MAAN MANIACS THREAD#2 - Link to next thread p.151 - Page 73

1. How did you select the story? Was it from any practical experience or a figment of your imagination?

The story is completely fictional but yes elements like honor killing, suppression of woman, unfortunately, are still prevalent in some parts of our society. So the resonation of that comes from there.

2. Does pressure from fans influence your thought process or any other factors like TRPs? And how hard is it to write a daily soap in which you have a vision but sometimes the channel or fans want something else?

The response from the fans is always welcome! They always give you a point of view, i.e. an opinion that makes us see whether our thoughts are making sense to them or what we are trying to say is gathered in the same spirit. So I wouldn't call it 'pressure' rather it is an opinion that can help you move the story beautifully. Daily soap writing is a team work though yes, there has to be a single clear vision but if in making that vision there are mediums that can aide you then why not. It is all for the best of the show!

4. Till early June, Geet was a show about a young girl fighting against the world to save her baby and standing up for herself, but once she moved to Delhi, her character became very weak and the show became a love story. Isn't this change contradictory to the initial message and why did it happen? Is the title going to come true at the end of Geet being sab se parayi?

Geet coming to Delhi was a natural progression to the story. Her family was not willing to accept her and she wanted to keep the kid. Also I would say her coming to Delhi and then taking a job to fend for herself, getting into tasks that she was never exposed to showed her strength, not her weakness. Of course life is not a piece of a cake so even Geet got exposed to situations where she was uncomfortable but she stood by them all. At no point did she decide to run away and that I feel builds integrity in her character. And yes, in the whole flow the love story picked up more mileage but her struggle and her past have always been played on. The initial message definitely stays but for a daily soap one has to keep opening up tracks and different angles.

There's a popular quote: "He that wrestles with us, strengthens our nerves, and sharpens our skill.Our antagonist is our helper'" So an antagonist aka a vamp or a villain always helps you move the story in a more interesting way. Imagine if there was no Naintara, then would Geet have ever landed in Delhi? No. She wouldn't have had any agenda. If Sasha was not there in the office then Geet and Maan wouldn't have come close as they otherwise did. So a vamp creating problems only makes our lead stronger and determined. It is the treatment of the character that should be different. While a saas bahu soap would require the vamp to behave or dress in a certain way, but for a show like Geet, the vamp would be treated differently. However at no point can we rule out their existence.

Maan for me is every girl's dream guy, so the inspiration is all the qualities you expect to have in a single guy! Honestly I have not met such perfect men but I hope they exist.

Dev will stay guilty. He believes he has erred. Between Maan and Geet we have started to create misunderstandings, as seen in the current episodes. Maan feels she left him at the altar. On the other hand Geet wishes to talk to Maan, but she never gets a chances. Hence she thinks that he is not interested in her. So, as of now we will build up on this drama and take it to its highest point.

8. Will Maan's family accept Geet after all this, especially Dadi Ma?

Until the complete truth (in reference to what Dev did with Geet) does not come out in front of Dadi she would continue to stay angry and upset with her. But we have created Dadi's character as a modern, broad and righteous woman so she will eventually support the truth and the right path.

That can be interesting but till now as we have played the story we highlighted the fact that the family considers her dead, such as the episodes where Geet sets off to Hoshiarpur to meet Rasika. Nevertheless if something interesting comes up along the way then we might do that.

10. Recently both Drashti and Gurmeet fell sick because of which you guys had to change the story overnight even after the promos aired and focus on other characters. How did you manage that?

That was unfortunate especially when we were at a big turning point in our story. And I would really like to thank the audience for sticking by us! But these are some things that are not in our hands. Also health can not be ignored. So yes, we tweaked in the story a bit and delayed the Maan and Geet meeting.

I think it is the love story and the moments between Maan and Geet. The credit for which should go to the whole team: from writing to creative to direction to production and the leads. Everything just blends in well.

Romance and lots of it. Currently, we are also debating for getting back the cute Maan and Geet office moments again but in a different space.

Happy watching!