Humsafars ... the new Gul Khan show started yesterday, I watched the first episode. Complete rinse and repeat of IPK, set in a Muslim milieu, with a less quirky heroine ... she seems more like a typical soap heroine. Leads nowhere near as good looking as IPK leads. I like Harshad Chopra ... if only one could see him under all that hair. The girl is very average ... both in looks and in acting. Okay for a newbie though ... but I didn't find any spark in her. Regular tv actress. I am spoiled after Sanaya!
Will watch it sporadically .. it gives such a strong deja vu of IPK, that I may or may not keep up with it.
Yeh Hain Mohabbatein ... Divyanka is BAD in romance ... or maybe, after Sanaya, I am just spoiled for any other actress. Otherwise the show is still watchable ... except when Shagun and Ashok etc come on the scene. I like the nok jhoks between the leads, and the interactions between the Bhallas, Iyers, Bala, Mihir, Mihika ... in fact almost everyone ... the entire show and cast is watchable.
Laut Aao Trisha ... watching off and on.
Will watch it sporadically .. it gives such a strong deja vu of IPK, that I may or may not keep up with it.
Yeh Hain Mohabbatein ... Divyanka is BAD in romance ... or maybe, after Sanaya, I am just spoiled for any other actress. Otherwise the show is still watchable ... except when Shagun and Ashok etc come on the scene. I like the nok jhoks between the leads, and the interactions between the Bhallas, Iyers, Bala, Mihir, Mihika ... in fact almost everyone ... the entire show and cast is watchable.
Laut Aao Trisha ... watching off and on.
Wouldnt it be great if Sanaya and Barun got together for another show?
ReplyDelete^^ No Sanaya and Barun, please! Though I loved IPK, I think that jodi will have nothing new to offer. I feel (probably am in minority) but Sanaya & Ashish were a far better jodi. And I have a couple of theories why. I think it is the offscreen equation between them, they are comfortable enough to do those awkward, romantic scenes and yet they are not buddies. There is a distance between them. And I feel that contributes to better chemistry. I feel the edgier offscreen equation works better than in the case of Sarun, who are very siblings-like in their friendship. Just my theory.
ReplyDeleteBTW, you could give Mere Naseeb on Zindagi TV a shot, it features Sanam Saeed.
I like reading this blog & this is is my first comment ever.
Radhika
Oh no!! dont say that Radhika....
ReplyDeleteI love sarun!! I watched the chemistry between Ashish and Sanaya too....but for some reason, I feel like Ashish does not emote as well as Barun does. Whatever maybe sarun's chemistry off screen, i feel like its on fire on screen and that is what matters...
I am a recent fan of this blog. Actually discovered IPKKND recently a few months ago. Watched all 398 episodes and want more!! I watched Rangrasiya because of Sanaya....she was amazing. Eventhough the show started off with a bang...it lost steam towards the end of the Paro era. Again, not the same as IPKKND.
Tania
Dia - watched the first 2 episodes of Humsafars - does not hold a candle to either IPKKND or RR. The FL is a fresh face but that's it. The ML needs to see a barbar - can't stand the unkempt apperance - ugh!!! Will watch a few more maybe. Thanks for the recommendation.
ReplyDeleteHi Archana,
DeleteI watched the first 2 episodes too ... the ML is a decent actor, but he needs to get rid of the facial fungus as of yesterday. I actually like the guy, have seen him in earlier shows, he's very good looking. Don't know why this horrible overgrown look for this show.
Not impressed with the FL at all ... very ordinary ... she is a newbie, and it shows, she recites her dialogues as though she has learned them by heart and is just parroting them ... which is probably the case. She will probably get better with time, but I don't see any spark in her.
Hello people,
ReplyDeleteNot watching any serials as of now. Read this article online and remembered some of the discussions about Pakistani serials. Do read this article.
http://www.mensxp.com/entertainment/gossip/23846-10-things-indian-television-needs-to-learn-from-pakistani-tele-serials.html
Interesting article Madhu. Although I have to agree the author's take on the Indian serials, I will have to watch the Pakistani ones to believe some of the statements. I do like the ideas of the shorter 20-25 episode serials with a tight script. Thanks for sharing.
