SPL -STORY WITH PICTURES

Having seen such shows on TV I was sceptical about attending as the ones televised always looked very contrived & also "canned" in terms of applause & laughter BUT I must say that I was pleasantly surprised. I am hard to please so I will explain why the whole experience was well worth it!!

Firstly the venue was perfect ' for the size of crowd ' anything smaller or larger would have lost the effect of ambience & acoustics completely. The LG Arena in Birmingham was ideally situated in the middle of the country so that people could easily reach it which would not have been the case had it been in London or Manchester & I do not think that there would have been as many people. There was a good buzz in the air. All the ladies were dressed up for the occasion despite it being quite a cold-winndy-wet day. Whoever chose this venue- pat on the back!! The audience was a mixed bag but majority were female & a younger age as well ' hmmm!!- wonder why? No prizes sorry!!

The hall had a good sized reception catering to all your needs plus the sponsors of the show had set up stands & were handing out some promotional products to a mostly Asian crowd. There were loads of entrances/exits to the hall & the seating was nicely dispersed & not cramped.

What was good was that the show started on time & went on slightly longer as well. The atmosphere was nice- the lighting & sound really good. The stage was ideal for the performers-the background simple. I did expect though that the background curtains to have matched the 3D effect they had earlier in the SP shows where they had it change according to the performer but that was probably because it was not large enough to accommodate that setting.

The show comprised of the actors playing the characters from the top Star Plus shows currently "airing" & of course feature amongst the top performing with regards to TRPs but also in terms of fan popularity includes Arnav & Khushi from 'Iss Pyar Ko Kya Naam Do', Suraj & Sandhya from 'Diya Aur Baati', Kokilaben from 'Saathiya', Pratigya from 'Pratigya' ' comedy from Sudesh Lehri & music from Salim Sulaiman & of course the back-up dancing from The Shaimak Dance Group

The show was hosted a large proportion of time by Kokilaben from Saathiya & she bought with her the rustic Gujarati style of presentation & of course throughout her compering she only referred to the actors by their character names. She kept a nice jovial balance across the whole show & did well. She cracked some jokes & intoroduced the acts but also performed to some a song herself as well as danced.

Sanaya was one of the first to dance. To see her was a revelation ' she looked really petite & slim & of course beautiful & very graceful. Bhare Naina from the movie Ra.One was the first number that she danced to .She is a wonderful dancer ' really natural ' and she was as good as the backing dancers if not better. This was the best that I have seen her not only compared to her dances on the show but also from the live performaces that she gives,. She had a lovely pink colored outfit that displayed her long slim waist to perfection.

At the end of this performace Kokilaben teased her character Khushi asking her where her pati Arnav was ' to which she exclaimed that she had been let down by him completely. She want onto lement his absence in true Khushi style . For a moment then I think the audience thought that he had not come in reality. THEN on the screens you had RABBA VE play as is on the show ( the mendhi scene was playing giving it a surreal feel)& everyone was looking around for him & would you believe he made an ASR style entrance equivalent to his very first appearance on IPKKND in his helicopter. He walked in from the side entrance to the hall & walked up the side aisle surrounded by bodyguards & then up the side onto the stage to join Khushi speaking some dialogue on the way.He had on dark black denims & a jacket with a white shirt. Once on stage he jokingly said " Shall I go'.will you let me speak" & Khushi dragged him back. He then said " Did you think I was not coming? Don't trust rumours next time & then he asked the audience ' what about you?"

Khushi exclaimed " Arnavji ' iam so glad to see you" in a proper indian accent!! He hugged right back & said "English"

The photos of him back stage as he took interviews do not do justice to him by the way- He looked amazing ' he had longer hair & his ASR stubble & not as slim as he does in actual photos ' a bit of an enigma. Another words he looked really great!!!

Of course so far he received the biggest applause & cheer- as the crowd went crazy for the longest time. He stood on stage after being hugged & welcomed by his screen wife in the Khushi style of a full throttle hug & I can genuinely say that he was shocked for a while ' you could see that he was completely overawed & there was a look of wonderment on his face. I know that Sanaya had already told Barun that he would be really popular when he was here in the UK ' but I could tell that he was taken aback by the reception that he received. IN FACT this happened every time he stepped on stage & he got the most out of all the acts ' second was Sanaya.

I for one was really glad as this was proof to not only him BUT Star Plus as well ' as this smacked them in the face that his popularity was not an over night wonder. It has built slowly & surely within the last 18 months to the proportions where he received the adulation & love only reserved for true stars. He could not be heard the noise was so loud & carried on for a while. Such was the persona & aura that Barun had created ' it was no wonder that he was so surprised. I know from people that I have spoken to from back home that TV stars do not get as much "fan worship & adulation" back in India. Funny thing was Barun expressed how he felt through his facial expression, his eyes & his body language & for a while he was rendered speechless. It was a real joy to watch his wake-up call as this will be the first of many such experiences I am sure.

Following this there were various other acts;

Suraj & Sandhya from Diya danced to a few songs. Funny thing was that they were opposite to their characters here on stage. Suraj is a hunk & he carried himself really well ' good dancer & lokks really good & his English is impeccable not like his character.

Pratigya from Pratigya also performed a dance to a song

Sudesh Lehri was a brilliant comic-mimic- impressionist & singer ' he impressed me the most out of all the performances ' no props just pure talent. One of the funny acts was how the dogs of famous people barked!!

Kokila ben did a solus dance by herself

Arnav & Suraj did a dance with Kokila

Salim Sulaiman ' did their latest numbers from Heroine & Rab Ne Banayi Jodi complete with musicians & 2 lead singers

Pratigya introduced 5 fans onto the stage & they had to woo Barun & at this point the whole of the female audience wished that they were in their place!! It was not fair & if looks were daggers!! There was an over excited fan on stage that clung to Barun right to the end. He had on a bright yellow sequenced tee shirt & pink trousers.

There was a comedy sketch come dance with Suraj ' Arnav & Kokila ' think that the show saw that Barun's dancing has definitely improved a lot & he displayed a much more natural ability to move with the music

Finale was the Star Parivvar show song when all the stars that took part all came on stage & sang the song & then each of them had to give a message. The funniest so far was definitely from Suraj when he asked the audience to drive home safely & to take a warm drink as our throats would be hoarse after all the shouting & screaming that we had done!!!

I wish though that they had done a scene from the drama ' probably a funny one & that they had enacted one of the songs '" Teri Meri" or anyone of the others that they have increased in popularity.

As we were so close to the front of the hall ' we were able to see all his expressions all so clearly. He played the "teasing" full of fun Arnav to the hilt did Barun & he admits that in real life he is not serious & we have seen the way that he larks around behind the scenes & that is how he came across. He did bring all those expressions with him ' couple of times ' you could see him rolling his eyes as a prelude to saying something that was funny.

So here was the Star Parivaar experience that we were a part of. When I booked the tickets over three months ago ' I did not realise the magnitude or indeed the importance that this show would play. My main reason for attending was for my love of Barun & Sanaya & IPKKND. If I am honest ' I would say that the majority of people were there for that reason as well. At least we were the last ones to see this iconic epic couple as the characters & as themselves. It will sit as a memory ' soft & natural ' when a star realized at last how important he was & I was glad that I was a part of that realization.

FULL PRAISE TO RASHIKA FOR HER PICTURES THAT ILLUSTRATE THIS STORY