Monday, December 3, 2012

30/11 - Epi 398 ... Arhi - Hamesha

Friday 30th November '12

Am I happy IPKKND ended with Arnav Khushi together hamesha? I guess I am.

Did I like the way it ended ... a rushed job, with Arnav Khushi not in the same frame except for just one brief scene? No.

Could the cv's have done better with the time they had at hand? Not talking about the one week they were given to wrap up, with Barun unavailable to re-shoot anything, and Sanaya available only after Tuesday, when there was just one episode left (Wednesday's episode was obviously shot before the UK trip, there was no episode on Thursday) ... Yes, even so, they could have done much better over the last two months when they knew he was going.

Just one idea ... they could have shown ArnavKhushi supporting Anjali after the whole Shyam exposure, then going on honeymoon on Anjali's urging ... maybe bumping into a Sheetal type on their holiday, and Khushi realising that although she fit in just fine with Arnav's family, she didn't fit in so well at his work life ... and then the last track on Khushi growing into Mrs KASR ... just in time for Arnav's accident, if they indeed did plan that to ease him out ...
This is just one idea, am sure they could have come up with others, which would have been better than leaving Khushi with a six year old child to bring up ...
Unless of course, they did plan a leap with Viraf as Aarav Singh Raizada, and Sanaya as the new girl in his life. Unfortunately, we will never know what they had planned ...

Made this post as we are already on 198 comments in the first one.

Episode update ...
SN - the entire episode was shot with BD's ... 

The family round continues with more Q&A ...and Arav calls Khushi mom for the first time ... Embarrassed And Khushi wins the round ... but of course ...

Arnav catches Khushi alone for a quick moment ... 'I troubled you a lot, didn't I?' His insistence on her learning to say No ... trying to teach her ways to face the world ... but as usual, Khushi wanted to do it her way ... and she did ...
She nods, pouting slightly ... and he gives her a quick peck of apology ... Embarrassed Khushi embarrassed to be seen making out with hubby in public Embarrassed but he doesn't care if the world sees, he loves his pagal biwi to bits, and he's not ashamed to show it ...

And vamp Amrita sees and is delighted ... finally a way to get rid of Khushi ...

Arnav tells Khushi they'll go home together, Khushi refuses ... you taught me to say No, here you go, I'm saying it ...  
Saying No to Arnav is not an option he's ever going to give her ... Embarrassed

Amrita blows the trumpet gleefully ... 'Khushi is seducing the sponsor to win the show ...'
Umm, wrong number, Khushi seduced the sponsor ages ago ... Embarrassed and he very willingly got seduced too ... she's Khushi Kumari Gupta Singh Raizada, and she has full right to seduce him ...
Amrita is fazed only momentarily ... but she thinks on her feet ... 'if he's the sponsor, Khushi can't take part ...'
We did bring this up some time back ... seems like Arnav just realised it now ... so he bows out ... Khushi wanted it this way, because she wanted to win without his name, on her own merit, and he supported her decision ... Khushi is ready to withdraw ...
Judges see the chief sponsor backing off, and quickly confirm that of course Khushi can take part ... 
SN - and given the state of the competition, they need the funds desperately!  
Arnav agrees not to come in front of Khushi before the competition ends ...

Back home ... Khushi missing Arnav ... and he's there ... she might not see him, but he's always there for her ... and she knows it, she can feel him with her always ...
'Then why are you upset? I may not be with you during the contest ... but I'm always with you ... hamesha ...'
'Hamesha ...' a promise, a vow. Arnav-Khushi always ...

The Mrs India finale (and what a pathetic finale ... really! With the entire audience comprised of one family, the participants, the judges, the MC's and the trainer ... not even an attempt made to make this believable or grand in any way!)
Natasha's story emerges in a quick scene ... she wants to be a happy housewife and take care of her husband, he wants her to be a model and earn the moolah ...

Contest starts ... 
Natasha finds the courage suddenly to be true to herself, and find her own happiness her own way ... thanks to Khushi ...
Amrita stole the questions and parroted the answers ... she's kicked out ... not before time! Hey bhagwan, was this a school quiz or something?

Khushi's turn ... as she stands at the start of the runway, memories of the first runway she stood on, the first walk, the first fall ... the first broken dori ... the scattered pearls ... now all restrung into a beautiful new string ...
And dhak dhak again ... one last time ... even if he's not near, he's always here ... for her ...
The questions ... answered from the heart ... family or victory ... Family.
Love or worship ... for her, love is worship ...
Her last twenty-four hours ... what would she do? ... and Khushi names every member of her family turn by turn, and what she would do with them ...
But what about Arnav? No need to name him separately ... because he would always be with her ... the last 24 hours, and forever after ...

And of course Khushi wins ...

Final scene ... final 'I love you' from Khushi to Arnav ... 'We all love you' from the family to Khushi ... much to her surprise and delight ...
And finally Khushi acknowledges to Arnav ... he was her strength, her support all along ... she could not have done this without him ... she wouldn't have been able to face the world without him ...  she wouldn't have known what love is without him ... the most important part of her life is Arnav ...

And final flashbacks from the first meeting right up till the second marriage ... the Arhi journey ... thats started with a fall, argument, hatred ... slowly changed to awareness, desire, passion ... caring ... love ... a bond that started with a bandage ... and was cemented in love ...
A new grihapravesh ... a new beginning ... Arshi together forever ...
at
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84 comments:

  1. psaradaDecember 3, 2012 at 6:30 AM

    Agree with you Dia. The creatives had whole of 2 months to ease out Barun and they couldn't come up with a viable track. I don't know what I should take this as. That the creatives lacked creativity or that they were arrogant enough to not think the effect Barun's departure would have on the serial or that they were simply clueless as the PH wanted the serial to end by Nov end. Whatever it is they could have eased out Barun quite gracefully and could have continued the show for another 2 months.

    I don't think the last moment of accident and killing Arnav was going to help them in any way. Till the last moment the creatives were dilly dallying - will Viraf step in as ASR or will he be a new character. I feel that the PH and the channel should have been firm enough and should have taken a good shot/decision about what Viraf was supposed to be. There is no way with hardly 2 months on the show's life they could have woven another love story with Viraf coming in as killer of ASR who falls for Khushi. That would be a simple no. They could have taken in Viraf as ASR's replacement and could have closed off the loops on the story and could have gotten to a decent end. Like get someone to partner Anjali and NK. Could have closed the will loophole, could have gotten everybody in and could have gone out with a bang.

    The way the PH and the channel handled this whole Barun leaving thing is ridiculous to the max. I am happy with the end. Not at all. A serial which became with a bang ended in a whimper. But am I glad the serial ended. Hell yeah. I didn't sign up to watch a crying Khushi and neither did I sign up for ridiculous plot lines thrown at me. This was the same experience during Geet timeframe when in the end the serial became mockery of everything. I am so happy that this show closed before it got degraded to that level. So my opinion is - even though the serial had juice in it, there is nothing much we viewers could have done when the creatives themselves were not sure of the story. So I don't blame anyone in the serial closure but I do hope the channel/PH get good lessons in how to handle a crisis.

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    1. DiaDecember 3, 2012 at 10:02 AM

      Sorry, Sarada, I beg to differ here ... I blame all three, the PH, the channel and the fans. And for this abrupt closure within a week ... the bulk of the blame goes to the fans for making the lives of SP officials and phone operators so miserable with mails and calls, that SP took this abrupt and unprecedented decision. More like a slap on the face of fans, really ... be careful what you wish for ... because we are listening to you. No Barun, No IPKKND ... well, guess what, Barun doesn't want to stay on, so here you go. No IPKKND.

      Fans have been responsible for making enough noise to recall actors and get extensions for their favorite shows ... if we accept fan power is enough to achieve that, we have to accept that fan power can be misused for negative ends as well. And although I have mixed feelings as to whether IPK could have run for more than two months without Barun, I have no doubts that fan power, and its misuse by some unscrupulous people online resulted in this very abrupt, rushed ending. And that is what I really am annoyed about.

      We got a happy ending ... yes, but at what cost? A public defamation of a very popular actor ... if Barun is NOT leaving for Bollywood, SP has done him no favors by that ticker message, they have basically told other channels that this actor is unreliable, he can leave any time ... where Barun was trying to keep both options open by leaving IPK gracefully. And smart of him to do so, every telly actor knows that BW is a different ball game entirely, talent doesn't matter, it's connections and groupism that matter. But SP has cast doubts on his reliability to other channels ... if he comes back, he might lose some of his bargaining power that he gained by becoming such a huge success.

      SP also slapped the face of the rest of the cast of IPKKND, that they felt the show would sink without him ... how would the cast, who were ready to work on the new season (yes, it would have basically been a new season) feel? Especially when they DID keep IPK afloat the first time round ...

      It's a huge slap on the face of the PH ... now that one I don't mind, because the PH has messed up things big time. But again, what came first, the chicken or the egg? Did they mess up because Barun lost interest - after all, the first mess ups started after he signed his movie.

      And finally ... we don't know what the PH had planned for the next two months. As far as we know, at least from public statements, Barun left on good terms with Gul. I'm not talking about spoiler news ... if Barun chose to give that interview with Gul, it means that he WANTED to stay on good terms with her. Was that because Gul and 4lions would have kept a path open for his return in 2-3 months if his movie plans didn't work out? Also bear in mind, that Barun has all along maintained that he is taking a break, not going for movies. In that case, his return path to IPK has effectively been shut by fan demands. Quite ironical, if you think about it. If it had gone on for the next two months, then we might have got a much better ending ... scratch that, we WOULD have gotten a much better ending.
      Speaking about Geet, I believe Gurmeet did leave near the end of Geet for a movie ... not entirely his fault, he thought the show was ending, but it got extended. PH brought him back and gave a decent ending with Maaneet having their baby.

      While I echo your feelings about hoping that the PH has learnt their lesson about handling tracks and actors, I hope the fans, at least some of them, also learn their lesson. The biggest one being - the ultimate power of a fan should lie in his/her remote. Not in harassment and abuse.

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    2. HAADecember 3, 2012 at 2:06 PM

      Dia,

      Like Opti when I saw teh Femina Miss India ad I realized why teh Dabba business transformed into Mrs india contest. I really think Star was writing teh story since teh remarriage. A Lagi shart b/w channel and PH ki we can run the show without you one at which teh channel dismally failed.

      For what its worth, I think the Sep end leak of BS notice was fake. It became a reality by virtue of an untruth being repeated too many times. Only that can explain the total lack of planning and timely action from the channel end. At that time I presume he had raised his doubts about the future storyline during possible contarct negotiations(Padfoot broke it on teh blog mid Oct). After all PH would have proposed, channel woudl have approved and the lid was kept on till SPL by mutual agreement. Channel does not seemed to have understood that the ArHi lovestory was the soul so if the PH proposed it they would have agreed as long as there was a possibility to keep teh show running.

      Btw at that time, within 2 weeks of the remarriage it was Abhaas who left the show. Makes me wonder if he had served notice silently and hence the rush tt bring him into the story in teh middle of the remarriage track and bring some sort of closure. Else Dadi and the past angle would possibly have played out longer. Swati Chitnis was a powerful senior actress and I was waiting for Nani Dadi arguments that I never got :(

      Delete
    3. OptiDecember 4, 2012 at 3:23 AM

      Sandy,

      I don't think that Barun quitting news towards the end of Sept was fake. My feeling is that Barun wanted a break. PH was not willing to play ball considering they had to bend backwards to accomodate his movie plans. So they may have told him he can either stay and work or quit.


      He may have chosen the latter considering that he wasn't happy with the long working hours in any case. His famiuly supported him on this decision. PH, which had already lost interest in the show found a convenient excuse in Barun's quitting. Remember the spoiler did say he had to serve a notice period of two months and he was leaving in Nov. PH defended the spoiler and not the actor. It also said the decision has to be taken by SP. SP with the SPL event wanted to keep the matters quiet.


      Padfoot broke th news in mid-Oct when the sheetal track was already worked out and the actress roped in. She clearly mentioned it was to be an exit route for Barun. Now that would mean they would have been working on the plot atleast for a couple of weeks before that.


      In fact, the news of Barun's quitting was timed with the change in the track during Arshi wedding. I feel the channel arm twisted the PH into winding up the blast from past and giving a proper Arshi wedding with no baggage or guilt from both sides because of Barun's impending departure a couple of months later. You see, if there was to be a separation, Arshi and by extention Sarun time together would have been reduced and the fans' reaction to Barun's ultimate departure would . have been even more ugly. So they wound up a potentially explosive track within a few minutes and gave us Arshi together. Abhas's track was wound up soon because they needed to start Sheetal track and given the exit to Barun all in a matter of two months.


      I agree that both channel and PH underestiamted the power of Arshi. It wasn't Khushi's story and wouldn't have worked without ASR. I would have preferred that Viraf stepped into Barun's shoes as ASR and the story continued but then it is too late to lament what could have been.

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    4. DiaDecember 4, 2012 at 4:14 AM

      Opti,
      Agree with all you said ... I too feel the same way. Barun gave notice in September, Shyam's exit and the re-marriage was rushed to get time to fit Barun's exit track ...

      Although the idea of making Arnav go off with Sheetal and destroy the Arhi story was a stupid exit track in the first place ... they should have planned for an accident from the start ... and given a couple of good Arshi months before ending ASR. AND they should have clarified that he was leaving/taking a break, instead of leaving it to the actors and interviews ... Star should have made an official announcement well before the phone operators started relaying confusing information.

      Viraf as ASR ... there I do differ ... but theek hai, we will never know what would have worked better :))) And everyone would have different preferences ...

      I hope Viraf and Sanaya come back in a new show now ... I had started looking forward to seeing them together. A new story without any baggage of Arhi should be good to watch.