DeleteRead this ... nice article. I agree with quite a few points in the article ... but I also feel the Indian TV industry is much bigger than the Pakistani industry, and the investment in a TV show in India are also much higher, so they can't be recovered in 20-25 episode shows. Hence the makers try to stretch them as much as possible ... and of course, once they start doing well and the moolah starts rolling in, no one wants to change the status quo. Again going back to a discussion we've had umpteen times on this blog ... are the TRPs really a good measure of quality of a serial?
DeleteBut SP did a fixed serial show like Mahabharat, and it did really well ... it must have had huge investments too.
So there has to be a medium path between serials for 20-25 episodes ... and serials which last 5 years. 1 - 1 1/2 years is a good enough time for a show to last ... tell your story, if it does well, come back with a new season with the same actors, either with a brand new story and brand new characters, or the same characters and a new story.
As for the content ... haven't seen some of the new Pak serials currently on air, but they are far less dramatic and more realistic than our Indian chart toppers for sure. SSK on colors had an aatma taking revenge on her husband ... don't ask me further details, I have no clue!
Hi, girls, just dropping in here briefly to catch up :)
ReplyDeleteRadhika and Tania, welcome to the blog :)))
I'm with Radhika on this ... I don't want Sanaya with Barun again. I don't think they can re-create that chemistry ... that was a once in a lifetime kind of thing. The story, the screenplay, the music, the pairing ... everything just clicked perfectly for IPK. It's not the kind of thing that happens again and again ...
And Barun's leaving IPK created a huge mess for Sanaya ... it has put me off him for good. I don't think he's as good an actor as Ashish, and definitely not as dedicated or hardworking ... he was good in the initial few months of IPK, then he lost it completely. He basically sleepwalked through the second half of the show, because he had lost interest. After watching RR, I happened to re-watch a scene of IPK and found Barun pretty mediocre.
His chemistry with Sanaya was incredible ... but a lot of it I can say now, was due to Sanaya ... she is an incredible actress, and very professional ... she manages to create chemistry with any reasonably good actor. She has done it three times now ... with Mohit, who is an average actor, with Barun, who was good in the first half of IPK, and now with Ashish, who is a very good actor, and remained committed to RR till the end, despite his JDJ. Not to forget, none of these actors have managed to create anywhere near that kind of chemistry with any of their other pairings on screen. So chemistry will never be an issue with Sanaya ... as long as the actor with her is halfway decent, she will create it.
Also, seeing Barun's latest pics ... I don't want him anywhere near Sanaya till he gets cleaned up ... he's looking horrible.
Gul has tried to repeat the magic with QH and now again with her new offering ... even with QH, with a very good actor like KSG, the pairing didn't create the same craze ... of course, Gul had learned her lesson somewhat by then, and made it as much family drama as romance. And again, I don't see it happening with Humsafars ... it's early days yet, though, but again Harshad is a good actor, he's already well into the skin of his character, while the girl is struggling. I watch YHM quite regularly ... Divyanka is decent most of the time, although I don't like her dialogue delivery ... Karan P is much better and more natural ... and their romantic scenes make me laugh.
Chemistry depends a lot on the FL ... and Sanaya will create it with any good actor.
Sanaya is a good actress but if her fans are the reason for failure of her shows I wonder sometimes. They are like Barun fans around the time of IPKKND fiasco blaming everything and everyone but Barun for mess. It has been 2 shows for Sanaya after IPKKND. If she is a great actress and can carry the show on her shoulders, her shows should have done better than they did.
DeleteShe was a made a super star, making her roles less important and the actress more important. Many actors fell into that image trap and did not succeed. For Sanaya, she needs a change of course. Like instead of doing saccharine loaded, chirpy OTT roles like Kushi, Maira, ChanChan.. Do a complete turn-around take a real mean character and prove that she can do those too. Or take up a dancing show challenge or enter Big Boss kind of show. That is much required otherwise it is so hard to differentiate her in one role from other.
Surbhi Jyoti in QH .. she was OTT and annoying in the beginning. But show was study despite losing male leads left and right.. she is a very average actress but stayed in her character. I cringe to think what if that role is played by Sanaya and what would have Sanaya fans done during the up and downs the show went through (male lead issues) Surbhi maintained dignified silence unlike Sanaya and Surbhi's fans (if any) did not go nuts about all that.
