OK, I am going to try and get past the GM/FK fan wars and provide a neutral perspective. Though I am a Gashmeer fan, I am very well aware of the fact that he quit the show voluntarily, and now has moved on to other things. He himself seems to have made it quite obvious that he doesn't want to be associated with the show or the medium from his interviews, so I think harping on how the TRP was when we he was there etc., IMO, is quite moot.
Now, even when GM was part of the show, the TRP saw ups and downs. Especially when the plot got repetitive with the same old churning of Aditya being blind to Malini and Anu's crimes and Imlie just constantly crying. Then there was a slight rise in the TRP right around the second wedding or Aditya and Malini, probably in the hopes that Malini's crimes would be exposed. And then the show managed to hold a somewhat steady TRP then. I do really think it was the presence of a story and the presence of a strong and a smart antagonist that helped move things along quite nicely. The ratio of good people to bad people was balanced, in that more people were good than bad. As insignificant as the Tripathis were, they were still around to add to the drama, move the story along nicely and then of course, showing Imlie as a strong character who was trying to set things in her life right on her own (with Aryan's help, of course).
But now, the story has gotten extremely cyclic. Narmada's characterization is not consistent. One day she is jubiliant about the prospect of getting a grandchild, the next day she is going and saying extremely mean things to Imlie and the day after, she is planning a god bharaai. Sundar seems like he has a job only because his wife is also in the serial, and they wanted to somehow cash in on the fact that they are a real life couple also!
Malini and Anu, as villainous as they were, they were classy. Malini especially, she was splendid in her role as the antagonist, and the build up of her villainy was very well executed, that everyone was looking forward to the day when her crimes would be out in the open. We must credit Gash here also for the acting he delivered, where in he was blindly trusting Malini and there was something for the audience to look forward to, to see how he would deliver when Malini's crimes come out in the open. Contrast that with the current antagonists. The plots they supposedly hatch are so childish and stupid. It is a wonder how Aryan doesn't see through them and throws them out of his house. There is absolutely zero build up, it is like in today's episode she hatches some nonsensical scheme like adding poison to food, or cutting off a tree branch, and predictably, Aryan goes and either hugs Imlie out of danger or catchers a falling Imlie with plenty of hugging and physical intimacy thrown in, for added effect. No wonder the audience are bored! I only read the written updates, and even that I find boring.
Fahmaan and Sumbul are good actors and they deserve a better plot. Yes, they have good chemistry, but overdoing the physical touches, the nok-jhok, the barrage of idiotic schemes from these supposed villains are really not doing any justice to the actors.
I wish they hadn't rushed with this nonsense pregnancy and flip flopping of whether she really is pregnant or not. Or with Aryan's infertility reports, I wish they would have at least kept it a mystery from the audience, so that we along with everyone else would also have been wondering how Imlie did get pregnant and will have some interest in continuing to follow the show, and revealed later on to be a scheme from a less obvious vamp. Or instead of just randomly having Aryan promote Imlie (sure, no conflict of interest there!!!), show some drama of a professional rivalry between the two, provide scope for Aryan to show 2 different faces of his, one as a ruthless boss who holds no bars even if it is for his wife who is is his employee, and the other as a loving husband, and show how the 2 navigate through these 2 different relationships. Endless possibilities, but alas..... they chooe an endless loop of poojas, celebrations, idiotic scheming and Imlie getting pregnant every 2 days!!
Rant over. I am too involved for someone who doesn't even watch this damn show!
Edited by timepassing - 3 years ago