For Indian soaps, alternative to glycerine is festivals now

Tushar Patel - Televisionpoint.com | Mumbai
The festive and wedding season has just begun, but if you are an avid watcher of Hindi soaps, the festivities for you continue throughout the year. It's often seen that when the storyline is going nowhere, the makers put in an elaborate celebrity dance sequence.

Or better still, a puja or havan to show that the family that prays together stays together. But now that the season of celebrations has actually begun, we wonder if the makers showcase festival clichés just to cash in on it.

It's common knowledge that the only thing our telly ladies do is pray, keep karva chauth, do the dandiya and think of ways to out-manoeuvre each other. As television has proved to be a woman's medium, the makers argue that celebrations are shown mainly to cater to the female audience. "It's the ladies who watch most of our shows," says director Deepak Chavan who is known to direct dailies like Kyunki Saas Bhi...

"By capturing the spirit of festivals like Navratri, Karva Chauth etc we are catering to their taste. Moreover, how can we not incorporate festivals in shows when the entire nation is celebrating?" asks Chavan.

When TV serials first started getting popular in the country, all the ladies tried to dress like their favourite onscreen bahu. The designs of certain sections of the elaborate sets would also find a place in many homes. Indian television shows are all about being elaborate, that according to the makers, reflect Indian tradition and sensibilities. Showcasing festivals is not about clichés, but bringing in more colour and grandeur to the show. "Festivals add a lot of colour to the shows," says Sara Khan of Sapna Babul Ka... Bidaai.

Many argue that TV serials just try to cash in on the festivities for better TRPs. There is also a certain section that believes that most festivals shown on TV are portrayed in a cliched manner. Take for example the Durga Puja sequences, where protagonists can't be seen doing anything else beyond blowing the conch shell or doing the dhunuchi dance. Ditto for Navratri where the characters only play dandiya. But this is where many beg to differ.

"In Baa Bahoo aur Baby, Navratri was shot in a grand manner. That's because the Thakkar family is Gujarati and Navratri is one of the biggest festivals for this community," says Vaishali Thakkar who plays Praveena in the show.

"Our entire team including director JD Matheja is Gujarati. Hence, we bring in the true flavour of the festival. There is nothing cliched about it," says Thakkar. Deepak Chavan meanwhile believes that festivals are important to establish the family's background.

"In a show like Kasautii... the Basu's were Bengali's. Hence, it was important for us to show the Durga Puja. How can we not show festivals in serials when most on screen families are Gujarati, Marwari or Bengali?" asks Chavan.

No matter what the argument, right now it seems that Indian serial-makers have found an alternative to glycerine - festivals.