the new and improved Star Plus

Of late Star Plus has been undergoing a makeover. First it was the new logo. Then a new tag line- Rista wahi Soch Nayi.  But lets take a look if the channel is on the right track or is it overdoing it.

When the channel began with its new campaign “Rista wahi soch nayi”, it was unknown what was coming up from the channel. But of late, after seeing the new shows that are already on air as well as the shows that are about to air, it is very clear that the channel is gearing up for the young India. And in no way do they want to loosen their grip on the TRP charts.

Before going further lets take a look at the new shows that dressed the FPC of the channel. At the very onset of their campaign came Suhana with Sasuraal Genda Phool. The show was a romantic family comedy set in old Delhi. The freshness in the treatment of the show need not be mentioned again. The show rocked and it left behind all the tear jerkers, weeping behind. Then came Kali and Maryaada – two late night shows which were bold and realistic in their story as well as treatment. Both the shows had ratings that was fair to their time slot. Even the show from Balaji stable- Tere Liye, deals with a love story and thankfully there are no 20 year leaps in sight in near future.

Its not that the channel in order to cater to the young India, has forgotten their loyal family audience. This is where the channel scores again. For every Sasuraal Genda Phool, they have Saath Nibhaana Saathiya and for Tere Liye they have Gulaal. While Gulaal has a rustic setting, Saathiya is set in Mumbai, yet is revolves around the relationship between a saas and a bahu. ( And this show surprised everyone in the industry when it became the numero uno show of the country despite a very early time slot.)

Even the new shows that have been launched this weekend have a very young appeal. Infact Pyar Main Twist looks more like a Bollywood caper than a show that could be a prime time show on Star Plus. The other two shows, Luv U Zindagi as well as Wife Bina Life are also targeting the young indian audience. But at the same time, all these shows though might look youthful and fresh, they have maintained the core values that are essential to any middle class indian family. Truly ‘Rishta Wahi Soch Nayi”.

No one can beat Star Plus when it comes to programming. But I think they are overdoing their bit in promoting their new tag line. The female singing ‘ Rista Wahi Soch Nayi ‘ in every single ad beak has started sounding too irritating to the ears. Even their new ANTHEM is a major let down. Neither does the music appeal to the ears nor are the visuals any treat for the eyes. ( in fact Star Plus has some excellent videos in past be it for Star Parivaar or any other promotional purpose)

On the whole things seem to be working in the favor of the channel. the channel has once again started its ascent to the numero uno position and hopefully will be able to attain back its undisputed leadership amongst the Hindi GEC soon.

halka fulka phir bhi lazeez

Of late there has been a new genre of television shows which are ruling the trp charts on Hindi GEC.( to be precise such shows have existed before. Only thing is that they are back on the tube almost after i dont know how many years) These shows i would call as the feel good shows. There is a long list of such shows. Almost every GEC has come up with such shows. Though Colors bein an exception. ( They are happy with Dadi sa and Ammaji running their shows)

Star Plus seems to be sabse aage in this genre with two shows- Sasuraal Genda Phool and Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai- topping their Trp charts. Apart from that Sony has Saas Bina Sasuraal and Baat Humari Pakki Hai. Even Zee is not behind with their show Raam Milayee Jodi.

All these shows have lots of things in common. First and foremost they have identifiable characters. There are no characters who always have a voice over running behind them and their eyes doing more talking that their lips. Also neither do we have a protagonist who seems to have all the good virtues that exist in this world making them look out of this earthy world. Here the characters are more realistically potrayed and even the leading ladies have their short coming.

Second is their treatment and plot. They do not have heavy material for drama. Though drama is an integral part of television shows, they rely more on cute/romantic scenes as well as heavy emotional scenes. They have all the elements to touch the emotional side of the indian masses. Also they rely heavily on light scenes. Or to be more precise they treat even very dramatic scenes in a very lighthearted way and hence makes the viewing enjoyable.

