Posted:
DEVJI DADA
Age: 75
He is "Bhisma" of Mahabharata. In our story he is the elder son of Shri. Shantilal Goenka & Ambika. Ambika died when Devrath was just 10. Shantilal married Savitri, his second wife. Savitri gave birth to Hemraj, Devji was highly regarded by Hemraj. Devji was an intelligent boy looking after all the commercial affairs of Shantilal. On the death bed Shantilal took promise from devrath to take care of Hemraj. Devji gave all his life for Hemraj and in the process never got married, responsibility meant everything to him.
Now Devji is the eldest member of the family looking after Goenka Group's business. Very influential, and a man of his words, people don't dare to speak with him eye to eye. He is very healthy and has a strong personality. With the help of Rehmat Khan, the legal advisor of late Shantilal, Devji made huge growth of the family business. After the death of Hemraj, Devji strived for the evenhandedness that DharamDayal and his family should get.
The other colour of his portrayal that goes parallel to Bhisma is, say for example he is also helpless for some reason when Mansen, wants to keep Dharam apart from their family.
REHMAT ZAKARIA
Age: 58
He is "Vidur" of Mahabharata. Rehmat Zakaria, the legal advisor of Shantilal, is very sharp, smart and a very kind hearted person. "Faithfulness is his dictum" and right from establishment he was involved with Goenka group business and family matters. Today he is not only legal advisor but also a judgment maker with respect to any matter whatsoever in the family too. Rehmat Zakaria smells the happenings before they happen through his network, set of contacts, and associate manpower. (Similar to how Vidur handled "Lakshagriha" matters in Mahabharata).
For Mansen (Dhutrashtra) & Yuvraj (Duryodhan), he is the only big stumbling block whenever they think about the ownership of Goenka group of companies & other related matters. Kumud used to tie rakhee to him & hence giving the impression of national integrity, he always tries to keep harmony in the family particularly between the two brothers Mansen and Dharam and eventually their sons/daughters & bahus...
A very highly regarded person by the family and a very important person when it comes to a vital assessment... Rehmat Zakaria, Devji Goenka and Keshav are the TRIO, the wall of impartiality when controversy arrives. He forms one of the major standing pillar in the family. The main element of his portrayal is loyalty towards the family. He loves children of Goenka family…(Dada-pautra relationship) even though being Muslim by religion he knows the "Geeta" very well. He has a very neat Urdu pronunciation.
HEMRAJ
Age: 60
He is the combination of Vichitrayavirya and Chitrangad (son of Shantanu in Mahabharata) After the death of his father Shantilal Goenka, Devji took the responsibility of bringing up Hemraj, Hemraj with great help of Devji and Rehmat Zakaria could buildup the mammoth empire of Goenka group of companies. Hemraj, before his marriage with Kumud, had an affair with Rajeshwari the "Nrityangini" of "Gharana".
But due to his fathers objection he could not marry Rajeshwari and eventually married Kumud, daughter of his father's business associate. Hemraj never told anybody about Rajeshwari and his illegitimate son Dharam... Hemraj had a son Mansen (Dhrutrashtra) through Kumud. When he came to know about Dharam through Rajeshwari he decided to change the WILL. Everybody including Mansen were shocked when they came to know about Dharam. Hemraj wanted his son Dharam and his family to come and stay in Goenka House but Mansen was completely against that.
Mansen tries to eliminate Hemraj with the help of Khushaldas mama (Shakuni). Hemraj dies in a gas leakage "accident". Keshav has a strong feeling that Hemraj was murdered and the offender was Mansen. Now before his death even Hemraj had strong worries against Mansen so he had written a letter signifying so and left it in his private locker.
He is very soft spoken and introvert. He constantly carries the guilt of not having done justice to Rajeshwari.
KUMUD
Age: 70
Her character is a blend of Ambika/Ambalika of Mahabharata. She is Hemraj's wife, and is a decidedly religious, lovable woman. After marriage she has supported her husband in every facet. She believes in one thing - the female is the only factor that pedals the family, the one who binds the family with diverse relationships and female again is the only factor that could destroy the family.