Many super hit shows (desi/videshi) worked because of team work. Attributing success and hard work for a successful show to a single actor or actress is wrong. For all her acting prowess.. Sanaya did not win a single major acting award till date. That is not due to her lack of talent.. but roles she is selecting. They are very ordinary/unbelievable.
Just my 2c
^^ Anonymous....
DeleteCouldn't agree more with some of the things you said. SI's characters are very similar. Paro was the only exception, but the entire show was not executed properly. I mean, every single character in RR was butchered. KKG, Myrah were almost the same. Don't know about CC. No offense to SI fans. But her fans have the tendency to damage her shows at times. I don't know what happened during IPKKND, as I watched the show much later. I may be wrong here, but I noticed that fans of IPKKND were giving too much importance to BS (ASR) until he dropped the bomb. Until his decision to quit the show, it was all about Barun. Not to forget the show was one properly written, well executed show despite its premature ending. And all the characters were significant in the plot, except may be Akash and Payal. I mean those two characters had less importance compared to the other characters. When Barun decided to leave the show, the fans went crazy and started supporting Sanaya. I believe that another person was considered to replace Barun, but those plans were a fiasco. Finally, SP decided to pull the plug. The same thing happened in RR too. It was all about Rudra in the beginning. No matter how much GH claims Sanaya to be his muse or some nonsense, he and his team happen to write male-centric (and sometimes male-chauvinistic) tracks. Not only that, SI's characters have been consistently compromised. The character of Paro failed, when the makers showed her as a dumb person. Not because she was a cry-baby. Paro was wrong about Tejawat, Rudra was wrong about his mom. They could have showed Paro as the sensible one in the latter case. But the plot went for a toss, once they started the laddoo track. There are many reasons why Paro failed as a character and those facts have been discussed many times in this blog. So, I am not going there. Then came Jhalak. Even I was a little skeptical when Ashish decided to participate in Jhalak. Though AS was professional enough to finish both the shows, people still blame him (I mean, very openly!) for RR going off air. Like you, I cringe to think what would have happened if AS had left the show half way to impress the judges of JDJ.
I am getting a feeling that SI is slowly falling into the image trap. I think she decided to do RR, because the character was way too different from her personality. I am not sure if she would be ready to do some mean roles, like you suggested. Even if she wants to do, her fans might not accept it. My opinion is that almost all the shows of recent times have been love stories. The trick lies in telling the same story differently. And the chemistry between the leads also matters. IPKKND was almost a flawless show, if one overlooks the last two tracks and the off-screen drama. It is upto the creatives (not just GH, but anybody) to outdo IPKKND. At the end of the day, it is not star power, but content that brings fame and recognition to the show. Gone are the days when people watched movies just because Rajnikanth acted in it. The same applies to TV also.
Dia: thanks for creating this thread. You do keep me engaged always. ;)
Enjoy your vacation. :) :)
- Madhumitha
@ Anonymous,
DeleteI'm sorry, but I have to disagree with almost everything you said in your comment. You seem to be falling into the trap of assuming that online fans are responsible for the success and failure of shows. Unfortunately that is not the case ... the so-called success and failure of shows is dependent entirely on the 8000 odd households who have TRP meters installed. Those people tend to like shows like DABH, SNS, Kumkum Bhagya and Jamai Raja. Sanaya fans really don't have anything to do with the success and failure of her shows ... if they did, then all her shows would be successful.
And Sanaya fans are not foolish enough to think that Sanaya can carry a show on her shoulders. No single actor, however good, can carry a TV show to success ... it depends completely on team work, good script, good screenplay, good characterization and good story ... and even if all those are present, then good shows fail, because the TRP audience doesn't accept them, regardless of how good the actors are. Amitabh Bachhan's show on Sony, Yudh, did not get good TRPs, neither did Anil Kapoor's 24 ... both those shows had stellar actors, great story lines, excellent screenplay and team work ... yet the shows failed in TRP terms.
When Sanaya did Khushi, she was not a super star at all. She had just done one show as lead, Gunjan in MJHT, and she was the least popular of the four leads. Khushi was a polar opposite of Gunjan, the only similarity being that both were small town girls. So falling into an image trap does not apply there at all ... she HAD no image at that point, if she did have an image, it was that of a shy quiet nerd. Khushi actually broke that image of Gunjan, and Khushi being so popular, slotted her into another image, that of a bubbly girl.