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    5. HAADecember 4, 2012 at 8:18 AM

      Opti,

      Fair point. He chose to leave when denied leave(tho the ASR fan in me who cannot see another guy in the actor's place is annoyed and the BS as ASR fan wonders why not compromise on a short leave of say a week after canning bulk shots but AD hai bhai :))

      And I agree the timing of that news leak and story change were linked.

      If indeed they needed exit If I was thinking the story, I would have perhaps gone ahead with some type of judaai during the remarriage of say 3 weeks till late Oct(keep the FBs and accidental meetings happening). And started to build momentum for Shyam's final expose through that narrative. Use dadi as needed from drama angle with a ASR Dadi confrontation with him confessing he had done wrong by Khushi who had still upheld his honour and put her life in danger, him cornering Khushi and confessing he was wrong to have forced that contract marriage on her and to him she would always be his wife contract or not, him and nani scenes vis a vis garima (a possible sub plot on how perhaps the whole family had been duped). Arnav and NK gathering proof against Shyam with NK being in touch with Khushi to know of the days when Shyam was a PG and if they would unearth something there. Payal helping Arnav and NK at Shantivan. A possible Payal Arnav showdown when Payal accuses Arnav of breaking Khushi's trust and supported by Akash.

      In the separation Khushi building her identity and then Arnav and she coming face to face at a fashion show she has participated in of which Arnav just happens to be the sponsor. Akash and NK support Khushi. Khushi growing into herself and Arnav's regret at having not made the most of the time with Khushi when he had it. Arnav figures out Khushi is a participant and in his way helps her without overshadowing or compromisign her efforts.

      By early Nov have Anjali throw Shyam out of RM, initiate divorce with Arnav's support, help reconcile Arnav and Khushi and have a mid Nov wedding for ArHi (guess it would not have been a big one). A few days of solid romance and then by end Nov, after SPL, show Shyam strikign back one last time and in the scuffle he is killed and Arnav goes missing presumed dead by end Nov.

      Possibilities galore and perhaps the story would have galloped at breakneck speed. But it may have been a better possible exit in sync with the overall story pitch. BS and SI scenes could have been worked in. FBs would have helped reduce their onscreen time and actually not focus on leads making the show story driven and not lead driven.

      And the story would have been in a good place with ample motivation for a new male lead - perhaps a criminal investigator who is hired to track down Arnav and a friednship blooms between Khushi and him. He is shown to like Anjali and Khushi sets it up while missing Arnav though knowing he is alive. Anjali and new guy get engaged, Arnav happens to be found by that time, and there is a overall happy ending with La being invited for one last bash at RM.

      Or one fine day Khushi feels something amiss and news comes that Arnav is dead. When the family comes to tell Khushi they see she too is in indefinite slumber. And as the families mourn, there is a shot with this otherworldly feel - a happy place where Arnav and Khushi are shown to be together and one final Rabba Ve.

      And the serial goes off air as rumoured by Jan / Feb 2013.

      This may have appeased the ArHi fans and also kept the focus on the ArHi fans and not given rise to the BS fans unless the spoiler givers went into overdrive about a possible irreversible spat. People may actually have been annoyed with BS for leaving if the news came out. It would have been only a bringing BS back campaign by fans. Story would have ruled and all parties would have benefited and IPK would have been in hall of fame for all right reasons. Perhaps even been nominated and won one more round of awards at SPA next year.

      But yeah all water under teh bridge now.

      SN:
      Dia Huggs bey!!

      Usha - Thank you for plodding through that long waala comment and glad to know it made sense :)

      Delete
  2. OptiDecember 3, 2012 at 8:58 AM

    Dia,


    I think honesty would have paid in this case had they come clean with Barun's impending departure two months ago itself even if the Star Parivar Live event was scheduled in Nov. So what if he was leaving? They could have asked him to come clean and seconded it saying that they will stil go ahead with a new actor playing his character. For me the show was about Arshi and if I cannot have Sarun paying them, I'd rather have Sanaya and another good actor playing the pair rather than watch one of them dead and the other pining for their love amidst compulsions to pull along for the sake of the family. This show was a love story in a family setting and not a family drama.

    If the public fury against a replacement was huge, they could have factored it in and given a proper closure to the rest of the story in these two months without introducing meaningless tracks like the sheetal track or the beauty pageant. The blast from past should have been given a proper closure. They shyam fiasco could have been unearthed by getting Shashi back on his feet and recounting the harrowing experience he went through which then could have been substantiated with the hidden camera evidence. As you said, they should have worked on Arshi helping Anjali find someone in her life (after all that was the original story - about a brother and sister finding their respective partners).

    By the way Pratigya was part of the entourage of SPL even though the show ended. So Barun could have still been part of the tour even after he quit. People would have been more eager to see him in person since they would not get to see him on screen.

    This way everyone's dignity would have been respected and maintained.

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    1. psaradaDecember 3, 2012 at 9:33 AM

      Opti,

      Agree with you. Pratigya was part of the tour even when the show was off-air for about a month. I think basically the channel wanted the show to run till Jan/Feb 2013 but PH wanted the show to wrap up by Nov. In this tussle both the channel and the PH made a mess of everything. Channel now had to admit that they couldn't replace Barun and even PH had to admit the show is nothing without Barun. Rather all the 3 concerned parties could have used the 2 months time and cleaned up all the tracks and given the show a dignified ending. Even today there was an article in Hindu questioning the tag that Star Plus ran. All I can say is in the bigger scheme of things both PH and Channel turned this thing into a big fiasco when they could have reached a solution amicably and everyone's dignity would have been maintained. Now even Sanaya is being bashed for her comments.

      When KSG quit DMG, the creatives did take the story ahead and actually ran it for 1 yr before it eventually closed off. The protests it seems were far too huge than what is happening now. So just running a ticker and washing off their hands is not going to help SP. The whole show was awesome for its 1.5 yrs of run but due to the bad handling in the end days it is forever going to be remembered for this PR fiasco.

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    2. DiaDecember 3, 2012 at 10:18 AM

      Absolutely, Opti. And that is why I feel SP did plan to run the show for at least the next couple of months, and monitor response to Barun's departure. TRP's would be back, they would have a way to gauge response.
      The problem as I see it, was Barun himself ... rather, we don't know the real story. If he did plan to come back after a couple of months or more, then they could not bring in another actor as ASR ... I think channel and PH very definitely know that if Barun is available, no one else can be a better ASR. If they were sure he didn't plan to come back, that is exactly what they should have done - announced that Viraf will be the new face. The fact that they didn't means that they were not sure. And that is where they mishandled big time ... Barun trying to keep his options open is understandable, PH and SP pandering to this extent is not. If he was clear he wanted an indefinite break, which he has said from the start, they should have made it clear that an indefinite break is not possible ... he has to leave. But then the spoiler devis would have done exactly what they did ... made a hue and cry about Barun being forced to quit ... end result would have been the same.

      If DMG could carry on for a year after KSG left, then IPK could have done so for a few months. KSG left because of personal problems, DMG carried on with a new cast, and a leap of 2-3 years, if I remember correctly ... KSG was recalled when he was available, he came back, and although the show sank slowly, the fans still got their preferred ending - Armaan Riddhima together.

      Whatever it is ... such a popular and good show did not deserve such a rushed ending. I never agreed that the show would collapse completely without Barun ... I still don't. Not in two months. Nor do I agree that the show was nothing without Barun. For SP to run that ticker was ridiculous and demeaning to everyone else involved with the show.

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  3. psaradaDecember 3, 2012 at 11:34 AM

    Dia, I saw DMG when I was in US. Was in between jobs and AD was not too hectic. In DMG never liked the Armaan - Riddhima love story - sorry was too cheesy for me. I liked the father Mohnish Behl's portrayal and liked the story of Riddhima with her father and how he handles Riddhima who is his adopted daughter. I joined the bandwagon on DMG when they had the DMG season 1 ending. Actually the end was very good - freeze frame when both Riddhima and Armaan are shot. And then they had a leap of 9 months and new interns joined the show. All the articles at that time said that the new interns will get new stories. And that is what they did. For 3-4 months they had new interns and their stories Sid-Tammana and Yuvi-Naina, each had their own characteristics and the stories were well developed. And in between they had the eternal AR story layered in between the new lead stories and the way Mohnish correlated to Armaan - Riddhima. So after 3-4 months they got Jenny back and then the Tamasha of the fans started. And then it was one horrible ride wherein they demeaned everything and made mockery of the characters. Had they stuck with the new interns only DMG would have been better but then they got Jenny back and Jennifer had some problems with KSG(he had the worst PR anyone can have around that time - with his divorce and his supposed 3 timing with jennifer, nicole and his wife) and so the story went for a toss. Riddhima was thrown once to Sid and once to Armaan and I pretty much lost interest. I didn't sign up for a ping pong match between 2 doctors over a lady. So that was that. Heard that they went AR way but it was horrible. Riddhima was twice married to Sid and then still because it was AR in the beginning they got AR in the end. Eventually it was mockery of everything and I hated it. Point blank the serial become the worst crap anyone can write or direct.

    Coming to here - If Barun was quitting then instead of the PH sending spoiler queens over to IF, they should decide what they want to show. How many months do they want to continue ? What is the end they envisioned. Is it going to be Heer Ranjha or is it going to be Tum Mile ? And more than anything were the creatives interested in giving some dimensions to the character that Viraf was supposed to play? What is his background ? Did they think on that. The way PH handled this was absolute nuisance. And added to that sometimes it was Viraf is for Anjali, Viraf is ASR and sometimes it is Viraf is new lead to fall in love with Khushi. I don't understand that point of the PH. Why should Khushi have a lead for the serial to continue. Khushi was supposed to feel Arnav even when he was not there ? Look at the last episode it was heavy on "I am there for you even when I am not physically present". If that was the whole basis of the show or rather premise then why the hell was the PH hell bent on pairing Viraf for Khushi. Rather they could have told that Viraf is not for Khushi and Khushi is going to take this journey alone. I don't think the fandom would have been this angry with that. People who wanted to watch would have watched a Khushi grieving but ultimately becoming strong like Akshara is shown in Yeh Rishta now. People who would have thought the love story is finished would have moved on.

    I seriously think the PH messed up at the point where they want to take this story ahead. Gul was adamant on Khushi being paired with someone else - a thing that made GH quit and ask the fandom for preserving the ArHi essence. If Gul wanted Khushi to move on with new guy then sorry to say - she didn't understand her characterizations at all. It would have been impossible for the audience to accept Khushi moving on because both Arnav - Khushi are soul mates and not for the last 2 months. The firmness was not there in the PH creative team itself wherein one wants moving on and other wants Khushi alone. At this point do you think they would have come up with a good story line for the new lead Viraf.


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    1. psaradaDecember 3, 2012 at 11:35 AM

      Cont from previous post

      I feel very bad for the rest of the cast and also for Viraf. He didn't even got to come on the show and the channel pulled the plug. What does it tell you. It tells you that no matter what Viraf would have done, the channel was not confident that he could at least be acceptable to the audience. If I were Viraf, I would have been mightily pissed off. So is the rest of cast and crew being told that without Barun the show is nothing.

      As a fan I am happy that the show closed without being dragged to a pathetic end like Geet was but if I was someone who was working on the show, I would have felt bad that the creatives couldn't do justice to the characters.

      The Ph faulted at two things and at two times.


      1. When Barun gave the notice - for a moment let's forget the off screen drama. He wanted to move on. He didn't want to come back for 2 months. What to do now ? Does the PH want to go ahead. If so how ? Do they want to close all the loops so that in case channel agrees they can close the show. Did they do that? Nope. They got Sheetal track, Mrs.India track rather they could have closed Shashi recovering, Past decent closure, Khushi - Arnav, Payal-Akash romance and moving on. IMO this period I think Gul screwed up with I am bigger than everyone attitude and didn't pay heed to any creative idea.

      2. Barun is moving out and it was final. Now what to do? Do you understand your characters. Khushi and Arnav and one and together always so it is utter ridiculous to give out statements that Khushi will have a new lead in her life and move on. That is bound to rile the fandom. Rather do something that shows Love need not be something that has to be physical. Love can be something that touches you beyond death. Don't you think the story would have a better meaning in this track. Sanaya would have aced this track. But this dilly dallying of Viraf as ASR, Viraf as new lead pissed everyone off and ultimately everyone was riled up enough to pester the channel to close the shop.

      I don't think the channel closed the show because fans wanted it. They never do it unless they have some profit of it. I think Star must have thought it is better to end the show with ArHi alive rather than Arnav dead as it would be impossible to face the fans. So they ran a ticker and closed the show. What did this project to audience. Plain TRP audience are like -"Hmm okay. The story is done. The lead is in movies. He is a good actor. Let me see if I can catch his movie". For the other channels it is like -"Star can't manage a internationally popular serial and the PH". Sorry to say Star came out as a loser due to the ticker.

      What did the serial closing do to the PH. For normal TRP audience -"Hmm they couldn't do anything without the lead. They don't know what to show next". For other channels looking at this fiasco what do they think of this PH -'This PH is not even creative to get a new track when the lead goes. So this PH is as good as its lead pair". So pretty much the PH came out as a loser even when it conceived a damn good story the likes of which Indian TV has not seen. So if I were a channel would I give a chance to this PH. Probably but chances are much higher that I would wait and see and then decide as the PH themselves have accepted that without Barun their show is nothing.

