HT-Ur fired...or r u? VD

At times, stars themselves spread the rumours in the hope of being offered a bigger
pay packet

Every now and then, there are reports of a TV star leaving a show. Do they leave in pursuit of greener pastures, or does the channel decide the ousters? The reasons, it appears, are several.

We heard Gurmeet Choudhary was quitting Punar Vivaah; the reason, it seems, was that the makers were bringing in a whole new set of characters, leading to Gurmeet's natural exit. Rumours of Vivian Dsena leaving Madhubala turned out to be, well, just rumours. However, news of Ankita Lokhande quitting Pavitra Rishta proved to be true.

So, what makes a channel replace an actor (or threaten to do so)? In most cases, these are warnings issued as indirect responses to stars' tantrums. Once TV actors gain popularity, they take up other lucrative assignments and event appearances, at times giving these things priority over work.

While some are believed to have shown up sleep-deprived or even drunk on the sets, others make unreasonable demands like not wanting to talk to a certain person. Yet others have been known to interfere with the dialogues written for them, their hairstyles, make-up and costume.

Such tantrums irk everyone and affect shoot schedules. This is when a channel or a production house feels the need to keep an actor's behaviour in check. And the easiest way is to float rumours about them being replaced. In most cases, the channels' tactics work.

At times, though, it is the stars themselves who spread the rumours in the hope of being offered a bigger pay packet.

In the end, it's a gamble, the outcome of which depends on who needs who more. There are, of course, exceptions. Barun Sobti, after he decided to quit Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon, stuck to his guns.