She did Chhanchhan after IPK, more to break the image of a romantic heroine ... she said so in one of her interviews at the time. So she has been making conscious choices to try to change her image with every show.
And with Paro, she has made the same attempt ... to break an image. So I don't agree at all with you ... or with Madhu (sorry, Madhu!) that her roles are indistinguishable. The only similarity between all her successful shows is that they have all been love stories ... yes, I do count Rangrasiya as a successful show, despite the poor TRPs. And when she made the attempt to break that image with Chhanchhan, it didn't work for her. I don't know whether that is due to her fans or due to the poor writing of the show, or due to the channel ... almost all recent Sony shows last between 6-9 months.
Sanaya enjoys fiction more than reality shows ... so I am no one to decide what she should do or not do. She has done a mean girl kind of role already ... I don't think she is ready to do an out and out vamp role, and unfortunately, not many people are writing roles for female leads with grey shades. Sanaya doesn't write shows, she only chooses roles based on what she is offered.
As for Big Boss ... I hope she stays miles away from such a show ... I cannot imagine why anyone would want to do a show like that by choice! She is a very private person ... I don't think she would ever put her private self on display.
If between Gunjan, Khushi and Paro, you feel that she is doing roles which are indistinguishable from each other, then I really have nothing to say. I don't count Myrah as a role ... it lasted barely two months, it was written almost overnight.
DeleteAlso, Sanaya maintained complete silence over the ending of IPKKND ... she stayed completely out of the controversy. She only opened her mouth to support Barun ... and once when she was upset at the way it ended. That too was when she was in shock at the ending ... once she recovered her equilibrium, she stayed quiet again. So I don't know what you're talking about when you say she should have maintained a dignified silence. She did exactly that ... and she was not involved in the controversy at all. It was only later when she showed her upset at the show ending, that she got dragged in ... and I think since her show shut down so abruptly, she had a right to be upset.
Surbhi was upset, but her show did not end ... it wasn't pulled off air at four days' notice ... big difference. And KSG was very clear about his leaving, he wished the show well, he recommended his own friend as replacement, he appealed to his fans to support the show ... there are many differences between KSG leaving QH and BS leaving IPK.
As for awards ... the likes of Sandhya beendni and Gopi vhau get Best Actress awards in our TV industry. That says it all.
If Sanaya is missing out on awards when she stays away from such roles, I don't really mind.
Ok... I apologize. I should not have said that SI is falling into the image trap, because I have not seen MJHT and Chanchan. And yes.... I am aware of her brief negative role in Radha ki betiyan. But I did say that SI wanted to do Paro to experiment and try something different. And I do feel that the characterization goes haywire sometime later in the show. And I am definitely not blaming her for that. Everything starts off well but the momentum goes off after a point. It didn't happen until the very end in IPKKND. And in RR, I think most of us didn't connect with Paro for the most part.
DeleteI belong to the online audience. So, my POV might not be holistic. In case of RR, the main reason for the show going off air was poor TRPs. Atleast the ratings was the main reason. Whatever I know about IPKKND is what my friends told me. My friends watched IPK when it was on air. The feedback I was given was that fans didn't want anyone else other than Barun as ASR. The show could have gone on with a new ASR. I am not sure what exactly made the show to shut down. If I try to google and search for reasons, I will probably end up getting the online viewers' opinions, which might not be the actual TV audience's opinion. And I believe IPKKND enjoyed good ratings throughout the time it was on air.
As for the award systems in India.... I enjoy watching movie awards ceremonies. Purely because they are solid timepass. But I do not believe in their credibility. And I definitely don't believe in the TV awards (and I don't watch them). Atleast in movie industry, a few people attempt to make movies for critical acclaim. But in TV industry, it is all about money. It is understandable, because a lot of money is invested in making these serials. So, I think there is no point if an actor or actress receives or does not receive critical acclaim or awards for his or her work. The most successful film gets most of the awards. And the film may or may not be critically acclaimed. An actor like Irfan Khan who won the national award for his portrayal in and as Paan Singh Tomar lost out to Ranbir Kapoor in Filmfare awards. The same applies to TV industry. I am sorry again, because I am being too harsh with the awards system in India. But that's my honest opinion.