      So my opinion both PH and channel came up as someone who couldn't handle the success. PH need to be little more creative and little more firm in the characters they have conceived. And this PH especially should first learn to take their products to completion before they jump on other serials. Because people do remember how you end the shows too. Bidaai is a good example. Both the leads died but still Bidaai went for about 8 months and closed on a high note. That is why people respect Director's Kut and if QH flops for this PH, the road looks very bleak. IMO, my 2 cents

      Delete
    2. DiaDecember 3, 2012 at 12:38 PM

      Sarada,
      I didn't watch most of DMG after the new season started ... I liked bits of the Siddhima story, but not much, and when Armaan came back, I couldn't stand him ... surprising because I had started watching the show for him. So it really didn't matter to me what happened to the show once I stopped watching it :)))

      And this is a show I was very attached to, so much so that this was the show I first started blogging on. When I didn't like it, I stopped watching it - simple. Didn't stay on to grumble about what crap it had become, I simply switched to another show. It's not my bread and butter that I HAVE to watch it, come what may ... on the other hand, I'm no one to demand that it shut down because I don't like it any more. That way, I would be demanding for ninety percent of shows on telly today to shut down!

      I wanted to watch DABH ... the idea of a woman wanting to do something with her life, and her husband supporting her all the way was very appealing. I couldn't stand to watch DABH more than ten episodes, if that. Did I call the channel and scream and shout that they had let my story down, that they were not giving me what they had promised? No, I didn't. I stopped watching the show.

      Normal TRP audience ... have spoken to a few people who don't watch the show, their reaction was ... 'He's leaving? Why didn't they get a new guy?' So I guess depending on whom you speak to, the reactions would vary. If you speak about YRKKH, most people would agree that the show has absolutely NO story left at all, it's been on air for three years and it's just dragging. Are people demanding it shut down?

      As long as it is a viable option business-wise, SP will keep a show on air. There are some producers like Rajan Shahi, who can keep their shows running for a long time, and then take the decision to pull them before they drop TRP's ... he did that with Bidaai, despite losing two main actors, the show went on for some time. The difference was none of the actors became the craze with audiences that Barun did, to the extent that people would actually harass and browbeat a channel's phone operators and executives constantly.

      I don't think the PH decided that without Barun, the show is nothing. They wouldn't have gotten a new guy in and started shooting with him if that was the case. Neither did the channel, they were willing to give it a shot for a couple of months. Just look at the replacement show ... if SP thought that IPK would fail within a week of Barun leaving, do they seriously expect that a show like Kaali will be able to take its place and do better? No, this decision was taken as an abrupt knee-jerk reaction, because they knew the harassment would not stop as long as Barun stayed away ... and the negative publicity was simply not worth the trouble.

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    3. DiaDecember 3, 2012 at 12:38 PM

      Don't underestimate the power of the internet and immature fans. Justin Beiber is well known today - try to find a fan of his over the age of fifteen, you would struggle. And here it was not only immature, but also misinformed, fans.
      The Chinese government is forever trying to muzzle internet in this part of the world because they know how easy it is to spread information through it. Internet is a hugely powerful tool these days.

      The PH needed to be more firm ... agree wholeheartedly. If Barun wanted to leave in Feb, when he was not so big, they should have insisted he did despite channel pressure to keep him on, ... and not changed their story to suit his leave. That was when the first decline started. He tried to do the right thing ... but between the channel and the PH, he was put under too much pressure. Now he stuck to his guns ... but it was too late. The PH had lost total control over their story, SP tried to take over and in the ensuing tussle, the show went for a toss and the characters Arnav and Khushi became the only reasons to watch it.

      Star came out a loser because of the ticker ... agree completely. They should have maintained silence on the reason, just announced the show is going off air. Next time an actor wants to leave, or throws unjustified tantrums, they have set a dangerous precedent. Not saying Barun threw tantrums ... but SP has basically acknowledged that an actor and/or his crazy fans can hold a show to ransom ... which is not the right message to give at all. Whoever approved that ticker needs to be fired.

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    4. HAADecember 3, 2012 at 1:57 PM

      Dia,

      Oh dear are you saying it was a bad idea to garner so many fans (just saying :))

      Fans saying we want the story to have an Arnav Khushi ending and end the show with Sanaya and barun have got overlapped big time. Yaar BS ke itne bhi fans nahi hain ki they can hassle a call centre. Those guys are trained to handle lots of disgruntled people.

      The SLAPATHON in your post beats the no of slaps even Snake got on the show!

      Power of online - I have experience so hear me out. It is huge is being realized but trust me beyond a handful of orgs (not more than 10, actually 5) is it even properly gathered, studied and leveraged. All the talk is just that talk. It is a very new field and it has all the bigwigs harassed esp after the BA fiasco on FB during the ash rain.

      Plus Star India and Star UK are 2 different entities with differing visions and target audiences. Star UK is paying more attention to online audience whereas Star India is not. But even they realize that the audience on these forums can be very young and that is the miscalculation. SPL changed that bcos they saw daughters and their mothers turn up for BS SI aka ArHi. This blog for e.g. We have all kinds of people.

      This has been an eye opener that online audiences henceforth cannot be ignored and that medium needs to be regualted and monitored. Padfoot ko pooche ka pari if in future PH and SP contracts will have internet related clauses too.

      As for story change in Feb to suit his needs is hogwash beyond a point, again an excuse. PH dawdled happily after SPA laurels. It was a done deal, SP was off their backs and they took a logish break and I guess never returned. In that track too the scenes with BS could have been better crafted, him getting gradually suspicious of Shyam as did Khushi (assuming they did not show that terrace confrontation). Imagine that dard RV in separation where he is shown thinking back of wedding and post wedding and contrasting it with post Holi and GH events.
      But they slacked and glorified Shyam instead. You know someone said teh show began to go downhill from the time Arnav's brain went missing - that French Riviera trip well looks like it was actually teh drain and our show down it.

      That ticker fiasco well I guess the person(s) concerned are already fired or warned. But that was the only wuick way out. Shift focus and start action so that the media speculation settles. Goodwill was at stake and perhaps it was a pathetic excuse of an attempt at spology from channel to actor concerned and fans?

      Plus like u and Shweths said it was perhaps SP's way fo saying he is hot proerty but he is ours nonetheless on TV and the PH has been crucified.

      Delete
    5. psaradaDecember 3, 2012 at 2:01 PM

      Agree with you Dia. Star basically shot themselves in the foot with the ticker. They should have just said that due to unavoidable circumstances they are pulling the plug on the show. That would be good and would be fine. SP basically acknowledged that actor is bigger than the show and now it is going to have a tough time whenever a lead of a popular show wants to have his whims met. Basically a actor and his fans can hold the channel ransom. Now even leading dailies are questioning the ticker including Hindu. So the next time there is a replacement then Star is bound to be in a soup. The lesson for Star is to handle the stars in a correct manner and moreover deal with errant PH in a firm manner. They couldn't do anything to the PH and due to the PH's stupidity both PH and Channel came out as stupid losers who had to bow to a single actor and its fans.

      That is the reason we have press conferences. The PH didn't do anything to clear its opinion whereas it could have come out in open and saved its credibility. End result. Now on one knows IPK for the layered story the creatives conceived but as a show in which the leads rose above the characters and which had to be shut down because the creatives couldn't take the track ahead when the lead walked out. That is the impression it created. It would be very hard to the PH to come up and gain the fruits of the IPK success.

      Delete
  4. SameenDecember 3, 2012 at 12:17 PM

    Dia - of the four players in the real life drama - BS, PH, SP and the audience -
    i really dont blame BS - he wanted out, gave in his papers, served his notice period and therefore in my book, he can leave (unless he broke some contract that said he had to stay on till the show was on air - his stance is fine - reasons for this are his personal business!)

    the audience - do you really think a few people can 'shut down a business venture' which does not have direct face to face with the customer? a few hundred people probably read your blog, how many write on it? 20-15? A few million watch SP, how many would have written/called/pestered? a few hundred, a few thousands - def. not enough to stop a show - the not interested ones would have switched off the TV or stopped watching SP - no more (And please remember that the SP is used to such mad adulation, they know the peak and downfall of crazed fans!) -

    the people to blame (for want of a better word) are definitely the PH and the SP - the PH did not exploit the best set of actors TV has seen in a while! and SP was plain unethical - both in shutting down the show abruptly and running the red sticker! the death scenes had been shot - what was stopping them from showing that if nothing else and ease out the story in a few weeks.

    having said that i also cant see the business sense in all this - if sp was loosing a few connections by BS going - they would still have had SI supporters = so to my mind - there was something behind the curtains that pulled the show - some tug of war between the PH and SP, some ego hassles, pride - dont know - but def more than meets the eye

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    1. DiaDecember 3, 2012 at 12:42 PM

      Mona, of the four, I blame three ... PH, SP and fans. For the final 'one week to wrap up' scenario, I blame fans and SP completely in equal measure. The stupidest decision and stupidest public declaration ever!

      I don't blame BS at all.

      Will be back later to add ... hubby just walked in ;)))

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    2. HAADecember 3, 2012 at 1:39 PM

      Monu,

      Loved the analogy on fans of show and this blog. So tomorrow if Dia decides to take a 11/20/40/45 day break what will happen to the blog ? ;)

      And I still think the TV fans would have been the deciders, the online fans were just the alarm ringers.

      Delete
    3. HAADecember 4, 2012 at 10:23 AM

      D,

      I was only joking when I said longish break. And now I see you are off on winter break :S

      Delete
    4. DiaDecember 5, 2012 at 10:31 AM

      11/20/40/45 days :)))

      Not really ... just three weeks! :D

      Delete
  5. SuDecember 3, 2012 at 1:08 PM

    Come monday evening...and I knew this'd happen.
    I look forward to IPK all through the weekend. This weekend was busy, so I didn't miss IPK so much. But today the reality sinks in...no more looking forward to 8 pm.

    Who do I blame?
    1.The director who was not allowed to portray the character as harsh as she wanted to? She was told to tone down the cahracter it seems...that does not absolve her of the unprofessionalism of not seeing the show through to its end. She has to learn to work within the confines of her job.

    And she should have come out clean on Viraf's role. She could have issued a statement saying the show will end with Sarun as Arhi and Viraf is playing some other character...fandom would have calmed down.(Hell, what was this lady thinking when she shot ASR's death sequence? Aap theek ho, Gul?)

    2. The channel which tried to feed the audience what it wanted? How much of creativity can be tampered with? How much should the story teller be told to bow down to pressures?

    3. Or the viewers who simply wanted a happy ending to their favourite jodi? Part of me is with them...I have loved the movies which explore the pathos of lost love...but I wouldn't be able to bear see that happen to Arhi...they were meant to be together...ALWAYS. So if Gul was planning to kill ASR in an accident and get Viraaf as new love interest, you can keep it to yourself, Gulji. The audience which was drawn to a 'different' love story cannot be drawn to this intense emotional drama, no matter how Oscar- worthy your script is. I respect Sanaya and Barun and MM saying we should respect and trust the story writer...not at the expense of Arhi. SORRY.

    That does not absolve the fandom of the constant pressure they put on the PH asking for Arhi...Arhi...I think they were majorly confused with the audience. They did not know the pulse of the audience...it is impossible when the audience is so varied.

    I have stopped blaming any one. I am happy so long as the actors and the crew get work. I think IPK's death sentence was written when Barun wanted to leave. It'd have ended if San wanted to leave too.

    So how do I come to terms with this loss?

    I see IPK as a really really long movie that was aired only for 20 minutes a day...that was all the time the channel could allocate for this wonderful movie in a day. Some bits were boring, some bits exhilirating...on the whole it was a wonderful ride. But one day the movie had to end and instead of 120 minutes this movie ran for 20 X 398 minutes...entertaining us for that long a time, better than most bollywood movies. THANK YOU, IPK.

    And thank you whoever is responsible for giving us an intact Arhi at the end....at least now when I watch the YT videos my heart will not feel heavy when I watch Arhi together, Sarun together...(can't imagine otherwise).

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    1. SuDecember 3, 2012 at 1:18 PM

      Outside IPK, I have a very clear view on how much of creativity can be manipulated by others.

      The writer should be allowed to tell the story as he/ she wants...if you don't like the story shut the book/ walk out of the movie/ change the channel.

      The channel/ publisher / audience has no right to dictate terms to an author.

      ...ofc, in case of IPK they invited this trouble on themselves. So it is difficult to pinpoint anyone as at fault. ATM, all three are at fault- shared responsibility.

      Delete
    2. HAADecember 3, 2012 at 1:36 PM

      Su,

      I agree the whole fiasco is basically due to the storyteller losing the motivation to tell his or her story and the right of a storyteller not being allowed to tell his or her story their way.

      ROFL on Tum theek ho Gulji? After making me believ time and again ArHi humeshaa this was such a lark. And agree SP/PH could have made a statement on the Viraf character and half the hysteria would have subsided. But I guess they did not bcos they themselves were not in agreement :S

      Fans - well I would liek to think we raised caution this time when we shoudl ahve done this ganging up during the kidap track and story content wobbling and perhaps we would have had the show to see today at 8 PM.

      Delete
  6. HAADecember 3, 2012 at 1:30 PM

    Dia,

    Firstly hugs. I have never seen you this annoyed and that too for this long in all my time here. Much to be annoyed about I agree. I will attempt to say my piece because to me your emotions matter not that of the people on the show, the PH or channel. I don't know them up close but you I do to a point. I am not happy to let you stay annoyed.

    To me in business, what came first chicken or egg does not matter, what matters is there was an egg and a chicken. Why means getting emotional.

    It all comes down to when BS left for the movies first time round I think for you.
    Even there, he was kidnapped fine and he did shoot in between. As a story teller I knew he was on leave that was jointly approved (he won bcos of movie and serial, PH won bcos they did not have to invest time in building an actor into a character all over again and the channel won because with SPA international they got validation that the increasing revenues they were seeing in overseas subscriptions was a cash cow they would like to have). Here yes you may question why would BS want to leave mid ships. What if it was SI? By asking why mid ships are we not questioning his right to decide fro himself when for all he and us knew the show could have run on and on for 2anotehr 2 years. There definitely was potential. He would have hoped to be allowed back then but it was not guaranteed if the show ran fine without him.