She is exceptionally tranquil, calm, gorgeous, affectionate & warm with family members. She was intolerably shocked when she came to know about Rajeshwari and her husband's relationship with her, but instead of raising issues on this matter she behaved very prudently and remained mute. This was an especially constructive decision and due to this her respect among family members amplified...
She shares a very nice rapport with her bahus(Gunvati Gandhari) & Shakuntala (Kunti). She is aged 70 now, grandmother of today's generation but due to her contemporarily accepted wisdom she still is at par with young ones. She is very pleasant, entertaining & emotional and has a jingle "Hari hamesha harabhara rakhe".
RAJESHWARI
Age: 68
Rajeshwari is a "Nrityangana". Hemraj fell in love with this girl and through consummation of their relationship she conceived a child whom she named Dharam. But as a result of Hemraj's father's decision she couldn't marry Hemraj. She brought up Dharam in a village but still gave him superior education, attitude, manner & culture. She died when Dharam was just 12.
MANSEN
Age: 49
He is Dhutrashtra of Mahabharata. One of the most important characters in our story, he is very arrogant, short tempered, an egoist, jealous by nature, always insecure. He faces a typical eye problem. (his eyes keep watering).
He believes that he is the only person after Hemraj who will get all assets, chattels, and property including Goenka Group of Companies. But he is furious and highly disturbed when he comes to know about Dharam, his illegitimate brother. Later through his brother in law Khushaldas, he comes to know about Dharam's share in the Goenka's group of companies. Unless Dharam signs the papers Mansen will not get his share of belongings.
He gets completely insecured when he comes to know about his father's plans of getting Dharam to their house. In his anger he plans, along with Khushaldas, to get rid of his father. He is successful in doing so and has no regrets for the same. However ultimately he receives only half the share and through out his life keeps a grudge of it.
Yuvraj, Aksh, Vikram and Vishakha are his children. Mansen is very possessive about his son Yuvraj. He always wished that his son Yuvraj should inherit the entire Goenka Group of Companies but it wasent possible because of half share of DharamDayal. Mansen gets delight on Yuvraj's thought of insulting & throwing out DharamDayal & family.
GUNVANTI
Age: 45
She is "Gandhari" of Mahabharata. Gunvanti got married to Mansen and shared a very good relationship with Kumud (her mother in law) but a very grave relationship with her husband Mansen, particularly when she finds pessimistic stance of Mansen in Dharam's case. Gunvanti is also very kind to her daughter in law Shefali (Yuvraj's wife), Nisha (Vikram's wife) but shares a bitter relationship with Kamini (Aksh's wife) which is because of Kamini's nature.
She is humane towards Shakuntala (Kunti). They have a special kind of relationship between them, (devrani-jethani) which was not high lighted in Mahabharata. Kumud, Shakuntala & Gunvanti at one point of time show alike kind of feelings. Gunvanti has earned respect from Shakuntala and her children because of her good nature.
Basically, the fights between Mansen and Dharam and their son have never affected the relationship between their wifes. This has helped in keeping the house together. This depicts the potency of female characters in Mahabharata and in our serial too.
At one point of time her husband Mansen decides to live apart from Dharam and his family, but Gunvanti opposes this, there by leading to a war of words between her and Mansen. Gunvanti basically believes in truth & certainty but has to follow her husband at times and there by can't poise herself between truth and untruth.
DHARAMDAYAL
Age: 50
Occupation: Director and Chairman of all the companies of Goenka Group of Companies.
Pandu of Mahabharat.Dharam had lived the first 21 years of his life in poverty with his mother in a remote village. He got married at a very early age of 20 years, very soon after his mother died, with Shakuntala. Shakuntala was about to commit suicide, since she was kidnapped and raped by Dinkar Rai, when young Dharam saved her and later on got married to her.
He is a great Vishnu Bhakta and used to sing bhajans at the village temple through out the day. He is very honest and firm and a strong believer of karmic theory. Even after marriage, he paid very little attention to bread winning and passed most of his time singing Bhajans at the village temple. It was because of this closeness with the Supreme that he and his family never went without their daily bread.
His wife Shakuntala was pregnant with their first child when an earthquake rocked their village and everything was destroyed. Sitting on the temple footsteps with his pregnant wife, the now homeless Dharam was still optimistic about life since he had two mega-supports - one his wife and the other - Lord Krishna, whom Dharam always believed to be with him.