- Madhumitha
Totally agree with Dia. I don't watch a lot of serials - I don't get Hindi channels. My first one was IPKKND and that was because we had taken Star Plus for a couple months. We all got hooked to it and then everyone lost interest but me. Since then I have watched Chanchan, a little bit of QH, a bit of BI and RR. I can tell you, just the ML or FL does not make or break a show. I am a huge fan of Sanaya's but I could not stand CC. Because of the first ML, some supporting actors and bad story/ dialogues, bad execution. I stopped watching and never went back. Same with QH and BI.
DeleteAs for Sanaya's fans, my observation during IPK was everyone was a BS fan. Very few SI fans and the BS fans went totally berserk when BS decided to leave. And everything Dia said is true. I watched it happen. As for RR - again it started off with a lot of AS fans although lately I did see a much bigger SI following.
I do feel that RR went south after AS joined JDJ. I am not blaming him. It's not his fault, I believe the PH made changes to accommodate him. The storyline changed, BDs showed up and by the time they realized it and pulled AS back it was too late. I think AS did an excellent job managing both RR and JDJ when he came back full time. It must have been grueling and I applaud him.
I think the reason Sanaya's shows fail are not because of her or her fans. It's because of the story tracks being changed because of TRPs or whatever and also because of the supporting actors, the dialogs, the execution. I felt CC was mediocre at best. Sanaya was excellent but everything else fell apart for me.
It is unfair to Sanaya to say that she or her fans caused this. She is a very professional and dedicated actor.
@ Anonymous - we welcome the discussion but tell me really - has IF shut down?
Hi
ReplyDeleteAm watching LAT regularly...like ACP Kabir..... also see YHM off n on...
As for Pak serials, just finished watching Mere Qatil mere dildar......on my MIL recommendation and loved it.....great story, fast paced and gripping...26 episodes. Am thinking of watching Humsafar next, Pak one..... Heard it's great too.... Watching them online...
Also looking forward to Ajeeb dastan hai yeh on Life Ok...promos look good...it's supposed to be a mature love story on adultery...
Great to catch up here....will def keep in touch...
Singapore fan - now you've got me interested. I will try the Pak serials and be back. Thanks!
DeleteHello Ladies,
ReplyDeleteIts been a few days since RR is over but I still tend to log on online to search for its episodes(I don't get hindi channels where I live!!), alas, its all over for good now.
All said and done I thoroughly enjoyed all our discussion & rants over here;-)
Madhu-Mitha and I shared a common interest over Meenu's crazy, fun-filled updates on each episodes on IF, missed Shwetha's regular updates though.
I know I have already said this before but a big thanks to Dia for allowing us to share our thoughts, crib & complaint about what not and of course loved reading her updates which made even the not so good episodes to be given a second look!!! :-)
Archana, Lakshmi, Aki, Ratna, SingaporeFan,Madhu, loved all the discussions with you ladies and hopefully we will be discussing Sanaya's or any other offbeat serial that shares all our interests ;-)
As for the other shows now-a-days, I don't find any that I need to watch on a daily basis, and since I watch them online, its convenient at my time, no ads and can fast forward them if they are boring! ;-)
I have been watching QH,YHM,KB on and off. PKDH has recently caught my interest.
Watched the last two episodes of Gul's latest venture i.e according to me IPKKND+ Qubool hai= Humsafars. Totally agree with you Dia in this, does not have any spark as yet, specially with the lead actress and what a horrendous look Harshad Chopra has on his face, good lord the Bushy eyebrows almost looks like a unibrow!!! He is good looking guy and this so called look was much hyped about in articles and they come up with this? Hmmm.....
And @ Anonymous, quote,
Like instead of doing saccharine loaded, chirpy OTT roles like Kushi, Maira, ChanChan.. Do a complete turn-around take a real mean character and prove that she can do those too. - Hi there, well Sanaya has already played the role of a mean/sly popular college girl in an serial before called 'Radha ki Betiyaan Kuch Khar Dikhayegi' which used to air on NDTV Imagine, if I am not wrong this was her first serial and that's when I noticed her, liked her then and there itself, she made you hate her and like her at the same time in her character,( she was not the lead actress there though) check it out online, they may have few episodes on YouTube or something similar.