    Now as a story teller if I knew the constraints and also what my next milestone in the tale was - then it would be Arnav realizing he had been wrong about Khushi and Khushi questioning why she felt tenderness for him even when he had given her so much grief. Knowing he was off for 40 days they could have planned and delivered the content better. The Arnav angle never happened in detail and in a timely manner.

    PH lost interest then because BS went for movies - did they not slap the entire remainder cast then itself if you choose to believe that reason? That itself should have told us that it was a matter of time marking and not storytelling but we hoped.

    There was a possibility even then that BS may not return and they may have planned an accident as a contingency then too just in case BS had changed his mind at the last moment or channel decided to hang him out to dry as he had chosen to do a movie while on their time in case the TRPs tanked. If you recall there was a show closing rumour even back then. People blamed the actor absence then too. I blamed the pace of the story and nonuse of supporting cast especially Payash then too.

    In recent times I think BS wanted a break, a holiday and eventually would have come back or liked to. The main reason for this being before his movies he would have appreciated to have fans recall him through the serial rather than all this mess. It has always been my counter argument for people who said he lost interest in the role. He may have but having an income and recall value would have made common sense to him too till the movie released.
    Yes SI was working equally hard and she needed her breaks too. But hers was channel driven and there have been epis with her BDs too. Maybe she has been taking a day or 2 off in between from time to time but because no spoilers we shall never know. When BS said long hours and hard work I always felt he spoke for his entire team including the guy holding up thermocol in a RV scene and in general about the industry and indirectly about his PH who has massive planning and management issues. (BV female lead did JDJ and took leave for ill health, Saas Bina Sasural lead mum said went missing for eons due to ill health, MB leads have been given off in the midst of romance. Online audience prayed for speedy recovery and return and did not begrudge the break).

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    1. HAADecember 3, 2012 at 1:30 PM

      contd.

      Yes I agree to me BS was always ASR and had they got in a new actor (even VP whom I liked in Mahi Way) I would have watched only if I thought the actor could keep the ASR alive for me or I may have switched off completely. But if BS fans dropped, VP fans would have hopped on and the show would have gone on.

      However establishing a new actor in the role would have needed effort and nurture from the channel and the PH. To ensure the audience was hooked with regular promos on intriguing plotlines, that the new actor filled the character shoes well so that the show went on. But both did not happen.
      2 points here to emphasize:
      Since the remarriage and Oct beginning it felt as if the story was being written by the channel and not PH as the original characters were being sidelined gradually. (Like Niharika of RM said – better to have had a show than none at all?)
      Also, if you look at the way PH tells its story they do not follow tradition as in open a plot, close it and move on. They actually take a story from a book "there was once a boy and a girl....together thereafter"

      The latter style of narration will keep linking back to the past throughout the narrative - the FBs we say are woven in so well to highlight the current context. If the actor changes what about these? They will need to be reshot if they still need to be used - reinvestment of money from the producers end as well as effort to recreate the exact same magic in that reshot scene - imagine Diwali FB being reshot.
      This PH does not seem to do character continuation by actor replacement. For e.g. mamaji, akash and payal were sunset not continued. In Arjun when sana quit, her character riya was killed - it is their style of working perhaps. So to them the actor and character are synonymous and hence they pour so much effort in building up the actor to fit the character's shoes. But this means that they were never prepared to handle a possibility of BS choosing to leave the show ever as long as it was on air.
      But the channel believes in character bigger than actor - hence cross purpose.

      So if the show went on, PH needed to invest time and effort to keep it going ensuring the new actor was well received as Arnav (honestly without Arnav the story would have floundered again and VP was replacement for BS as decided by channel initially because he looked good as brooding man and 3 piece suit looks from his earlier works) and ensure the show's success. Alternatively they would have just let status quo continue and the show would have exit when the TRPs were due to return (then the fans would not be blamed TRP would have been). If Star was writing it Khushi perhaps would have been shown distressed at her loss and maybe just in the last week or so shown to become strong or perhaps wilt and fade away - a tragic ending.
      Like Rekha said, Star did not want to fix anything because in their opinion it was not broken and they knew the journey left was the last mile. For the last mile if needed you get out and push the car by hand if needed or walk but do not upgrade the car when you know the car is to be junked at the end of the mile.

      As for PH and their investments (which would have been the most) they already said story ran tis course and ya ideally a second marriage of khushi arnav may have been the end they envisaged for this story. Plus they seem to be a one love story serial at a time and only 1 actor for male lead character at a time. SO more than the fans the PH did not focus on storytelling but rather the screen leads. Ideally then they should have handed over the story to someone competant to keep running it and moved on. But there is sure to have been a feeling of I created them how can someone run them better than me? Plus not sure if legal angles would playout as the new show's male protagonist seems to clearly be a ASR character replica from all your comments.

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    2. HAADecember 3, 2012 at 1:31 PM

      contd 2.

      So BS coming going staying I don't know. If he waffled or not I do not know but finally the IPK story never got told because the storyteller had limited vision and after the remarriage did not want to narrate the story any longer. (their whys I do not know but their disinterest was visible).

      As for why not wait a week or 2 and pull of the plug by channel to ensure the makers could have planned a better end. Maybe they wanted to slap the PH as you said for making a mockery of their brand, misusing their largesse of not axing the show even without high TRPs. I am sure channel has been doing polls on the sly since Oct / Nov to see the TRP junta reaction on whether IPK if continued would have been profitable and it would have been that plus their past experience in similar scenarios that would have made them decide to invest effort / promote the show till its end or end it. Or their ad sponsors did discreet surveys and shared results with Star who knows.
      Their shows in the past where male leads have been replaced have largely tanked whereas female lead replacement has been better taken I think.

      Even if the channel had given a week more, a PH who did not want the story told anymore because they felt the story had already been told may perhaps not have wanted to call back everyone and organize a meaningful end - My POV.
      So they ended it as they always envisioned it a happily remarried Arnav and Khushi together forever which they had already shot – money and time saved. A quality ending was important to fans Dia not them by this time. (And I think the entire cast was available in Mumbai for the shoot that never happened. I mean come on form the pics we see Buaji and Sashiji were around but even they were never shown to congratulate Khushi after she won the title).

      Yes the actor and his fans were a trigger and a catalyst for the story to start wobbling and the eventual demise but I shall always maintain that it was the prerogative of the narrator (the PH) to ensure the story was told whatever may be other reasons. And if they could not refuse him leave and keep him on after they had built him into the role, they should have ended it way back in May or June itself (if their interest was compromised) and the channel should have let them. But then only we the fans would have benefited and that is not the way this industry works.

      Online Fanpower - we are not Kanjibhai of OMG. If reruns happen it is because channels realize people will tune into watch and it means TRPs and therefore perhaps higher revenues. There are fans who have demanded for reruns many times (Bidaai I recall) but channel has not budged. So telling me they wanted to slap us by abrupt ending does not 100% sit with me.
      We do not know the count of those who asked for an ending with ArHi and those who said no BS No IPK so what can we say if the statement is true or false.

      Star closed it because the channel name was too much in the news. Had they continued there would have been articles on how is the story progressing, again audience would have been in on it - like dislike and so on. But TRPs would have dropped if TV audience polls said so and their standing as GEC No 1 when TRPs came back would have been more important so if TV audience polls showed that possibly more people would watch a new show than IPK without BS (they have no idea of quit, break and so on as all the spoiler devis have been online) Star would have wanted to pull the plug ASAP to ensure enough time till TRPs came back on to ensure the GEC standing. All the spoilers managed to do is give us massive insight into a mess we should never have known about. Without these we may have already used the remote ages back and even missed the last episode.

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    3. HAADecember 3, 2012 at 1:32 PM

      contd 3 & final

      What if tomorrow in an interview or when you meet her SI tells you that Dia I lost interest in the show way back and was actually happy it ended at that point and not meandered into meaninglessness? What if she tells you she stayed on because she had a fabulous team to work with, great colleagues and the show was doing good and she was earning name and fame? (ducks Bata chappals)

      SI’s silence has been intentional as per her employment dictact as the channel wanted the show going. BS has been having interview diarrhoea as per his employer i.e. PH dictat who did not want people commenting on the show’s quality as they had other shows on Star and syndicated channels.

      What we don’t know of the untold story was perhaps never meant to be known - we only see the final book and not the discarded author's drafts after all.

      Delete
    4. DiaDecember 3, 2012 at 2:17 PM

      Aww, Sandy *HUGS* Yes, I am annoyed, I admit, but basically for me, more because it's a matter of principle. I do not agree with fandom's demands to shut down a show - period. Not for the sole purpose of maintaining their own fantasy of a fairytale couple. Because there are real people you are affecting, for the sake of fictional characters who don't even exist. And I guess, having worked with people on low income, people on daily wages, people who have to decide between buying medicines or food because they can't afford both ... this is something that really bothers me, I cannot stand the thought of affecting the real lives and livelihoods of any single person for the sake for fictional characters.

      And that is my main grouse with this whole demand of No Barun, No IPKKND, end the show with Arhi ... and the sudden shutting down of the show. Not Sanaya, not the other actors ... they will get jobs easily, IPKKND has been good for them in that sense. But the fact that reality got so blurred and fact was overcome by fiction.
      My dad always used to say ... keep control over your habits, never let your habits control you.

      And the reason I do believe fandom and the negative publicity is chiefly responsible for the sudden decision is not purely emotional. It's pretty logical.

      SP is a business at the end of the day ... they get endorsements and ads based on viewership. And those are based on TRP's. That's usually the main deciding factor.
      Here it was not done because of TRP's ... those were on holiday. If they had not been on holiday, it might have been a different story ... on the other hand, it might have been the same and the channel would have had the excuse ready to show the world ... see, TRP's are dropping, so we shut down. Acceptable completely.

      All shows get extensions, or if their TRP's are dipping, they get proper notice before they are ended - I have been on IF for almost 3 years now, and have seen this happen invariably. The last show I saw which got pulled off suddenly, EDSKPH, was given barely two weeks, it was then shifted to another time slot to complete the last track. I used to watch the last ten minutes of the show because it came on just before IPK, and I was curious enough to visit the forum to see what happened to the track - did they really pull it off midway? No, they didn't ... they shifted it, let the PH wrap it up and then pulled it off.

      The fact that they did this with IPK virtually overnight means that this WAS a sudden decision. What precipitated it?

      There are only four players in this whole mess ... SP, PH, Barun and fans.
      Barun's exact position is unknown, break or quit, but what is very clear is that he gave his notice two months back, has worked it out, and has left. So nothing new in that, not to make any overnight changes.

      Delete
    5. DiaDecember 3, 2012 at 2:17 PM

      Was the reason politics between SP and PH? But PH had got a new track ready, got in a new guy, started shooting ... obviously all approved by SP ... so no, that's not it. If the track had worked, it would have continued ... if not (as was likely, considering that the PH still didn't seem interested at all in continuing, judging by the quality of the Mrs India pageant), then it would have been pulled off, just in time for the new SLB show starting in Feb. SLB show might have been a good replacement for a love story when the slot already had an international captive audience... but a show like Kaali? Kaali will lose more viewers for this slot in the next two months than an IPK with only Sanaya, Mami, Nani, NK and a new guy would have done. At least the Sanaya fans would have stuck on for IPK minus Barun ...

      Do you honestly think any IPK fan will even give Kaali a try?! Even the Barun fans who are happy the show got pulled off because their demands of No IPK without Barun have been met? You are one of the people who did not want to watch IPK if Arnav died. You have got your wish. In gratitude to the channel, will you watch Kaali?
      So what exactly has SP gained by getting IPK pulled off so suddenly? Not viewership, for sure.

      Leaves only one factor ... fans' demands and the negative publicity generated by those demands, as well as the harassment of SP personnel. Was that enough to cause this sudden overnight decision? Or was there some other unknown factor? Unless something happened between PH and SP overnight, I cannot think of anything. And considering fans' demands HAVE been taken into account earlier, though they have all invariably been for EXTENDING shows, never ending them ... one can't discount the power of fans' demands completely. So if fans exult that their decisions were enough to prolong lives of low TRP shows, they should be honest enough to accept that their demands were instrumental in causing the demise of a show as well.

      I shall now pull rank and say ... END of all discussions on ending IPK! Let's discuss Veera :)))

      Or if people want, let's do a series of favorite scenes from IPK, starting from the first month. One month worth of favourite scenes every week.

      Delete
    6. psaradaDecember 3, 2012 at 3:01 PM

      Kaali was never meant to be 8PM slot show Dia. It was supposed to be 11PM or 6:30PM show after Ruk Jaana was supposed to be off-air. The thing that SP pulled the plug off so suddenly and that too without giving any chance for a decent closure I can infer only these 2 things

      1. The SP really didn't understood the power of SARUN until SPA and in SPA they were overwhelmed and by that time the SP officials were fielding calls from the fans for 3 weeks and technically that time around the Arnav accident thing was out and it was a royal toast for the SP officials.

      2. There was major disapproval between the PH and SP. In fact the SP officials it seems were not even aware of the accident of Arnav being shot. So that means the PH was not truthful in what the tracks they wanted to show and they were projecting something to the channel whereas the track that they were shooting was something different. I think that is what lead SP to pull off the plug suddenly because they felt dealing with the fans and this PH was something which was becoming a headache.

      It was a business decision Dia and fans or no fans the egos between the PH and the channel caused it. When the TRPs come out I am pretty sure Star Plus may be out from their No. 1 position as Kaali will not rake in any TRPs compared to BV and Mahadev and Madhubala/Big Boss are going to rake in good TRPs for the Colors channel. If I were SP executives I would switch Veera to 8PM till SLB's show goes on air and would switch the Kaali show to 10:30PM as Veera is now more focused on the little baby and the Ranvijay. But knowing how greatly SP handled this IPK fiasco, I can very well bet they will allow Kaali to run till SLB's show is going to go on-air thereby they will manage to make the 8PM viewers run away from the channel and even when SLB's show comes on-air, it will have a tough time to woo people back to SP.