He was soon called to Mumbai to sign the Power Of Attorney. The next thing he did, as he became Dharam Dayal from Dharam, was to adopt his whole village. Fifty years have passed since then. He has witnessed the changing world with his graying hair. Today his sons have expanded his empire to sky scraping heights. But two things remain unchanged: Dharam's love for Shri Krishna and Mansen family's bitterness towards Dharam's family.
SHAKUNTALA
Age: 48
Retired from housework.
Kunti of Mahabharat. When women in rural India are kidnapped and raped they tend to commit suicide. Unfortunately, same thing happened with Shakuntala - A person named Dinker Rai kidnapped and raped Shakuntala before she could escape from him.
She was about to kill herself when Dharam stopped her from doing so and accepted her with her child. She gave birth to a son and requested Dharam to let her not keep him, since he (Suraj) will be a living sign of her painful past. DharamDayal could not permit such injustice done to the child since he found it a case of history repeating itself. But, being constantly persuaded by his wife, he had to agree to the decision of leaving the child in an Ashram (Orphanage).
Today Shakuntala is the woman of the house. She is greatly respected by all her children and daughter-in-laws. She never misses her daily pooja. She has become a little strict with her children as the years of trials and tribulations at her young age stand behind her. Her life takes an unforeseen twist when she meets her son's greatest competitor in business that is no other than her own illegitimate son Suraj.
SATYAJEET
Age: 23-24
Occupation: Managing Director, Goenka Finances & Securities Ltd. (A BSE Bull) has a weakness for gambling on the stock markets.
Yudhistir of Mahabharat.He was born in Mumbai, which is his permanent residence. Lives with his parents, DharamDayal and Shakuntala. He has two younger brothers and twin younger sisters. As a young boy he'd been to DES School (Drona Education Society) with his kin and cousins. Since then, his family have had always maintained this financial status. He was bright, but a little introvert. Did his MBA in finance after obtaining a BA in political sciences. Met his wife Manasvi in college.
Honesty has always been his policy in life, be it at home or at work. Rises early in the morning with the first ray of the sun. He is a voracious reader. 'To thine oneself be true' is his worldview. He adheres to religion, but does not blindly follow any rituals. The younger generation finds him a bit orthodox because of his strong anti-allopathic, anti-McDonald-isation, anti-booze views.
Hardly ever does he lose temper. Is a good listener and in a conflict, always tries to understand the opposite person's point of view. Is very much dependent on his wife, with whom he gladly discusses his economic as well as social issues. He even does his business by heart. He is generally contended with his life, except for one thing - he wants to put an end to the ongoing business conflict with his cousins.
It was because of this conflict that he choose to stay away from the main business lineage of mines, although he is often dragged into it: for two main reasons: He is the eldest and the most respected one and secondly, owing to his immense knowledge in finance law. He's lately been put on the board of directors of the Bombay Stock Exchange.
He puts complete faith upon his employees and is considered the best paymaster in the market. Yet he blindly trusts only one man - Keshav, a director of Goenka Group of Ind. They have been to college together.
SHAKTI
Age: 22-23
Occupation: Managing Director, Goenka Mines & Metalwork's Ltd.
Bhim of Mahabharat.Though a resident of Mumbai, keeps travelling through the country for work and to buys lands. He is possessive about all that belongs to him. He disliked education for the way it was imparted though he obtained full marks in Geography.
He didn't fare well in his languages, Math and Science. He also failed once because of sabotage implanted by his cousin Yuvraj, whom he hates today. He was so furious that he along with his goon-type friends could have beaten up Yuvraj and Aksh. He'd developed a bitter note against his cousins. So he was sent away to Oxford for further studies in Social Science. He was offered a scholarship by the MIT, which he declined and went ahead to start his own company.
By that time a giant industrialist Ford Kafka was engulfing all the small companies that came his way. Ford's sister Kate (Catherine Kafka), the CEO of the Company fell in love with this young genius. Their friendship amounted to a physical closeness. By that time Shakti had already beaten the giant company of Kafka in business. He got married to Kate and returned to India.
