HERE’s TO NEW BEGINNINGS-ON NDTV IMAGINE

The birth of a new serial is always reason for great excitement for the channel, the Production Company and viewers. NDTV Imagine has double celebration on its hands as not one but two new serials begin their journey on the 18th of January- one titled Do Hanso Ka Joda and the other eponymously titled Devi. The teasers for these two serials have been on air for some time now and have created the required amount of buzz. However the problem with television is that there are these certain basic premises upon which stories are built around and makers tend to work within these given permutations and combinations. And these two upcoming serials seem to be based upon two popular trends.

Do Hanso Ka Joda starring, Shubhangi Atre (she shot to fame as Kasturi ) and Shaleen Bhanot ( of Nach Baliye 4 fame) seem to follow the recent trend of being an inspired take of the film Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi. One look at Shaleen’s get up and you will immediately be struck by the similarity between him and Shah Rukh’s character from the film, Surinder Sahni. Like the movie, this serial too promises to delve into the question of “Prince Charming”. Atre’s character is shown to be romanticizing about her future husband whom she has cast according to her favourite film hero- Shahid from Vivaah, Salman from Hum Aapke Hain Kaun and others. But the person she actually ends up marrying is a far cry from the man of her dreams. Gawky, geeky and a far cry from the dashing debonair hero of her dreams, her man in no way resemble her dreams. Whether she is able to discover the true meaning of the word ‘Mr. Right’ will be the journey that both she and the audience will have to take together. Star One had started a serial on similar lines last year, titled Hum Dono Hain Alag Alag. That serial unfortunately failed to strike the right chords and had to be pulled out. We will have to wait and see how this serial (based upon the same premise of a woman redefining her definition of Prince Charming) is able to sustain viewers interest or not.

The other new offering from NDTV Imagine is that of a serial titled Devi. The teasers have been showing us images of a rain-starved village, poor parents abandoning a little baby girl due to their impoverished state and the same infant then being hailed as reincarnation of a Goddess as she brings in rain. Spirituality and mythology has always been a big draw for television audiences. We love to see stories centred on Gods and Goddesses. Of late most major channels have been focusing on the power of the female deities-be it Maati Ki Chowki ( Sahara One) or Maa Durga (Star Plus). In a country that ritually and customarily render its female population powerless, it is indeed heartening to see serials where there is an attempt to restore power to women, albeit by divine intervention. Adding Devi to this trend is indeed very encouraging not only for viewers at large but for women too.