Third is their cast. Almost all of them have an ensemble which are so aptly fit in their respective characters that   they look almost as if they are those characters themselves. Be it Suhana from Sasuraal Genda Phool or Dosti/ Tanya from Saas Bina Sasuraal. Or even supporting cast like Rajshri from YRKKH or even Badi Baa from Raam milayee Jodi. All actors have fitted so well into thier characters that its difficult to differentiate whether you are liking the characters more or the actors.

A couple of years back, Baa Bahu aur Baby blonged to similar genre and not to forget the show was a great success. The audience has always had a liking for such shows. And with current success of such shows once again shows that such kind of shows are here to stay. After all you need break from masaledaar food....!!!

painting the television red....!!!

A prime time show is a gamble which can make or mar the Gross Rating Point of any channel. And with the current scenario of each channel eating into the other channel's pie, no programming head can afford to make a wrong move.

gulal : fresh and colorful

With Bidaai successfully completing its 3 year run, the 9pm slot on Star Plus Fixed Point Chart lay empty. Not forgetting the BIG BOSSES who are sitting on Hot Seats in Sony and Colors. Therefore Star needed to come up with a show which could rule the 9 pm slot the moment Big Boss and KBC get over in December this year. And once again Star plus a winner all the way.

Yes people Gulal is here and she will definitely win your hearts. Not only the show has a unique concept, what makes the show different is the high production value and amazing screenplay. The plot has been kept simple, yet the entire episode is gripping enough to keep the viewers hooked. 

Next good thing about the show is its great cinematography. (with great cinematography i have kept other indian television shows as the benchmark) The camera angles have gone much beyond the OTS and POV shots. The camera manages to make the shots look all the more great. Especially the outdoor shot in the desert and the mela scenes are really well shot. In fact the first episode seems to have been shot on RED and thus we see such an amazing result.

Not to forget the great performances by all the actors alike have added life to the show. Be it Rahil Azmi or Manoj Joshi, each actor has given his best. But who takes your breadth away is Mansi Parek. She seems to light up the screen the moment she is there. Even the small time gujarati actors have performed brilliantly.

On the whole, the show seems to be a sure shot winner and if the makers stick to the high standards that we saw in the first week the show will definitely become a numero uno show in just a couple of days.

So be ready to get your lives painted by Gulal. She is here to stay.

simple and steady is leading the race

A good and observant writer can make your show worth a watch. I think the team of Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai deserves a big round of applause. They have done it in past and they did it again with the current track in the show. They have showed time and again how small daily life incidents of common man can be made worth a watch.

In the current track, we saw an incident that is common to every indian household. How often do we face the problem of the mithaiwala giving us old sweets. Using this small everyday incident, they built a small and interesting track. Kudos to them for not only observing such small daily events, but also for making them dramatic and interesting to watch. I am sure, the TRPs wont fall and the marketing department of Star Plus will still be happy to continue their rishta with them. Also the audience is able to identify with these simple incidents of life and this is one reason why even after 2 years the show still remains one of the flagship shows for the channel.

Also the show deserves an applause for tonnes of emotional scenes which are very important for keeping a daily show running. The show has a feel of a typical happy happy Rajshri film where they play with small emotions in the life of a normal Indian. Like their films, the show also has the situation and time making life of Akshara difficult. Unlike other shows, the characters are more realistic and you wont find any overly dresses female playing the vamp. And i think we need to give them a bigger hand for keeping these elements intact even after 2 years. (while most shows after 2 years run out of story and become like any other show, this show still strives to be the same)

Though the show has its set of critics who keep ripping it apart as a sugar coated pill, we know that a show has to run and be high on TRP charts. So as long as they are doing well, who cares what the f**k have the critics to say.

I just hope the show remains the way it is. And this rishta goes on for many more years to come.

G-U-J-J-U - star plus simply loves you...!!!