Today he runs one of the biggest Mines & Metal works companies in India, thanks to his profession; he has strongest contacts with the underworld as well as the CBI. He is too strong for any one to come his way. Shakti always knows what he wants and how he is going to get it. He loses his temper very easily. His assets are his people. He is neither diplomatic like his brother Arjun, nor does he give a damn to what society thinks. Never goes out his way to build a relation. He is as carefree as a storm. Yet he always withheld within Satyajeet's orders, since he respects him a lot.
Shakti, however intelligent, does consult his younger brother Arjun in crucial matters. Shakti's main war is with Yuvraj, who's the only equal to him in his sense of targeting and locating a mine. He treads in regions where no man dares to go. Even the toughest of his mineworkers won't dare to stare him in eyes.
ARJUN
Age: 22
Occupation: Managing Director, Goenka Software Solutions Ltd. (A Computer Geek).
Arjun of Mahabharat.Youngest brother and the most adorable of all. As a young boy he'd been to DES School (Drona Education Society) with his kin and cousins. He'd developed a bitter note against his cousins since school days.
Yet he always withheld himself within Satyajeet's orders, since he respected him a lot. He was the brightest, the naughtiest and also the most adorable kid at the school. By the rule of the naughtiest child made the class-monitor; its perks privileged him. Did his post - graduation in Computer Science after obtaining a B.Sc. Very Diplomatic. Always strikes the right arrow at the right time and at the right place. Even when unaware of the situation, operating in the dark aims at the right place. It is because of these characteristics of Arjun, that he is entrusted the position of MD of the most important company in the Goenka Group of Companies.
Arjun, with the assistance of his best friend Keshav, handles a vast business and an intense cutthroat competition. Both his brothers and sisters trust him. He often consults Satyajeet in matters of law and finance. Though it is Shakti who comes handy in cases where blowing up the opposite party's empire becomes inevitable.
On the hidden hand, he pirates software, hacks networks, spreads viruses to sell the anti-virus for the same and most importantly runs a cricket bookie network throughout India. Basically, he could be convicted of any computer crime that law can think of. Arjun's main war is with Suraj Kiran, who is equally good in computer software. Unlike Satyajeet, he is very pratical with business.
Arjun after he loses out Shefali to Yuvraj falls in love with Bhoomika. He loves music, dance and plays drums. Anyone else would find him arrogant, but is humble towards friends and family. Aims high in life and wants to win back the shares of directorship of the glass manufacturing company that his uncle had unlawfully taken away from his father. He is born to conquer.
SHRUTI
Age: 19
Occupation: Model
Born with a golden spoon. Contended in life. Living on the edge. Wasting no space. Yet, very down to earth. Introvert in a way. She has done many advertising assignments only for her sister-in-law Manasvi's textile company. Is looking forward to act in films. She is very pretty, but is too modest to make it her selling point. She is a shareholder in all the companies of her brothers. Everybody loves her calmness and likes to be with her. She hates just one man in her life - Yuvraj's maternal uncle, Khushaldas mama.
PREETI
Age: 20
Occupation: Astrologer.
She is outgoing, well-read and has learnt astrology as a science. Satyajeet consults her before undertaking a new project. She is a shareholder in all companies of her brothers and is the Director of Manasvi Textiles Company. Her predictions have proved to be quite accurate in many a cases. She is also a numerologist and is consulted by the busy bees mainly from politics and films. Manisha, a cousin of Yuvraj has recently contacted her.
MANASVI
Age: 23 Occupation: Housewife.
Manasvi, Satyajeet's wife was his college-mate. She comes from an upper middle class family and is well educated. Though she is a housewife, she holds a directorship in the family's textile mills and is a MD of the same. She has always had an inner need to become a businesswoman, which she eventually becomes. She has her own identity and takes her own decisions.
Unlike her husband, she is in favor of the business conflict between the two families. She is quite outgoing, thanks to her standard of education. It is because of her such modernistic views that she comes in conflicts with her brother-in-law Yuvraj & his family. She respects her mother-in-law Shakuntala and is supported by her dev-rani Bhoomika who admires her a lot. Being a classmate she's always been very close to Keshav.
