DNA- Going to town -- Junoon

Going totown

Modern settings and urban backdrops have taken over the small screen in a big way

Chaya Unnikrishnan

Junoon — Aisi Nafrat Toh Kaisa Ishq has just moved its storyline from a village to the city in a bid to spike the ratings. Producer Sumeet Mittal is basing his upcoming serial Khoobsoorat in urban environs. If you surf channels, you'll find that most of the shows that have been launched since the last one year including Qubool Hai, Housewife Hai Sab Janti Hai, Sanskaar, Pyaar Ka Dard Hai, Kya Hua Tera Waada, etc have an urban backdrop. Balika Vadhu is probably the only one from the lot of rural-based serials launched four years ago, to sustain so long – even that at times features certain tracks in the city. Others like Phulwa, Na Aana Iss Des Laado, Agle Janam Mohe Bitiya Hi Kijo that were set in a village backdrop ran its course and since then we haven't seen any core countryside stories. The rural landscape has all but disappeared from the small-screen with an exception of one or two like Veera that has its roots in a Punjabi village and Phir Subah Hogi that has its origins in a tribal custom.

Talking about the shift, Yash Patnaik who is producing Junoon, says, "Though the rural setting provides a wide canvas and beautiful scenery, there is a limitation when it comes to depicting romance for which we require beautiful candles, bright city lights and illumination." Sumeet Mittal, on the other hand, feels that whenever there's an over exposure of an idea, concept or theme, people tend to shift the story backdrop. "Even when a show doesn't work, the storyline and the base is shifted. However, anything that has a good hook for audience will work. A rural Lagaan worked wonderfully and so did Dil Chahta Hai which was urban. It depends on how you treat the story, whether it can pull in the audience and retain them," he says citing the example of Diya Aur Baati Hum which is based in Pushkar, a small town.

Though he has a point there, the fact is most of the serials today are based in modern settings. They may not exactly be metro-centric but Bhopal, Chandigarh, Jaipur are finding favour with the makers who are going to 'town' with it. Qubool Hai is set in Bhopal, Housewife Hai Sab Janti Hai is in Allahabad, while Jaipur is the base for Khoobsoorat. Ajay Balwankar, content head, ZEE, says that the backdrop depends on the story. "If a story is a hit it sets off a chain reaction. We were the first ones to do a village-based story in Agle Janam Mohe Bitiya Hi Kijo and everyone followed suit. But we don't think in those terms," he says.

Vivek Bahl, chief creative officer Sony, while agreeing that there is a predominance of urban backdrop across shows says, "It's not necessarily a conscious move. The rural landscape will continue to hold appeal for certain kind of themes, and like we've seen the reverse trend in movies, there will soon come a time when we will see more rural-backdrop shows once again," he reckons.

With the inclusion of UP, MP and Rajasthan markets in the ratings meter, the day may not be far.