      Delete
    7. HAADecember 3, 2012 at 6:06 PM

      Dia,

      Absolute last I promise. Uske baad we agree to disagree if needed theek hai.

      I felt bad when that sudden end news came. I felt numb that the story would die and wished that teh decision would revert. And I have wished that everyone on the set gets work soon. I hear you when you say food or medicines like decisions for them with very less warning.

      As for me watching the show - I had said if they replace BS I may not watch it. With Viraf I just may have because I had liked him earlier or I may have simply stopped and hung around the blog.

      I was against Arnav dying in front of Khushi because it made it final and to me Khushi did not deserve that and somewhere the romantic fool in me said she would stop breathing the same instant. But I was the first to propose an accident presumed dead when Padfoot mentioned ooptions for exit of ASR. So Arnav dying on the show only to come back to Khushi or Khushi leaving to join him I was ok with. It was the Khushi with a new guy possibility I did not like.
      Guess PH stuck to their guns about the story they wanted to show this one time and refused to bend to channel pressur eto change. Pata nahi.

      the way you say I have got my wish I don't know what to say. :(

      As for me watching Star or any other channel, IPK was it. Swapping Kali with IPK for me is not possible because I am not a TV person. I was in for the love story.

      But there may be people who will tune in with curiosity and stick on. SP has gained by stopping the incessant media articles of the uncertainty surrounding the lead actor leaving.

      And YES people shoudl have exerted responsibility. I pormise my 2 mails to Star were very polite and I never asked them to end the show.But I am telling you Star was out to save teh brand image and perhaps yes slap teh sudience while they were at it - tit got tat.

      I honestly wish the infos had never leaked and IPK was recalled for all the right reasons in teh future.

      Delete
    8. psaradaDecember 4, 2012 at 1:03 AM

      Sandy/Dia,

      This would be my last on the issue. I agree with Sandy - Arnav dying in front of Khushi and Khushi moving on is something that would never gel for me. Because they are together in heart beats. I would have been okay if Viraf was gotten in as ASR replacement and they took the remaining 2 months and closed off all the loops and gave the serial a befitting end. I have no idea who is genius who thought that Khushi should move on with the new lead after Arnav's death. Well whoever did, really didn't understand the characters they have showed till now. Had they handled this in a very sensitive manner, the show would have been still on. But the ego of I made this show and I am going to do it my way is what cost this PH. End Result - they lost a successful show, earnings and its fans. Well hopefully they will remember this next time around.

      I never sent mails to Star but I agree with Sandy - Star was out to save the brand image and that was the reason they pulled the plug. And from what I saw, after the decision was made, the PH shot only 5 mins footage and closed the show. Both were done with it and it is a buried chapter for them. I think we audience should also move on from here. Once TRPs are out I am sure Star will not be the number 1 GEC - reason they lost IPK which used to fetch them good TRPs and also they have 3 new shows which will take time to sink in. And Colors have Big Boss airing so mostly Colors would be No.1 GEC channel. And then maybe Star will wake up to the possibility of a new serial on lines of IPK as they know the audience is out there for it. Let's wait and watch.

      Delete
    9. UshaDecember 4, 2012 at 3:19 AM


      Sandy,

      Finally finished reading your entire post and I totally totally agree with you. Excellently written.

      Sarada,

      I cannot believe the eminent star plus was not willing to take a risk in a non TRP period with a new actor. They just felt that they and the PH Had it in them to create a new buzz around the new actor. That is it.
      Till now IPKKND was just flowing with flow of the current with minimal effort in terms of promos, buzz etcetera. The only buzz used to be SBS with the actors offscreen antics. Now they would have to go back t first base and create fresh.

      Delete
    10. DiaDecember 4, 2012 at 4:04 AM

      My last few posts on this matter ... mainly replies to everyone here. :)))

      Sandy ... awww, don't feel bad ... for me, you and your feelings are more important than any show! *HUGS* When I said you have got what you wanted, all I meant was that you wanted the show to end with Arhi, and you got that ... doesn't mean that I didn't want the same. But I was prepared to wait and see what they had to offer. If they had shown Arnav dying in Khushi's arms, it would have been very difficult to take, but somehow I never thought they would do that, I felt they would definitely go the tried and tested way of accident and body missing ... thereby leaving the loophole of bringing Barun back at some point, but giving themselves (and Barun) the time out he wanted. Although my faith in the PH has taken a beating, somehow, I did have this much faith in them. And the Viraf angle would have been more of a one-sided love of Viraf for Khushi. The biggest mistake the PH made was to not disclose clearly what role Viraf was coming in ... it might have helped clear the confusion.

      Personally I would have preferred Viraf as a new guy. If he came as ASR, there would have been instant romance between him and Khushi and that would have been very difficult to take ... at least from my own experience. I stopped watching DMG when I couldn't take instant romance between Armaan and the new Riddhima, while I could watch the new Riddhima with a new character quite comfortably. So a slow build of relationship between Khushi and Viraf would have been watchable, especially if it remained as friendship on Khushi's end ... if Barun came back to shoot the wrap up, that would of course would have been the ideal ending. Anyway, all this is water under the bridge now.

      Sarada, basically the same points to you as well ... about preferring Viraf as a new character and hoping Barun would come back to shoot the last few scenes to wrap the show ... in which case we would have gotten a far better ending than we did ... at least we would have gotten SaRun in the same frame.

      Usha,, you repeated my point ... I don't believe SP was not willing to take a risk in a TRP holiday season. There was something else which precipitated the overnight change.

      I think with this huge success of IPK in the overseas market, SP will definitely go in for a change of programming. PKDH is an attempt in that direction, though the heroine is a poor choice, Behna has also succeeded to some extent, maybe not the same extent as IPK, so hopefully they will bring in more love stories. They have two actors with a ready-made fan base, I am very sure Sanaya will be back soon, as she is SP employee, and remains on good terms with her PH.
      I am not so sure about Barun, because I cannot decode the hidden message behind that ticker ... to me, it seemed very vindictive of SP, making Barun the scapegoat in the mess, and branding him unreliable, so am not sure if they want him back. But in this business, there are no permanent friends or enemies, if he remains as popular as he is now, then they will bring him back. And he has a huge fan base - a ready made platform for the show to take off - same as Drashti and Gurmeet - their shows started with very good TRP's because of their existent fan base.
      I highly doubt SaRun will return together though ... and frankly, I don't want them to. Too many expectations after IPK, SP will get two shows instead of one with popular actors if they return separately ... and I don't trust Barun to not lose interest and want to leave halfway through the show again. :)

      Delete
    11. DiaDecember 4, 2012 at 4:42 AM

      Sandy ... one last ... I promise *kaan pakad*
      If I met Sanaya and she said she was happy the show ended the way it did, I would be equally annoyed ... the ending didn't bother me, because we all saw the writing on the wall ... the abruptness did.
      And Sanaya was equally upset with the suddenness, so was Mami upset, Mami said that it doesn't happen that one actor leaves and you shut the show ... they were equally upset with SP as much as the fans, I think, though Sanaya blamed the fans more directly, Mami seemed equally upset with SP. Again the insult to them and their hard work ...
      And if Sanaya had left and Barun had been the one in this position, I would have been equally annoyed with Sanaya fans and with SP too. In fact I would have been furious with Sanaya fans for putting her in this position of becoming a scapegoat. And I would have been worried like hell for Sanaya with that SP message. My only consolation in this whole mess is that she has emerged unscathed.

      PH and SP have both got egg on their faces, and I am actually worried for Barun ... the poor guy did everything right, gave notice, left on good terms and took a big personal risk, and now he doesn't have a show to come back to if his film fails. He is in the worst position, because public memory is very fickle ... it's still four months till his movie launch. If the show had ended in Feb, it would be a two month gap, not enough for memory to fade, and just enough for people to be waiting to see him again. The only good thing is that there is no hero waiting in the wings to take his place ... none of the other telly actors today have that charisma and talent that Barun does.

      Delete
    12. HAADecember 4, 2012 at 8:34 AM

      Huggs D,

      Almost had a saansein rukna moment you know :P

      Delete
    13. DiaDecember 5, 2012 at 6:49 AM

      Awww, Sandy *hugs* back!

      Delete
  7. RekhaDecember 3, 2012 at 1:59 PM

    To me IPK ending was a business decision...nothing more nothing less....irrespective of who caused, who precipitated it. But to me, the channel was the only one with the power to deliver the verdict as the decision maker becos they were the ones who were to be accountable for the bottomline of that show.

    They chose to take opinions, analysed, judged, rationalised while keeping all options open. Their suddenness in decision tho may have caused us to speculate...

    Atm, i see the end of IPK as a trial separation between SP and PH.....Why a trial separation?

    Becos, sometimes, wavelengths don't match, extraneous considerations apply pressure..its becomes necessary to put some distance to have better perspective....

    In my view, they would be working out how to get this relationship going which has been beneficial to both, largely....painful at times....but if they wish to continue the relationship, maybe some distance was necessary.

    IPK ending is the end of the ARHI story!!Why did it end? a lot of views and some consensus!!difficult to get convergence on this becos everyone has a certain way of looking at things.....

    I wouldn't be surprised at all if the team (SP and 4Lions came with a new story very soon....Well, if they don't, it just means that the relationship could not bear the strain of being together despite all the gud times!!


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  8. SuDecember 3, 2012 at 2:30 PM

    Why can't Sanaya fans show girl power?
    Boycott the 8 pm slot in SP and get the message across to SP (spamming bhi) that they cannot pull the plug on a Sanaya show like this. Let them get her back in another show soon at 8PM.
    This SLB show- slated for feb? Any chance San might bag the role?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. DiaDecember 3, 2012 at 3:11 PM

      *ROFL* Su, boycott or not, I really don't see the average IPK fan tuning into Kaali for more than one episode. So boycott will happen automatically. Even the Barun and Sarun fans, who have got their wish of happy Arhi ending ... I really wonder how many will watch or are watching Kaali ... actually, that would be an interesting statistic to collate :)))

      However I do plan to write to SP asking them to bring Sanaya back as soon as possible. I miss my sunshine girl already. :))) Ainvayi ... itne log spam karte hain, main bhi ek mail bhej dungi :p

      I would ask for Barun too ... not necessarily with Sanaya, but even without ... but I want the Barun of the first nine months of IPK please. The last nine months he was quite a disaster ... now that I watch the old episodes and compare :))) So let him have his R&R first!
      Besides, Barun ka kuch bharosa nahin ... kya pata kab he wants movies, break, quit ... haircut, shave ... :p
      Sandy mujhe maregi :)))

      Read an interview of Sanaya post IPK end, where she is happy she is getting lots of offers and is in a position to pick and choose, and she says this is a position any actor would be very happy to be in. IPKKND may not have gotten her awards, but her talent has definitely been recognized. She is still with SP, and I don't have any doubts she will be back soon. She took six months between MJHT and IPK, so about that much or less, I would think, especially as she didn't get so many offers after MJHT as she is getting now, from her interview.
      DN - I have no insider information :)))

      Also needs to be seen which SP show is ready to go off air in a few months. YRKKH should be on the list, the rest are all fairly new and doing reasonably well. SLB show is already lined up for 8 pm when it's ready, I think Kaali is just a stopgap till then.

      Delete
    2. AyeshaDecember 3, 2012 at 3:51 PM

      Dia,
      I have made peace with the fate of the show now - the failure of the PH to tell their story, the butchering of the characters by the CT, the offscreen drama and the abrupt closure. And I don't know if I shall ever get so attached to a show again. Yes, I am looking forward to seeing Sanaya Irani in another show. And it better be without Barun Sobti! Sorry, guys, but I don't trust Barun Sobti anymore. He seems to have reservations to commit to a show in the long run. I know everyone here is treating him kindly ( I am not saying that he does not deserve that, he is not solely responsible for the mess!) but in my opinion, he has definitely been the catalyst. I somehow cannot let go of the fact that the show may have seen a different fate if he would have left in February of this year itself! Too much of wishful thinking, I know. But one thing is for sure, I shall think twice before watching a show having Barun Sobti as a lead.

      Delete
    3. DiaDecember 3, 2012 at 4:47 PM

      Ayesha, I've made my peace with it too ... I didn't really trust the PH to take the story forward in any great way ... and they have been so fickle with Khushi's character, nothing short of a miracle would have resurrected it.
      But this whole 'Barun is the show, the show is nothing without Barun' has left a very bad taste in my mouth. Have come across obsessed fans earlier in San's previous show, as well as in DMG, and I'm very wary of them. Fortunately I was not on IF during DMG, I believe things were even worse then, with constant comparisons between the different Riddhimas.

      Sanaya will be back soon ... if she's already talking about offers. From what I've seen of her, she will pick something as different from Khushi as possible ... Gunjan and Khushi are chalk and cheese. Surprisingly, although Sanaya said she is a lot like Khushi, on the show she was ALWAYS 100% Khushi. I could pick one or two times max when I felt I saw Sanaya peeping through.
      Same with Gunjan ... there Sanaya and Gunjan are completely different people, and San NEVER showed through the character of Gunjan, it was always 100% Gunjan, especially the way she spoke, her dialogue delivery, and low quiet voice. Quite fascinating, actually, how she managed that. Another reason I'm waiting to see what she will do next - it should be a good watch. She is definitely the best telly actress on air today. Have been surfing channels and shows and I can say that with confidence.
      I also like Ratan of Veera, but she's a different genre, of course ;) Her acting in that scene when she tells Chaiji ... I'm struggling to be a mother and a father, and I can't manage it ... touched my heart!