BHUMIKA
Age: 20
Bhumika becomes the beautiful wife of Arjun. She is innocent, vulnerable and a bundle of energy and goodness. She is Keshav's sister and Vasudeo's daughter. She is very conscious of the fact that she is a daughter of the servant of the family and is initially unable to express her love to Arjun. She admires and supports Arjun in all he does and even gets ready to accept Shefali as Arjun's wife. She has a very good sense of maintaining relations with people. She loves to cook. She is very close to her mother-in-law and admires Manasvi a lot.
YUVRAJ
Age: 24
Occupation: Managing Director, YUVRAJ Group of Companies.
Duryodhana of Mahabharat.He is the eldest son of Mansen Goenka. He inherits his father's bitterness and hatred towards his uncle, DharamDayal and his cousins. He has two younger brothers. Mansen gave his sons the best education one can receive at the DES.
He is much more possessive than anyone in his whole family is. At school, he would always try die-hard to beat Shakti at studies. There would always be a cutthroat competition between the two. It was only when Shakti failed, that his mission was accomplished. Worse for him, Shakti was sent abroad for studies. With the assistance of his best friend Suraj, guidance from Devji Dada and an uninterrupted political support from his maternal uncle Khushaldas mama, Yuvraj runs the Durlabh group of companies which include his Mines & Metal-works, garment-works and a newly established software-solutions company.
However foolish it may be, Yuvraj still wants to avenge the injustice done to his father. Devji Dada, who is fully aware of the situation, has tried many a times to convince him that the injustice, if any, is an old issue and there's no point in fighting over it. Devji Dada has even tried to persuade him with his resignation, which he would never accept. His, with all comfort, puts his foot on Devji's weak toe by emotionally instigating him that without him, his goodwill will fall and that would be doing further injustice to his family.
Yuvraj is dead sure that Dada will never put down an old promise to his dead brother - a promise that everyone is well aware of. Though Devji well aware of Yuvraj's ill intentions, has put it in clear words that he would quit the company the day he discovers that any harm is being done to Satyajeet or his family. Time and again has Yuvraj had promised so. Time and again has he broken his promise with a convincing alibi.
Yuvraj with the help of Kushaldas mama frames Arjun and portrays him as the bad guy who has cheated Shefali and her father. He marries Shefali and hopes to own Shefali's fathers wealth sometime in future.
AKSH
Age: 23
Occupation: He is a college dropout and assists his Khushaldas mama. He is on police record.
Dushashana of Mahabharat.The cradle is a mirror to a man's life. Failed in high school, Aksh even attempted to bribe the teacher with his signature calmness! Worse, he broke into his college principal's cabin to inquire if he could leave college early that day to watch a movie. He seldom loses his cool like his eldest brother. He handles the worst of situations with imperturbable coldness leaving his opposition in bewilderment; he uses people against people. Yet he just goes out of control for anyone once he is pushed to lose his temper.
VIKRAM
Age: 21
Occupation: Share Broker.
His brothers have always labeled him as a dimwit, though he is not exactly as dumb. He is just too simpleton in comparison with anyone in his whole family. He has always preferred Satyajeet to his own brothers; he has learnt from him and runs a small brokerage firm, by himself. Though he holds a considerable number of shares in Yuvraj Group of Company. He never cashed his power. His father and brothers always disliked him. He has always felt a repulsion against his uncle and is attached to his mother a lot.
SURAJ KIRAN
Age: 25
Profession: Director, Yuvraj Group of Companies.
Suraj Kiran is Shakuntala's whom she gave away at an orphanage immediately after he was born. He was then adopted and brought up by a person called Kiran Apte. Kiran Apte happens to be working as an employee in Mansen's company. Suraj got his education from a local government school. After securing high marks at board, he went to one of the best colleges of Mumbai for further studies.
Today, he is a Director in all the companies of Yuvraj and is also his most loyal friend. He is truthful to his work and his people. He likes to be as honest and transparent as he could. He is the one who makes sure to announce bonus and pay-raise for the workers of his companies every year. Of all the companies, he manages and runs the Software Solution Company. This is one thing that puts him among one of the most proficient entrepreneurs of the country. He is the only guy who can give Arjun a run for his money.He loved Mansvi in his college days and is shocked to find that she is the daughter in law of the Goenka House.