That's why when I saw her again as Gunjan in MJHT, its was a complete 180 degree of her previous role , I was pleasantly surprised and what followed was me being her big time fan!! ;-))
Phew.. that was a long comment, take care you all, keep the blog buzzing...
P.S. Dia enjoy your vacation ;-) :-))
MB - try this website for online episodes.
Deletehttp://www.desitvbox.me
"For Sanaya, she needs a change of course. Like instead of doing saccharine loaded, chirpy OTT roles like Kushi, Maira, ChanChan.. Do a complete turn-around take a real mean character and prove that she can do those too."
ReplyDeleteI am sorry, you sound condescending and are exhibiting little understanding of what a good character is. People often mistake a strong character to be one who is physically strong or is grey, someone who has a mean streak. I think a strong character is one who is complex, has layers - can be quirky, vulnerable, weepy, nice, feisty, all of it simultaneously. Why does she need to "prove" her prowess by playing a dark character? By that argument other than Simone Singh who is playing Sakshi Goenka (and doing so brilliantly), no other actor is any good.
Khushi was her most successful character. I don't see why she should not have done that. CC was very clearly an attempt to break away from the romantic heroine and quirky girl mould. Of all the characters she has played, that was the one that had the most agency and certainly not "unbelievable". Paro was Sanaya's most important role IMO and within the limited time that Myrah was on our screens, she had the potential to be interesting. RR didn't get the TRP success but it was still one of the most watchable shows. Maybe it was (I say was, because the show is crap now) not as good as YHM, but certainly better than the QH and Beintehaas of the world. And yes, she deserved awards, but she didn't get them. Surely it is simplistic to dismiss her body of work because she didn't. Jennifer Winget, possibly one of the worst actors of Tellywood won it for her portrayal of Kumud.
On her offscreen persona, yes, she is rather frank most of the times, but she has always conducted herself with professional integrity, your her lack of "dignified silence" comment notwithstanding. She has been honest, professional and has never spoken in twisted tongues. Yes, IPK was a massive PR failure by all parties involved (primarily the channel and PH), but they have all come out wiser. Gul has handled her QH offscreen drama better. Sanaya is much more calmer and zen like when her shows have gone off air since.
Have her fans destroyed her show? I think we give ourselves too much credit if we think that is possible :) Yes, fanbots of any star are annoying. I myself loathe the hardcore Sanaya fans, which is another reason why I don't want her to team up with Sobti. Because then two sets of obnoxious fanbots will have to befriend each other again ;) Another reason why Ashish + Sanaya pairing works better because the fans just get along better.
I honestly would be embarrassed for Sanaya if she did BB. Yes, she should do JDJ, she is a graceful dancer and a show like JDJ will help her polish her skills and give her some kind of training. But that is more of a wishlist, because like Sanaya, I am also more invested in fiction than in the non-fiction shows.
But I agree, I would like for her to work with people who maintain their creative integrity and not burn their original script when they wish to appease the TRP junta. I want her to play a strong character in her next outing. Remember, folks, the “strong” in “strong female character” doesn’t - or shouldn’t, anyway -mean “strong” in a physical or emotional sense. A strong female character is one who’s strongly written, with her own personality, agency, motivations, fears, and goals, whatever those happen to be. Because female characters, like all characters, should be written as complex human beings (except when they’re not human.. haha).
Though as a genre, desi comedy is awful, I would love for Sanaya to do a sitcom. But we can't have somebody with Hegde's level of insight and humour write it. Something like a Dekh Bhai Dekh or a Sarabai vs Sarabai kind of show.
And totally agree that TV (and even cinema) is about a team coming together and everything falling into place. No one person deserves all the credit or all the censure :)
Radhika
Archana, great....Pak serials are different, more realistic....
ReplyDeletehttp://www.womencentral.com.pk/Mere-Qatil-Mere-Dildar-(New)-17-February-2014-Episode-1-Watch-Online/821/47110
This site has great streaming....enjoy
Thanks. I watched 2 episodes of Zindagi Gulzar Hai and found it very depressing. The acting is definitely good (esp. if you compare it with Humsafars).
Delete