      I don't think Sanaya will be back with Barun ... channels usually don't repeat jodis, BS wants a break, and Sanaya obviously doesn't want too long a break. Can I say I'm really happy about that :))) (About San not wanting a long break, I mean)
      Besides cv's and actors know too many comparisons will be made if they come together again.

      BS was the catalyst ... in the sense that maybe his first movie break started the downfall ... but going by this PH and its history, if he hadn't, something else would have. And why did the downfall continue unabated? It's not that the PH didn't have notice, that one fine day he told them he's started shooting a movie. The PH has to be held responsible for that ... the buck stops with them. Passing it to Barun is not really fair. :)))
      I think he must have a very strong reason for walking out the way he has, despite what must have been tremendous pressure from the channel to stay on ... what his reasons are, personal or professional, I don't know, they're none of my business, and I respect that completely ... Nobody walks out on such a successful show without very good reason.

      But his departure has been very badly handled, that goes without saying. Somewhere a lot of egos have become involved, to the detriment of the show.

      Delete
    4. psaradaDecember 4, 2012 at 1:16 AM

      Dia,

      It was never "Barun is the show and show is Barun". The only thing is when the show got pulled off, he is the one who was the ready scapegoat and hence you get this spin of 'Without Barun the show is nothing'. I have been around IF during the DMG time frame and believe me they continued protests for 6 months. Why didn't the show close shop then. Even when Mihir was dead, it seems there were protests - he was recalled but the show was not killed.

      The show was killed because of PH and Channel ego clashes and nothing else. And now both PH and Channel are scampering to cover themselves and hey they have a ready made guy to cover for them. Hence you have a 'we have decided to close the show as Barun is not available' ticker.

      I agree with you Dia, maybe BS's first movie break started the downfall but you can't deny that after SPA, the makers got overconfident and there was never a consistent storyline after the hate marriage. The Gupta track could have been used much better in that ASR gets to know that Shyam was the paying guest in Gupta house. But hell no. The whole track was stupidity to the max. And all the tracks after the hate marriage were not thought out properly and I agree with most of the audience that the PH lost the ability to tell the story. Viewers stuck around because of BS-SI chemistry. If not BS, something else would have triggered the downfall. The PH is very inconsistent in delivering the end results and that has been its history. I blame the PH for the show's slow death.

      Had the PH been willing to give the show a decent chance of survival after BS left, believe me it would have handled BS's departure in much more better manner. From the way the PH handled the things,it was very clear they were not interested in continuing this show and for that they need to accept the responsibility. They can't blame the channel or Barun for the show closure. And this has been the 2nd show in running for this PH which died like this. I am so done with this PH and most of the fans are going to be wary of this PH due to their PR handling.

      I am not sure if channel repeats jodis but I do hope I get one more show with Sanaya and Barun along with the whole gang of Karan, Akshay and Deepali. Let's hope some PH casts them together after seeing their popularity.

      Delete
    5. HAADecember 4, 2012 at 2:15 PM

      Sarada,

      Very tempted to give feedback to have a IPK Christmas special by channel with all of them in their offscreen avatars. A 1 hour special some weekeend. Just so I can see all of the on screen happy and together.

      Btw saw an article saying Abhaas is in a new show. TOI seems to be hanging on IPKKND populaity to get eyeballs for its web portal :):)

      Delete
  9. UshaDecember 4, 2012 at 2:25 AM


    I really think love stories come one in a million and should also be treated differently than the run off the mill show. I get addicted to a love story but I am able to effortlessly change the channel for other shows without one minute of doubt.

    The channels and PH's have to think on their feet when it comes to a love story and when it comes to a show which has the potential or has become a cult show.
    Not many shows come which become cult shows or cult love stories.
    A family show has he potential for characters coming, characters going, charcacters dying, characters moving on, characters getting married again to spite the first husband but not a love story. This audience is not emotionally invested in it.
    And the genre of a love story has to be respected.
    Just as they have the guts to pull out a show with a low trp without thinking off actors, employees etcetera, they should have he guts to let a love story be told the way it should be told and then out a full stop to it even if it is at a high in a planned, celebratory way.

    You can wish for the longevity of a show and pray that it does not have an emotionally addicted audience but you cannot have it both ways. The emotionally connected audience gave the show the trp when there was nothing worth watching and others had the ones looking for drama had used their remote effortlessly.


    Would Romeo and juliet ever be Romeo and Juliet if Juliet got married to somebody else and fell out of love of Romeo. I don't thnk so.
    The genre is different and I really hope love stories are treated differently from normal social and family shows with a fixed number of episodes where you know clearly the last episode.

    When did serials and the serial making industry become a government job with a regular income. The industry is like that and no use wishing it wasn't.

    Ps - I will never watch SLB's new show, saraswati chandra because I can never identify with that story f loving somebody and marrying somebody else for the family even for a million dollar set and shooting in Dubai. Nowadays we have to get used to telling ourself that 'if my son ever comes and tells me he wants to marry somebody, et me not make a face and let my first word not be a NO'. Though I have many years. For that scenario but it has played out many times in my head which shows the changing times. Expecting children to sacrifice for family is a dated concept in my mind and I can never sign up for it. What can I do?

    And this after having loved the original movie saraswati chandra with Nutan and the song Phool tumhe bheja hai khat mein, phool nahin mera dil hai.

    The serial will have an audience but I will not be its audience because I Don't like to be in the 'hamare zamane mein' was better mould.

    I would have been perfectly happy if Viraf had come in as ASR But I would have used the remote if he had come in as somebody else for two months and spoilt the arnav khushi story because for me IPKKND was the Story of ARNAV AND KHUSHI ONLY.

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    Replies
    1. psaradaDecember 4, 2012 at 4:12 AM

      Agree with you Usha. For me IPKKND was story of Arnav and Khushi and I would have not accepted Viraf as a new lead who falls in love with Khushi in the last 2 months. This was not the story I was sold. Having said that maybe I would have accepted if they got Viraf as ASR and closed off all the loops and gave the serial a fitting end. The creatives were in that thought even GH but Gul wanted ASR out and a new character in to romance Khushi. Shows that she didn't understand neither her audience nor the characters which she created. I would also have been okay with Khushi staying alone with memories of Arnav and becoming the ASR for the family. But no matter what I could not have accepted Khushi moving on with other person. That would have spoiled the whole love story for me. The makers grossly miscalculated the story they themselves created and hence the outrage.

      And I agree with you with SLB's saraswati chandra. I cannot identify with that movie now even though the songs were my personal favorites when I was growing up. Read the novel too when I got hooked on books but at that time also I couldn't really connect to the novel. That is what I told Dia too in her IF post that I wish Sanaya doesn't come in that serial as the theme and the story is not relevant to this age.

      Delete
    2. DiaDecember 4, 2012 at 4:26 AM

      I have no idea what the story is about ... and I am sure Sanaya will choose something different from both Khushi and Gunjan. She likes challenging herself, and from what I have seen, she can rise above the script and make her role memorable. So I'm looking forward to seeing what she chooses to do next. If not SC, then any good show ... I don't even know if she has been offered SC, but it's quite possible she has, as the actress signed earlier apparently left. But Sanaya did say she is getting 'offers' ... so probably she has more than one choice available. Earlier she was offered Jeevika and Khushi, she chose Khushi because Jeevika was somewhat similar to Gunjan. So I think she would try to find something different from both this time. Just my guess.

      I don't want her to stay with the same PH though ... although I admire Nissar and the LM/AK duo, I feel Gul has very limited creativity ... all three of her shows have been variants of serious man with dark past, and chirpy bubbly girl. Don't want another one ... from all the comments on QH, looks like that combination is already past its "Use By" date.

      And it would do her good to work with another PH and get more experience ... although she is obviously very comfortable with this one. Again I don't want to say anything, leave it to her, she's the best judge of what she wants to do next. Unless it's something I completely detest, I will follow her show :)))

      Delete
    3. psaradaDecember 4, 2012 at 4:58 AM

      Dia ROFL on your take of Gul's creativity and definitely the brooding man with dark past with chirpy bubbly girl is way past "Use By" date. Unless Gul wakes up and comes up with new themes, I don't give 4Lions any chance.

      Coming to Saraswati chandra the story is of a girl who has arranged marriage set with the family friend's son. The family friend's son though wants to do social work and doesn't want to marry and both start on a journey of writing letters to each other eventually falling in love. But something happens and the marriage is called off. The girl is married to someone else and he is a womanizer and a drunkard who mistreats his wife. After sometime the lover is by some chance(don't remember much) is forced to stay in the married girl's house. Now the heroine is forced to portray a happily married woman in front of her past lover and from there on it is a triangle of sorts. In the end the heroine goes away and stays in a ashram and the lover is given the responsibility to convey the news that she has become a widow. The lover wants to marry her as she is a widow now but the heroine is like "I am going to be his wife only forever", gets her sister married to him(her ex-lover) and tells him to continue doing social work.

      Now I have no idea how SLB wants to shoot this show. The movie had my favorite song "chanchal chitvaan" and "phool nahi" but this ping pong between the lead and the 2 guys is so not my cup of tea.

      Delete
    4. DiaDecember 4, 2012 at 7:02 AM

      Sarada, thanks for that ... I see what you mean :))) Not my cup of tea either!

      LM mentioned that he will start work on a new love story after a break ... by 'he', did he mean 4lions? Because he is only the director, as far as I know, not the script or story writer. I wonder if SP has also learned their lesson, that they should back off and let the PH tell their story their way ... But again, Gul and her attention span is the problem.

      Let's wait and watch. Good thing my break is coming up ... will be off for three weeks or so in winter. I expect, or rather I hope, that we get news of an interesting new show in the next 2-3 months. Since SP knows they have a ready market for this kind of show now, they will push it. I also remember reading about Cinevistas' new show on SP ... don't know if that is in the pipeline and whether the cast is finalised for that one.

      Delete
    5. UshaDecember 4, 2012 at 7:15 AM


      Everybody,

      I am now a spoilt customer. I keep looking fr chemistry in a love story and if I don't find it, my attention wavers. Sigh!
      First maan Geet, then arnav khushi, now what?
      I like Vivian but the Vivian DD chemistry is ?
      Maan and Geet was spoilt by all the off screen pairing of the fans.
      IPKKND was so lucky to have BS AND SI who were so comfortable with each other and in their own skins but it was not to be. Sigh again.
      Maybe in another 2-3 months we will get something.

      Delete
    6. HAADecember 4, 2012 at 8:31 AM

      Usha,

      Spoilt customer I agree. Nothing makes me stay beyond 5 minutes and I am happy to use the adage Dekhna Hai Toh Dekho.

      Delete
    7. HAADecember 4, 2012 at 8:37 AM

      You know heights would be if once the tempers and emotions and sentiments have settled down the whole team including channel all comes back together in the future to dish out a new story. After all like you all have reminded me - this industry ka ek usool no one is a friend or enemy forever.

      They do a Hum Saath Saath Hain and we all go WT!

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    8. UshaDecember 4, 2012 at 8:54 AM

      Sandy,

      Of course, bcos finally they all seem to be in one camp with ny good things to say about one another.

      So WT is definitely a possibility. :-)))))))))

      Delete
    9. RekhaDecember 4, 2012 at 9:52 AM

      Usha, Sandy,


      if that WT? happens....i will have the "ignominy" of an actual first gloatwa ve...
      I could never get one thing right on the show while it lasted and i will have one when it ended....kya kismat paayi hain....LOL

      Delete
  10. psaradaDecember 4, 2012 at 7:37 AM

    Dia, I think LM was just pacifying. Take his words with a pinch of salt. I don't think he is serious giving out feelers about his new show. And LM I honestly feel is an attention seeker and bit overrated. He is a good director no doubt but he needs the chemistry between the actors to be top-notch and that is the reason he could create chemistry between Arnav-Khushi and not in Phir Subah hogi. I don't know how much LM is still with 4Lions but if he is smart he would move on.

    With SP and PH I seriously am blaming PH more. The reason is it seems SP did audience survey as back as May/june and gave the feedback for the PH - namely open the past loop - close and get redemption in tracks but the PH were hell bent on going the Di Ke liye track. So somewhere I do feel Gul has too huge an ego to take into consideration any advice. I don't think things would work with 4Lions if Gul continues this attitude. Once QH tanks maybe Gul will come back to earth.

    Somehow I feel that SP will get Sanaya in NB and keep her busy for the next 2-3 months till BS frees up and then pairs them in a show around May-June next year. I am most probably guessing Yeh Rishta would breathe out at that time around as there is nothing much to show in the serial and maybe we will get a M&B around May time frame with Sanaya and BS. Somehow I am thinking that way Sanaya would do her NB as she wanted to do it and also get a new show. Let's see what happens. I don't think SLB's Saraswati chandra will take off and mainly due to the storyline not being relevant now. For the time being I want to go back to books to rewind. Let's see what comes up next.

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    Replies
    1. HAADecember 4, 2012 at 9:06 AM

      Sarada / Dia,

      Are you following Phir Subah Hogi? I recall when it began Dia had liked it and seen potential in story. Meandering is it?

      I too want SI in NB. She is a good dancer and it will keep her in the public memory without being too taxing. Plus I think her strategy of being away for a while and then taking a role different from previous ones is a good one. That way it reduces comaparisons with the previous role she played and rather brings out the contrast.

      I wish someone else from the cast gets a chance to anchor maybe Daljeet and Akshay? I think they do a winners of last season anchor next season types?

      Sarada,
      I saw potential in the Di ke liye track but yes the timing was wrong. Especially since they did not manage the Arnav kidnap portion to balance Arnav and Khushi time along with family. It was all Khushi and audience starved for romance just wanted to see ArHi together. They could have given a week of romance, family involvement, Shyam fuming silently elsewhere, vowing revenge and then eased into the Di ke liye track. But then tehre seemd this hurry to bring in Shyam and the past in the form of Dadi. They got the feedback, planned to use it but made a bad creative call in execution?