When ever i hear the surname Virani, i am reminded of only one thing. And am sure even each one of us are reminded of the same thing, irrespective of the fact whether we followed the 'The Mother of all Shows'. The show changed the fate of every single person who was even remotely linked with it. And from this show came an era in Indian television where every second show was based on a Gujarati family. With this show came an era of 'theplas' and 'garba' and not to forget the eternally loving BAA.

After Kyunki ended, atleast Star Plus stopped too many gujrati families from entering their shows. ( Though lot of shows across various channels still loved gujju families. In fact SAB should rename its own channel as SAB-GUJRATI.)

But dear Gujju lovers do not be sad. Star Plus has re- embraced the gujju culture. And trust me it has worked again. Back is the typical gujju accent (which is used only periodically as if just to remind viewers that we are watching a gujrati family) and back is Kinjal ben as well as Gopi Vau.

We are talking about the new family on Star Plus called Saathiya Saath Nibhana. The show has nothing new in terms of story or treatment. But yes it has enough drama to keep the audience hooked to the show. And seeing the show do really well one thing is for sure, Shaadi can always be a high point in an indian television show.

Currently the track in the show is focusing on Kinjal Ben's shaadi as well as poor Gopi Vau becoming the bali ki bechaari bakri. What sells for this show is the cast which seems to be just perfect in the characters that they are playing. Gopi Vau as a timid and sanskaari bahu of Modi family has enough sheen to gather the sympathy of the female audiences. Also Rashi though is not the typical adarsh bahu, yet she looks adorable on screen. Also the plot of the show is kept simple, yet it provides enough masala to keep the drama element intact. Therefore there is nothing surprising that the show is working.

If this was not enough there is a third show on Star Plus called GULAL which is again based in Kutch region of Gujrat. So there is more of gujrat yet to come on Star Plus. And lets hope that the Gujratis once again make Star Plus the number one channel in the country.

Who told only sex and shahruk sell in India. There are Gurjatis as well....!!!

Bidaai - end of a sapna

On 13th November a top rated show for Star Plus - Bidaai : Sapna Babul Ka - came to an end with marathon 2 hour episode. The show had been a top rated show for Star Plus and if you remember correctly, Sadhana and Ragini ( the protagonists of the show) had given Tulsi and Parvati run for their money.( ultimately shantiniketan and aggarwal house had to lock their palatial houses and shut their doors for the viewers)

The show started almost 3 years back. The show was accepted well by the emotional indian audience. Also the show was a welcomed change for the channel as well as the audience who had been feeding on decade old K series. Sadhana and Ragini became a household name. What made this show worth a watch was the simple storyline as well as identifiable characters and plot. The characters and the situations were acceptable by the audience. The screenplay was well written and each episode had enough scenes to wet the kerchief of the women audience of the country.

The show became the highest TRP grosser for Star Plus. But as time progressed, the show ran out of plot. It started taking recourse to deaths, remarriages, illegitimate child and so on. So what happened then. The TRPs fell. The show no longer remained the number one of the Hindi Speaking Market. Though the show managed to remain in top ten slot, it lost the sheen, the simplicity and emotions. It became just another show on television. And after the two leads of the show- Ranveer and Sadhana - were killed in the show, the show never regained the number one position. ( Though worth noting is the fact the both these characters were killed so that they could work on the other projects for the same production house)

The decision to end the show, in my point of view, was the best decision that the makers could take. Not because the show was no the longer number one show, but because as Ekta Kapoor had once said, its better to end a show even when it is doing well and be remembered throughout as a hit show rather than dying a death when no one is even noticing.

The show had enough high points during its run. Be its Sadhana's marriage to Alekh or Ranveer's to Ragini- all these tracks generated sky rocketing TRPs. Now its time to see if Gulal ( the new show replacing Bidaai) will manage to garner equaly high TRPs or not. Till then lets bid adieu to a show that was well made and helped Star Plus to retain its numero uno spot even after Kyunki and Kahaani were put in a box.

Adieu Bidaai......!!! I am sure people would remember the show atleast for some time to come.