TRPs drop by half - article

Long ago, Tulsi bhabhi made her maiden appearance, changed three Mihirs and turned from bahu to saas and still served her grand saas and yet attracted TRPs like flowers attract honey bees. Then the soap bubble burst and Tulsi bhabhi of Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi became the heroine of Viruddh, a righteous daughter Vasudha, this time. And the speculation of whether Padmini Kolhapure will be the next Tulsi is still on.

While the guessing game is going on, the fact remains that soap suds seem to have lost their perfume. new and differential programming is taking over. Nevertheless, the never-say-die industry avers that this is but a temporary phase and soaps will come back stronger than ever.

Sandeep Sikand, CEO, Sony Television has always stressed on differential programming, and agrees that the new different programmes are making a definitive dent. "The process has started," he says. "But they will never melt down." The reason, according to Sikand could well be the need for new plots and story ideas. "Any good form of entertainment needs to rework itself," says Sikand, denying to comment on whether saas-bahu sagas are failing now.

Actor Sanjit Bedi is a soap fan. "Soaps will never end. But inspiration and motivational twists to soaps will work. Sadness is not what people want to watch all the time," he says. Bedi however agrees that certain level of saturation has set in.

Durga Jasraj, former anchor Antakshari, and daughter of music maestro Pandit Jasraj agrees with Bedi. "The audiences are emotionally attached to soaps," she says. Melodrama and movement of soaps away from realism is the reason for this saturation, she feels. "Things need to change, attitudes need to change. Similar situations are seen in different serials on different channels. We certainly need a more positive attitude," says Durga.

However some enthusiasts feels that there is more to soaps than saas-bahu sagas. the saturation in saas-bahus stories does not mean that soaps will end. Anupam K. Kalidhar, TV producer, Aek Chhabi Hain Padoss Mein on Star Plus says "There are so many stories and so many styles of making soaps. Just that right now, there is an overdose of the same faces and the same stories. It is but natural that highs will be followed by lows or vice versa."

Soap operas seem to have more fans than one would imagine. Siddarth Basu may be the man behind Kaun Banega Crorepati, but he too is also all for soaps. "It will always stay. But the increase or dwindling in interest levels depends on the dosage," he says. Rohit Roy goes a step ahead and says nothing can beat saas bahu sagas ever as the audiences are soap addicts. "I don't think the era of soaps can ever come to an end. Even if we do something different like we tried earlier, it only wins critical acclamation, but not recognition," he says, adding, "Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi, the trendsetter among soaps, is almost like an addiction now. The hunger for soaps will never die down."

Trendsetters do exist in the non-soap category too. Take for example, a channel like StarOne. what works the best is a comedy show like Laughter Challenge. Says Pankaj Saraswat, the creator of the show, "when we started it, we never anticipated that the show would be such a hit. And to think that now the show is on its third leg." Such success stories just prove that the audiences are looking for good entertainment and it's not always about soaps. The content that goes in also makes a world of difference.

Some say it's not so much about being different, as much as it's about making a mistake. Actor Anoop Soni feels that in this era of competition, it is essential to be good at your work with strong plots and storylines. "Strong stories and good characters motivate the actors to perform better. All these contribute a lot to the success of the programme," he says.

S. Ramachandran, former Entertainment Head, Mumbai of NDTV, agrees that people are looking for quality. He says, "Comedies are picking up, be it in films or soaps. Saas-bahu sagas with a comic touch will still work. Things will definitely look up for qualitative programming, even if they are soaps."

Anu Ranjan, the president of Indian Television Academy, says, "The quality of television has fallen miserably and we need a desperate change. The same thing has been going on for years now." a little Balaji bird reveals that Ekta might be looking at new content too, with the possibility of her doing a programme on Pogo. Now that will definitely be a deviation for the soap queen. But all said and done, soaps are still a prime time addiction. The soap queen, despite the lull, seems to still reign. Here is awaiting the soap rain, once again.