      They did not get the Anjali characterization right then. She was such a gentle and nice human being that a sudden change to intruder and being rude did not gel well. Her insecurities were not well received because unlike Arnav they were never shown to exist clearly to audience. (Lord does this PH only know to shape up male lead characters and messes up all female characters?)
      Sigh again that media circus with her quitting at that time. Totally lost the actor and by extension her character sympathy.

      I would actually like to see SI in an adaptation of "2 states" on telly. Light and flaky but the woman in that story is a spirited one - a good mix of old and new world.

      actually I would like to see a story on some channel which tries to encapsulate an aaj ki nari woman in the real spirit - I recall liking the ad / promo they came up with when they changed the logo and came up with the new tagline.
      But it will be creatively challenging and there must be constant lookout to not fall into cliches.

      I also think short story series should be brought back. Seasons of a series basis audience reception. It seems a viable propo for the 8 to 9 PM slot on TV these days.

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    2. psaradaDecember 4, 2012 at 9:56 AM

      Sandy,

      Just caught a week of episodes of Phir subah hogi because everyone was like LM is there and what not. Needless to say was completely pissed off and LM's great direction didn't do any magic for me. So my conclusion LM can create magic only when actors can do so.

      The story could have taken good turns during/after kidnapping of Arnav. Arnav could have shown applying his brain and deducing what is the relationship with Shyam - Khushi, Anjali could have shown to be growing brains and the character growth could have been shown for the characters. The creatives completely messed up with the Di Ke Liye track. I agree with you Sandy, because Gul got good characters and tracks but she gave prominence only to Arnav's character. She didn't give any importance to other characters. That was the reason the story meandered and then finally fell off the cliff.

      Actually I read some story during my teenage years(in telugu I believe not remember quite clearly now) in which the heroine and hero start off fighting. Hero is a flirt, falls for heroine who is a go-getter and both eventually want to commit. Turns out Hero's father is responsible for the destruction of heroine's family business leading to her parents dying. Heroine keeps the information to herself and goes ahead with the marriage with the intention of taking everything back from the hero's family. The tug of war between the love for her husband and the desire for revenge was written very well. Why can't we have some serials like that. Where the heroine is not just a dame but a woman who can think for herself and who can stand up and fight. Damn yaar I can visualize SI and BS in this story.

      I would love to see some serials as ER on Indian Telly. Intense hospital drama with M&B characters and I also would like to give 24 on Colors a chance. Wish BS comes on 24 - used to like that series while I was in US.


      Delete
    3. RekhaDecember 4, 2012 at 9:59 AM

      There was huge potential in te Di track as long as they did not sell it as that.....

      If all conflict points in a story are nipped in the bud what do u watch....two people serenading by the poolside...actually we could have watched it too if these were on screen but seriously IPK had to borrow a Dadi from ashram to create conflict.....

      Sandy, I did not have an issue with Anji going a bit rude...after all her husband had been sent out of the house, she was his bhakt, wasn't given proof, was also not the type to anlayse beyond a point (ASR and Anji were real bhai-behen in that respect!)

      its not that people are positive or negative...even in real life, it happens...ts quite possible to have a disagreement and an MU of sorts with someone u usually had a good understanding with...it doesn't mean that they have gone bad.....

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    4. HAADecember 4, 2012 at 10:20 AM

      Sarada

      For a long time any M&B conflict stories trust me high recall of SI and BS will happen

      Rekha,
      I know you keep nipping conflcit in a star crossed love story then what is left and if teh channel did it - dande to them.

      See when you first set expeectation from a character and then show very different behaviour in a changed circumstance you need to establish the thought process of the individual and then highlight teh changed scenario to ensure audience gets it and accepts it. Liek you said it is not absolute +ve or -ve but the greyness due to relativity.

      And yeah I agree that Anji and ASR were very alike and perhaps that was the thought on paper but to convincingly show it on screen is a must given they projected their similarities diffently. Till the wedding it was there but then they never made it grow.
      Oh I want to wring teh creative consultants neck jsut bcos of what they did to the story.

      Kiddo and I were having dinner and she was taking her time with it so I happened to see DABH the other day. (Well Star happens to be channel No 1 on my set top box and recently my provider moved Zee to No2..hmm digitization ke after effects??)
      Anyways so yeah saw an epi of DABH and teh leads are average, it is a normal story but the issue on hand was how a husband made his wife come around to agreeing with him to not give up on her dreams just as she would not like him to give up in his own quiet manner. Now I am sure a lot of women out there wish their husbands were so perceptive and caring - no wonder TRP topper for Indian audiences.

      Delete
    5. HAADecember 4, 2012 at 10:21 AM

      Oh and frozen brains or brains go missing on male lead = indication that creativity cells go missing or get miswired in the heads of PH?

      So be forewarned? :)

      Delete
    6. RekhaDecember 4, 2012 at 10:43 AM

      Sandy,

      I agree with u...what u put on paper and what u translate on screen ..petty much two diff things...

      Despite shatir dimag jokes on ASR, i ould accept creatively why his brains were froen becos I was following the ASR narrative from day 1, some of the things that were never said, made a lot of sense to me only becos it was ASR.....i could accept that even tho he could have found out about Shyam's truth much earlier, i was ready to accept that the man was blinded by his love....only becos thats the kind of narrative they built for him...that Khushi's first thought must be of ASR, he could not bear to accept that she may considered someone else worthy of that tot before him....

      to me it was acceptable for Anji to have MUs with Arnav ad Khushi....becos the narrative was built around Anji's devotion to Shyam but the fact that Anji was equally devotional about her love to her bro...was the aspect that perhaps the audience chose to contend...
      Its that place where the narrative weakened and people's imaginations took over....becos everyone started seeing Arnav's position being correct and so Anji being the righteous must support Arnav completely ignoring the point that Anji was also a wife....can we say the narrative failed in making that point forcefully or the viewers got entrapped in their sense of right or wrong?

      Delete
    7. psaradaDecember 4, 2012 at 10:53 AM

      Sandy,

      Today did nothing so watched DABH and MB. I have to say IPK has spoiled me. DABH I can't get the 1.5 expressions of the leads and basically the MIL shouting at the top of her voice. But apart from that I liked the sets, the characters wardrobe and the seamlessly direction. The sarees that Sandhya wears are too good and compare it with the tents Khushi wore even when she was supposed to be a business tycoon's wife. Somehow I feel the PH should spend money to get the feel and looking at other PHs, I am very pissed off on 4Lions. Apart from that the story is something I think people will relate to and hence it is No.1 on TRP charts. Would I continue watching it. Probably not. I couldn't stand the lead and her expressions. So going to give it a miss.

      Watched MB too the KC episode. Dhrasti was good as Geet or maybe at that time I didn't see Sanaya acting so I was okay with her. But here today I felt DD couldn't get the pain of Madhu across. I kept on comparing to the pain that Sanaya emoted when Arnav goes for London prior kidnapping. The eyes, the emotions Sanaya was too good. And also Vivian though he looks the part, BS is a class apart. BS nailed the arrogant, don't-give-a-damn-to-anyone ASR too good and I think for a long time BS is going to be the yardstick for this role. I frankly couldn't stand the scheming Deepali and her taunts. I get put off with vamps and she was no different. But here too I loved the sets and the costumes and the direction. Seriously 4Lions need to look around at other serials and know how to put a better product on the table. The way they made BS wear the same brown suit and Sanaya the same horrible tents, I don't think this PH will go places if they continue shooting the episodes like they shot IPK. I would probably give this too a miss and would be in AD for a while. BS and SI have influenced me too much. And Sandy, I do hope some M&B serial comes online and hopefully BS and SI will come in that. Really hoping for it.

      Delete
    8. RekhaDecember 4, 2012 at 10:59 AM

      HAving said that IPK has spoiled me compeltely for verbose romances....the art of the silence being more eloquent than the mushiness of speech......J had made the same point earlier, i think...

      It would take a great pair of actors and a great script/screenplay/direction and dialogues to make me appreciate a "noisy" romance again....oh what u have done BS_SI and IPK?

      Delete
    9. RekhaDecember 4, 2012 at 11:17 AM

      On DABH, I see u point Sandy..thats why i say i can appreciate why DABH is a TRP no 1....

      the reality of the target audience and why there would be an instant connect for them ...in a country where for many women, the marriage is the end of any personal aspirations (even while being a goal in itself), DABH comes with an interesting theme...since i don't watch it...its diffi for me to say how its handled

      I guess if i wanted to appreciate some such message in a love story, i could watch it...but since i am actually not looking for a message other that wat the two lovers to each other in a love story, its kinda lost on me...( i am shallow viewer in that respect i guess)

      Delete
    10. SuDecember 4, 2012 at 12:43 PM

      An off hand, out of context observation on the target audience and the trp no:1:

      In a country where the trp no:1 is DABH, I feel it is expected that a story like IPK will never top the trp.

      There are many teenagers who are not allowed to watch IPK for the sensuality it oozed...an audience that welcomed DABH with open hands is definitely going to look down on IPK. The target audience is totally different, and I guess we are in a minority.

      Look at all the other love stories floating around- PV, PKDH, MB- there are no sensuous looks/ scenes in any of these romances.(All those supposed romantic loks of longing make me want to laugh or change the channel) Makes them safe for family viewing.

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    11. psaradaDecember 4, 2012 at 1:08 PM

      Su,

      I don't agree with you. IPK was a good family viewing story and it was much better than some of the other soaps on air. Though the target audience for this show is above 15, anyone who has ever read M&B or is a teenager could relate to this show. In PV the promos itself are very sensuous much more than IPK ever was.

      I don't think DABH is going to be number 1 for a long time especially with the new TRP system in place. The old TRP system was basically because they the TRP meters were set in only 8000 houses and I am pretty sure with the new TRPs in place DABH will sure have a hard time maintaining the no.1 position.

      The audience sure are waking up for other genre of shows and IPK sure was a trendsetter in the M&B category. Given that it was such a great success I do hope other PHs wake up to this genre and we get more shows on these lines. Just read that Kaali had a disappointing start on Star UK wherein Star lost about 100,000+ viewers for the IPK slot and it scored the lowest in the 7:30 - 11:00 PM time slot. So time for Star to wake up.

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    12. RekhaDecember 4, 2012 at 1:10 PM

      which is why I have been saying that the sensibilities of the channel and ph match did not occur altho they were married and thy had a successful period of union even considering the painful aspects....

      so the channel would have to revisit some of its fondly held notions and an analysis of its audience reach before attempting to give serials like IPK a long rein.....

      Delete
    13. RekhaDecember 4, 2012 at 1:18 PM

      Sarada,

      I see ur point about the diff genres and there being a market for diff kinds of serials but the audience in the rural areas will still see a connect with serials that they can identify easily with...cultural moors, habitat etc...

      IPk was not an issue per se for family viewing but i suspect the channel had certain guidelines...apart from that the PH themselves did many things aesthetically but then there is something which is called the power of suggestion(J, i will always remember u for this term) that can make a single glance scorchingly hot than the apparently suggestive screenplay....

      My point about sensibilities was more about channel wanting to focus on family dramas with female characters (the female all-rounder)

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    14. HAADecember 4, 2012 at 2:11 PM

      Rekha / Su / Sarada,

      I saw like 3 min of DABH because I was curious. I will never sit and watch it. My point to compare it was there is a story that drives the series and hence there is a continuity and not so much ambiguity on critical points such as charcters and their thoughts at a point. Plus the concept of teh show is a hubby supporting his wife and till day the show seems to have stayed true to that concept and that is where IPK waffled I think.
      MB its more time filling if I want to or accidental surfing.

      Yes SI and BS have wonderfully expressive eyes and no other actors measure up for me as a result. And I am with Rekhs, some of my all time fave scenes are the silent ones. Music, some great lighting, 2 actors playing their characters to a T and a story being told.

      IPK had an audience too perhpas not in the TRP regions and 2nd tier metros but in the main metros and perhaps the region that the show claimed to hail from Lucknow it would have been watched.

      TV today is no longer a homemaker viewing tool. There are professionals like us, the youth and even men who watch. So the target is audience. The challenge is to peg which audience is likely to watch which timeslot and ensure you also counter the competition shows at that slot.

      After IPK, I hope Star considers differential shows being shown for different audiences. More of a pain but imagine the 8 to 8:30 PM shows different serials for Indian and non-Indian audiences. And if needed use the retelecast timings to show the Indian show abroad for all the travelling desis. The genre could be similar but the content will differ in terms of what would be acceptable.

      And yes IPK was initially for family viewing - there was a little for everyone and that is why the usage of only the leads went against it when the show became leads centric.

      Channel wanted a youth oriented show after Navya on the main GEC channel and not just Channel V. There would have been guidleines in terms of acceptable content romance wise as well as other sensibilities that will need to be catered in terms of the target audiece they perceive watches it at that time.

      I mean there was a time certain types wacthed Star World and others Star Plus. Now IPKis a game changer in that way cos lots of Star World watching audience would have logged into Star Plus.

      So time for the research analysts to get to work.

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    15. AnonymousDecember 4, 2012 at 4:59 PM

      It's interesting how IPKKND has turned into a discussion about evolution of TV audience. I feel the TV audience have come a full 360. If Doordarshan could cater to a varied audience 20 years ago, I am sure SP can do it too. Just goes to show - too much of something (saas-bahu drama) can be a bane.

      Isha

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    16. HAADecember 4, 2012 at 7:33 PM

      Isha,

      I sincerely hope the channels start thinking about content based limited period shows and ehance story telling on TV as a medium. It has all the time that movies do not have and so much is possible. reality shows seemt o be getting a bit repetitive too.

