Larger than life look for Saraswatichandra

Show Name: Saraswatichandra
Production House: Sanjay Leela Bhansali

Channel and time slot: 7:30 PM on Star Plus

The much talked about show on Indian television, 'Saraswatichandra' finally went on air yesterday at 7:30 pm on Star Plus. Based on the famous novel by Govardhanram Madhavram Tripathi, producer Sanjay Leela Bhansali has taken over the responsibility of putting it together in the form of a Television series. The novel set in the 19th century has a story which revolves around two Gujarati families but for the television adaptation Bhansali is giving a modern twist to the story and characters.

It was well worth the wait as the look and feel of the first episode of the show kept it's promise of a grand opening. The lavish sets which are the norm of almost each and every serial these days do manage to look different and have the acclaimed Bollywood director's touch to it. Even the background music score reminds one of Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam and Devdas. Not surprisingly the story of Saraswatichandra (Gautam Rode) and Kumud (Jennifer Singh Grover) too is of unrequited love.

However, since a couple of sequences were already aired during the promos they didn't give a fresh feel when they were seen in the first episode.

Gautam Rode in the lead role of a Harvard return youngster who is rooted to his core values comes up with an intense performance and will definitely have woman fans drooling over his well sculpted body which was wonderfully presented in his introductory scene. Jennifer Winget looks as if she is holding back a bit but looks beautiful nevertheless. Monica Bedi as the step mother looks sweet as well as vampish whenever the script demands the same. However, she does look a bit young when seen together with her on-screen son Gautam who is almost the same age as her in real life.

Though the first episode seemed flawless, it had a couple of bloopers. During a continuity shot, Monica Bedi's make-up had changed and her bindi had disappeared. Secondly, in an opening party sequence, when Saraswatichandra's father talks about gore log in the country, we are left wondering since when did Dubai start being referred to as the land of gora logs?

Being a long running TV soap, it will be quite some time before we find out if the two lead characters unite and find each other due to a twist in the story or will it follow the course of the original text. Until then the serial is worth a watch due to it's fast paced drama.

Seema Khot Mattoo