blaming Divyanka for it. But, Divyanka had a different story to tell. According to her she also had the same symptoms and only after confirming it with her Dad in Bhopal, who owns a Chemist shop, she gave the medicine to the director. Director also supported Divyanka and said he felt better after taking those medicines and thanked Divyanka for it.

5. One more of the during-the-shot thing. During one emotional scene, where Vidya is being blamed for cheating her husband, when in reality she was educating herself to make him happy. It was given in the news that the actors got carried away and were actually crying.

6. Now the most important, just recently there was news, saying that actor Sharad Malhotra has developed an attitude with his character getting famous. And production house will soon get his character killed in the serial. While Sharad denied the allegations and said he needed a break. In the serial, his character actually met with a serious accident and I was thinking now he will die but he DIDN’T!!

I am glad he didn’t die otherwise it would mean Sindoora getting successful in her wicked endeavors. However, it did left me thinking, if all this news that they give in the news paper are only to get the viewers more interested in the serial??

The final adieu

Last few weeks, were sad for viewers… why? This is because, in some of my favorite serials, one of the characters died. Prithviraj Chauhan lost his best friend Sanjam; Thakkar family (BBB) lost Pravina bhabhi; Parashar family (WRWMK) lost Saumya Parashar. And in Shakira every episode someone dies :).

While in case of Prithviraj Chauhan it didn’t look like a forced death, it was very much within the story line. In the other two serials it looked like the characters were killed because of some internal issues. While Aamir Ali (Saumya) said it was the demand of the story, when some ladies held a dharna in front of his house to ask him to join back. I find it very difficult to believe; now this is because there are so many things that can’t be really co-incidences.

The timing, how come the demand of the story is such, only at that time when Aamir is all set to break the floor with his Girl friend Sanjeeda Shaikh in Nach Baliye? (I really love this couple; they look very cute together and dance well too).

Secondly, the circumstances how Saumya died was not very convincing, it very much appeared, forced into the story.

Thirdly, Balaji didn’t lose a second in grabbing Aamir Ali in their upcoming venture. Now, this is what I feel, When Aamir started dating Sanjeeda they realized it was difficult for them to take out time for each other if they are employed with different production houses. So the only and best solution was that, one of them joined the other’s company. And Aamir must have told Barjatayas please kill my character so I can join Balaji.

Now in case of Vaishali Thakkar (Pravina Bhabhi) also, if viewers noticed she was missing in the serial most of the time. The reasons could be many; she must have had some issues with the actors or the production house. Else, she must have got tired doing the same role for last some years.

Whatever maybe the reason one thing is sure, in these daily soaps the story does get affected with external factors. As it happened in Prithviraj Chauhan, actually the young Prithviraj was to leave the serial in a short time, but the popularity of the actor Rajat Tokas made the story writer churn out more stories for the young Prithviraj. Probably, the stories in Indian TV serials are custom made.

Introduction

It is strange, why we don’t use the term 'television serials' anymore now all of them are very narrowly or should I say ignorantly called as SAAS BAHU serials. But, what is even sadder is they are all looked down upon. Media critic started it, some extra learned ones added fuel to the fire. And if anything is said to be wrong by the media umpteen times, it actually gets a negative portrayal.

Of course, there are some serials that have no entertainment value at all; they are only there to cash in. However, there are quite a few serials that can be a bundle of knowledge, which can actually show ways of better living and thinking. Since these serials are to quite an extent close to real life happenings.

Now time to specify what I mean when I say “these serials”. Namely “Woh Rehnewali Mehlon ki”, “Ghar ek Sapna” both are telecasted on Sahara one, “Dulhan” in Zee TV, “Baa Baby aur Bahu”, “Prithviraj Chauhan” in Star plus (Although these days the standard is not as good as it used be but I like it for the sets, costumes, background music and the lead actor, earlier it was Rajat Tokas now Anas Rashid) and the latest is Shakira on Bindaas TV.

Woh Rehnewali Mehlon ki: A tasteful serial by Bharjatyas is a story revolving around a girl who fights against all odds with her right attitude. After seeing this serial I got some idea of what it means when they say it’s all about your attitude. Your attitude is what makes a problem big or small. Now why should I stop seeing this serial just because it has a Bahu and a Saas in it???

Ghar Ek Sapna: Again a story about a naive girl stuck in a difficult situation, unknowingly created by her own loved ones. What I like about this serial is of course the story that’s unpredictable almost all the time but also the amusing language used. This serial has a very convincing drama something that can happen with anyone.

Dulhan: A story about an illiterate girl who’s married to a mentally ill person. This serial although has a lot of unconvincing story line, I like it for the funny moments created by the mentally ill character. Overall has enough content to keep the viewer interested. Now her husband is alright though, still an interesting serial.

Baa Baby aur Bahu: This Comedy family drama of a joint family depicts every possible human characteristic, with every member of the family so different from each other. Here too there is a mentally challenged person, who is very funny and at times annoying. Many who watch this serial will agree he is the star of the serial.

Prithviraj Chauhan: As the name suggests, this serial is on the life of a very courageous and a king with a big heart, King Prithviraj Chauhan. Like said earlier I love the presentation part of it, Sagar Arts has done a very good job with the sets, costumes and background music. This serial gains extra points for this part however loses out on some areas. Attention to details, the director is missing out on a lot of details and in some places the make believe part, looks fit for the juvenile.

Shakira: From what I have understood, it’s the story of a girl with some hidden powers, which she herself doesn’t know she has. When those powers come out she becomes a super girl and fights all evil. But when that power goes, she is unable to remember anything that happened during that time. A different story and well presented, so far so good.

Now all who feel that Indian serials are nothing but a waste, showing only people planning and scheming, should first check out these serials. This blog is to discuss interesting On screen and Off-screen news revolving these serials.