      And evolution of TV audience is indeed an interesting thought. Wonder what an AC Nielsen like company thinks.

      Delete
    17. RekhaDecember 4, 2012 at 8:42 PM

      Sandy

      me curious, I want to understand the mechanics tat will calibrate fandom epression....and esp when juxtaposed with people who will exercise choices in a haphazard manner....if consulting comes into this...wl be interesting what they would say?

      Delete
    18. DiaDecember 5, 2012 at 7:15 AM

      Difficult to reply to everyone ... the discussion has gone in all directions!
      Just a few points ... I strongly doubt that Barun will be back any time soon on television. He seems to have made his decision, and he seems to be the kind of guy who will stick to it. Otherwise no one walks out on a top ranked show despite so much pressure ...

      Star Plus by giving that message has done him a lot of harm. It may be seen as a compliment by fans, but it is a very back-handed one. He has effectively been branded as an actor who can hold his show to ransom. NOT the best person to hire - if he can take a show to heights, he can also cause its untimely end. It's totally unfair on the guy to make him the scapegoat for the clashes between the channel and she PH ... but at the end of the day, he is a small guy, an actor with one hit show to his credit, as compared to the PH and the channel. So he will suffer the most. Again, I know no one agrees with me here, but I blame the fans for the noise they made, which pushed SP into making this overnight decision. They were pushed into a corner - fans demanded Barun, but Barun was not ready to come back. Bottom line.

      Sanaya might suffer too, but for a shorter period ... she is already being sent for an SP even to the US now ... am guessing SP will gauge the reaction to her there ... and if she has enough fans, she will be brought back, as the other half of their international face. She has a ready made fan base, which while not as huge as Barun's, is pretty big in its own right, especially internationally, and she has proved herself both as an actress and as a dedicated SP employee. At the very least, she will get live shows and hosting opportunities. My feeling is, after a suitable break to shake off the Khushi image, she will be brought back in another IPK-type show meant for the international audience, but with another actor. I won't be surprised if it is Viraf.

      Delete
    19. DiaDecember 5, 2012 at 7:22 AM



      The other actors will obviously not suffer ... Abhaas has already almost bagged a new show. Mami - Utkarshaji was a supporting acress - IPK has given her a lot of fame and her own new fan base, compared to the routine mother roles she has done earlier. I got a glimpse in Mrs Kaushik ...

      What has IPKKND done for Star? It has shown Star that there is a huge international Indian diaspora they can tap into, which doesn't care for saas-bahu shows, but can identify very strongly with the IPK type of clashes between East and West, where the Western POV has been projected sympathetically, and NOT - as is usual in most shows - as all evil and wicked. Indians abroad could identify with Arnav's going along with rituals, even while not believing in them, in living in and casual relationships, in the clashes between Nani and Arnav, which were traditional vs modern, but with acceptance and give and take, rather than the one-dimensional absolute refusal.
      I have lived abroad for almost twenty years ... most Indians abroad face the struggle of making their kids understand Indian values, while allowing them to fit into the Western mould. And most Indian families abroad subscribe to Indian channels - mostly they follow shows like Saregama or Indian Idol or news, IPK changed that. It brought into focus clashes that most modern Indian parents and families face in the wake of increasing Westernization ... that's why it became popular in metros and among Indians abroad. I'm sure when the TRP's return, especially if they include more digitization of the metros, the TRP's will tell a very different story than two months ago. And feedback from abroad is easier to measure in terms of subscriptions ... although most Indian channels are subscribed in a package, not individually. However if there is demand for SP in the package, then that's the feedback SP is looking for.

      Not only Indians abroad ... there is this huge middle class in India today, which follows only Western shows, and looks down on Indian soaps as being regressive and saas-bahu. This is another segment SP has tapped into - the audience which enjoys the fluffy KJo kind of romances ... lots of good-looking people, dialogues and situations they can relate to, especially a heroine who has a tongue in her head and can talk back, and a much more Westernised ambience. Basically shows catering to urban sensibilities, especially those in the metros.

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    20. AyeshaDecember 5, 2012 at 8:24 AM

      Dia,
      I agree with you. The show has given a lot of exposure to the actors so they won't have difficulty to find jobs in the future. However, I feel that the exception will be Barun Sobti. Most people in the TV industry will be wary of taking him as a lead in any show now. The abrupt closure of the show will not help his reputation in the future. I personally don't have a problem with him quitting the show, that is his prerogative. But the offscreen drama surrounding his departure has left such a sour taste in my mouth that I doubt I'll ever commit to watching his show in the future. I know it is not fair to him, he is a good actor, but the whole incident has not painted him in good light. Whatever may be his future plans, I strongly feel he really needs to work on his communication skills i.e.,communication with the audience otherwise he will always risk being misjudged by an average viewer (like myself).

      Delete
    21. DiaDecember 5, 2012 at 11:21 AM

      Ayesha, I agree with you to some extent. I would also be wary of following Barun in a show, because I would be uncertain as to when he would decide to leave. And by painting him as the scapegoat here, that is exactly what SP has done. No one will remember that the show was going all haywire well before his exit ... I'm watching BV as I write this, and the contrast between the grandeur of the wedding here, and the pathetic second marriage shown on IPK, just drives home the fact that CV's had totally lost interest in the show well before they were told to wrap it up. But they have not been pulled up in public at all, only Barun has been made the scapegoat. And that is what will be remembered ... not the fact that the story was going downhill, the other actors had left, that even the scriptwriter was unhappy with the show - nothing of that will be remembered. Only the fact that this show was hugely popular and was shut down because the actor left.

      I feel more and more bad for him, Ayesha ... he was obviously told to keep his mouth shut about leaving ... whether by the PH or by Star, because of SPL, don't know. He kept his word, at the cost of being painted black by everyone ... and now he is being held responsible. It's really unfair on the guy. Except for his die-hard fans, most people will feel the way you do. Especially fans of the show and regular TV viewers. SP and PH should have come clean ages ago and said clearly he is leaving, and is not coming back, and Viraf will play Arnav or XYZ. And if the show had shut down after two months, it would be because people hated the new love story of Khushi with a new man, and rejected it. Entirely the fault of the PH, that they spoiled the story. Now only the online audience knows that is what they were planning to do - IF indeed they were planning to do that. We don't even know that for sure ... so again, it's all about SP pulled the plug because of Barun leaving.

      Only because I saw the forum and the way people were keeping count of calls and mails, and recounting their rudeness to the operators so proudly, do I feel sorry for Barun. If I didn't know any of that, I would be angry as heck at SP - I still am, for shutting down a show I wanted to watch, I would feel that why the heck couldn't they get a replacement ... and my feeling for Barun would simply be - oh, this guy is the one who left his previous show, he might walk out soon, I hope he doesn't shut the show when he does. Better not watch this show, in case he leaves it halfway, and this one shuts down too. He may be a good actor, but will he stay? As I am not a Barun fan as much as an ASR fan, I do wish they had gotten a new actor as ASR ... I would have had the choice whether to watch him or not. I guess my biggest grouse is that the choice was taken out of my hands - I had decided to watch further, and now I can't.

      Vaise, the point is moot ... I don't think he will be back on TV for some time ... not till his film releases for sure. I'm not even sure of any SP appearances - SP wanted to sign him up, according to the spoiler devis, but when he insisted on walking out, would they really have done so?

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    22. AyeshaDecember 5, 2012 at 2:52 PM

      Dia,
      I seem to pick on Barun Sobti a lot, and I know I am being unfair. But I think I am doing that only because he plays a character that is so crucial to the plot, that his seemingly lack of commitment to the show has led to its imminent doom (so I believe). I know I am being biased here because the PH also had a big hand in the way the tracks unfolded. But I sometimes sympathise with Gul Khan and co. (call me crazy, but I have tried putting myself in their shoes sometimes!) because if the actor essaying the role that the story revolves around thinks about leaving most of the time (once in February and then in September of this year),it must have been difficult for them to lay out the tracks the way they planned to (though it is a testiment to their lack of creativity also). But then again maybe I am being too naive in my argument here. It seems the particular PH is well known for messing up its earlier shows also (I personally have no clue about this as I never followed their shows before, came to know about it here only). Now that everything is said and done, all of the blame game does not matter anymore. My only regret is that I shall always remain dissatisfied (no matter how hard I try to brush off the feeling), wishing what the actual journey of the star-crossed lovers (that I have come to love so much) could have been or should have been. And and I have to be content with that. Life is so unfair!

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    23. DiaDecember 6, 2012 at 5:11 AM

      Ayesha, you are very right, and that is exactly my point! After all this tamasha, my natural inclination is to point at Barun and say - this guy is the root cause of all the problems, him and his lack of commitment to the show. First he took after barely eight months after the show started for a B grade movie ... then he took off again, and this time shut down the show.

      And that's EXACTLY what SP and PH between them have achieved - put all the blame on Barun, and escaped their own share in it. All said and done, the responsibility lay with the PH, to present the story properly ... we used to complain all along about how they ignored the side characters, they ignored logic - why did the Guptas never come to know about Shyam, why didn't they show Shyam's role in Shashi's illness and attempts on Anjali's life ... there were so many glaring holes in all the tracks. And we know SP interfered a lot ... both of them are far more responsible for the downfall of the show ... especially if they both really felt that the character is bigger than the actor. Well then, they should have followed those words with action ... let Barun go and got a new ASR. They did not. Instead they let the show go down to the point of almost no return and then have conveniently blamed Barun for everything. If the show had continued for two-three months, PH would have been forced to pay attention to the story, which they had lost interest in, and then the falling TRP's would have held THEM responsible. Now they and SP have squarely passed the buck to Barun and escaped all the censure.

      And the fans have squarely played into the hands of Gul and the channel by demanding the end of the show. Show closed because Barun didn't honor his commitment to it - SP and Gul get off scotfree. SP emerges with honors - they listened to the fans, fans are happy they got a happy ending. Gul gets all the time to concentrate on her new baby, which needs a lot of TLC at the moment.

      A friend of mine, who doesn't follow the show at all, but caught the last few episodes because she knows I followed it ... and her reaction was - SP has ruined Barun's career with that message. This is someone who didn't know anything of the offscreen tamasha.

      Delete
  11. UshaDecember 4, 2012 at 12:59 PM


    Just wanted to post this here. one of my personal Rag1ni favourites.
    Because books are a (Wo)man's best friend
    http://www.india-forums.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=3068030

    Sigh! that girl is so talented.
    Enjoy :-))

    ReplyDelete
  12. AnonymousDecember 4, 2012 at 3:00 PM

    Just a different point of view why I would not have been able to watch IPKKND if they had shown ASR dead and Khushi heading and expanding the AR empire..firstly the way they have shown the sublime love between the two..
    And on a more personal level. I see my own grandmother in stark white even after more than a year after my grandfather demise ..she is surrounded with a most loving family..her six children and the most caring two daughters in law..and yet I know she cries herself to sleep every night in the privacy of her room but nobody and I mean nobody has seen her depressed during the day..for the family and the world she is brave and leading a normal life..even going shopping ..so for me accept Khushi take up a new relationship would be impossible.btw my GM is 75 and was married for over 55 years..
    I don't think I would have been able to watch ..
    Sorry, Dia, HAA,Rekha and others hope have not hurt anybody's sensibilities..

    M

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. RekhaDecember 4, 2012 at 3:19 PM

      M,

      U have only expressed ur opinion on an emotion called love, which is indeed a sublime emotion.....

      When my grandma died of lung cancer, it did seem for a little while that my grandpa would bear up with the loss well esp since he was talking about getting adjusted to moving to a different city after her death, to live with his son....but it just so happened that even as the 40th day ceremonies for my grandma were being performed, he had a sudden heart attack, his first and he died....his sunny disposition belied his true feelings at being away from his soulmate....
      well....we do like stories of moving on in AD...becos the fact remains that life is about living and facing the challenges of living...but yes a love story is a love story love stories like IPK are about that "happily eve after only with each other"

      Delete
    2. HAADecember 4, 2012 at 5:50 PM

      M,

      Why apologize. That soul connection you speak off is such a gem. Your grandparents were lucky to have it. When you have been together that long, the jeevansaathi does become such an integral part of life that without him life seems to hold no meaning.

      It was your view and your interpretation of true foreever love :)

      Delete
    3. DiaDecember 5, 2012 at 7:35 AM

      M,

      No need to say sorry ... you have just expressed your views. I feel people are truly lucky if they find their soulmates, and even more fortunate if they can spend their entire lives with them ...

      A great-aunt and uncle of mine died within eleven months of each other, they too were married for over 50 years. The feeling in the family was that he could not live without her.
      My grandfather survived my grandmother by thirty years ... his older son and family lived with him for many years, but he was a very lonely man for a long time. My MIL survived my FIL by ten years, she lived alone and again was very lonely. On the other hand, I saw on Aamir Khan's show, a couple who married for their second time in old age after losing their first partners, basically for companionship ... because for them, living alone when you have been with someone for so long, is very difficult.
      I know someone who lost her husband when her children were 2 and 4 ... so many of her friends urge her to marry again, but she has not found anyone whom her children will accept, and that is most important for her. On the other hand, I know of people who lost their first wives, and married again for the sake of their young children ...

      It takes all sorts to make this world ... the heart has its reasons, which reason cannot understand.

      Delete
  13. AnonymousDecember 6, 2012 at 1:34 AM

    Index of Meera's work below. Of all the FFs I've read so far, her's by far have been exceptional. Didn't realize she had written stuff other than 'Colors of Wind' and 'Careless Whispers' but highly recommend these two. (Infact, someone's already mentioned CoW before).
    http://www.india-forums.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=2894326

    Enjoy - Isha

    ReplyDelete

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