Posted:
Very well written post!
Don't know much about Gujrati traditions and customs, but one can get the feel of the serial to be authentic and not put on!
The detailing is fantastic, right from the costumes, to the sets, to the dialouges and the inter-personal relationships shown!
The ensemble cast of actors is impressive to say the least, led very ably and strongly by Ronit Roy, who surprisingly doesn't let his star-aura get in way of playing the character! He comes across as Dharamraj Mahiyavanshi, the hard-headed Diamond Merchant and never as Ronit Roy, the super-star of Indian Television on Bandini and that is where the serial scores so beautifully! Same goes to other actors, albeit it could be attributed to the fact that most of them are new faces, yet fit wonderfully into their respective characters!
There aren't many serials which are able to get their audience to connect so fast with the story and characters and Bandini seems to have hit the nail right on the head by showcasing a un-pretentious yet emotional story, set against a rural background, rarely seen on television!
This is defintely one of Ekta and Balaji Telefilms best effort in a very long time. Though, I feel that the litmus test for the serial will come only after Dharamraj and Santo get married and the show focuses on their relationship. Ekta has handled a lot of such relationships in her serials quite well, but invariably blundered later on....hope she takes it slowly and steadily and gives a gradual build up to their marriage, convincing the audience that two people who are apart in every possible manner can still end up falling in love and remain so!
Soapie
Anupamaa
