The show is doing quite well and with time, all the characters are slowly coming into their own. Adam Khan is a very intense guy who is always in a hurry. He wants to kill his step brother Akbar and will do anything to achieve his goal. But his mother Maham Anga (Ashwini Kalsekar) is always counseling restraint, says Chetan who is content with his Zee TV venture.
Talking about the historical genre, Chetan who has earlier done Veer Shivaji on Colors states, It is a different experience compared to drama, as you are dealing with some elements of truth unlike your completely fictitioussaas bahu format where sometimes the characters also go haywire. Also, a historical gives you opportunities to wear various kinds of royal costumes. You also get to do outdoor stuff like horse riding, sword fighting etc.
Chetan does not pay too much attention to the protests by certain sections of Rajput society regarding the storyline. Such noise was also made when the Ashutosh Gowariker directed super hit film on the same subject (Jodha-Akbar) starring Hrithik Roshan and Aishwarya Rai had released. I am sure that producer Ekta Kapoor must have taken due diligence to ensure that we are on the right side of history. Personally I feel that with whatever limited knowledge I have of history of the Mughal period, I dont think we have gone wrong. Having said this, despite all precautions taken some people will still feel hurt. Even during my Veer Shivaji stint, certain Maratha groups had started their protest. I am sure that nobody will want to alter history just for ratings, as that will lead to lot of headaches.
Tell Chetan that the numbers of Jodha Akbar are not too great and he clarifies, The new rating system in thousands does not make sense to me. But a few friends told me that it translates to around 1.7-1.9 in the old system. Agreed that our ratings could be better, but we are working very hard.
In closing Chetan who has been around in the industry for a long time (debuted with Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi) feels that the older lot of actors were better. But this always happens, the previous generation is not very happy with the performances of the current generation.
We wish you luck, Chetan!!!
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