KHUSHALDAS MAMA
Age: 53-55
Occupation: 12 % shareholder in Yuvraj Group of Cos. also into politics - opposition. (Constantly suffers from common cold).
Shakuni mama of Mahabharat.Feels that his sister has been deceived by being unjustly married. Keeps the fire going by his cunning and diplomatic brain. Wants his nephew to destroy the Dharamdayal and family.Yuvraj has always financially supported him for his political purposes. Aksh has joined him and is learning diplomacy under him. Devji Dada completely disapproves of his being a part of the Yuvraj Group and dislikes his mere presence in his family. Khushaldas mama is well aware of everyone's weakness and makes everyone his dices.
MONISHA
Age: 23-24
Occupation: Director, Shrinathji telefilms ltd. (Khushaldas Mama's daughter) Foster sister of Durlabh.
Monisha is a self-made businesswoman with a little backing. She is short tempered and has achieved more success early in life. She is intelligent and self confident, but not completely self-reliant. She has a constant fear of failure at the back of the head making her very insecure. She indulges into ritualistic practices. She spends a fortune on astrologers, numerologists and pundits. Basically good, but lost. To make it worse, she is in the company of Yuvraj, who will eventually kill any innocence left in her. Made an empire in the entertainment industry by introducing loads of new faces and minting on them.
VISHAKHA
Age: 20
She is Dushala of Mahabharata. Dushala was Kaurava's sister (child no. 101). Vishakha, in our serial is a reflection of youth. She loves to attend discos, partys out whole night with her friends, a vivacious, sparkling kind of a girl & is fond of dancing, swimming, playing snooker etc.She is a positive soul and does bear grudges against her step brothers and sisters.
She lies whenever needed, fabricating minds and there by creating a chaos & mess which eventually makes her endure. She is bold and audacious in taking decisions. Her identification is in her clothes, style and attitude. (She changes her clothes thrice a day.) She is "popularly" known as Miss India Goenka.
NISHA
Age: 21
She is Vikram's wife. She is a professional in aerobics & fitness and a beautician. She has her own beauty parlour. Her husband Vikram is completely different from his brothers Yuvraj and Aksh. Nisha loved him and they got married. Nisha is a very kind hearted and innocent person. Anybody can take advantage of her personality. Amongst others, Kamini is the first one to do so. Nisha and Vikram have very friendly kind of relationship but due to Kamini, Nisha doubts Vikram to be having an affair with his secretary Nikita. Keshav who knows the fact introduces Nisha to practical, true-life information.
Nisha shares a very good bond with Devji Dada, Rehman Chacha & Kumud Dadi. She enjoys cooking & loves to prepare different varieties of dishes for Devji Dada. Nisha has got a very unusual manner - she believes in reki and is a fatalist when it comes to believing in God. Under a dispute state of affairs she prefers to relinquish rather then fighting against odds. Fundamentally a very endearing character.
KAMINI
Age: 23
She is Aksh's wife. Kamini is a gray character, more on the blacker side. She is selfish, jealous, diplomatic and very sarcastic. She always takes benefit of any situation in any way she can. When Katherine (Shakti's wife) comes to know about her ill doings, Kamini plays dirty tricks and makes Catherine leave the family. She does her best to ruin the family relationships.
SHEFALI
Age: 23
She is Duryodhana's wife Bhanumati of Mahabharata, Yuvraj's wife in our serial. Infact she was presented with Arjun's proposal for marriage but Yuvraj with the help of Khushaldas mama had turned the tables around.
Shefali has done her MBA from Oxford University. She is the daughter of a very popular businessman, Shiraj Khandewal. She is exceedingly smart, confident, proud elegant and an upmarket girl, bright, intelligent and a professional woman. When she finds out that Arjun was framed by his stepbrothers she vows to help Arjun establish himself again.
KESHAV
Age: 22
Keshav is Krishna of Mahabharata, the protagonist of our serial. He is Mansen's servant Vasudeo's son. Brilliant, intelligent, smart, handsome, mature, lovable yet very very diplomatic and having a very good relationship with each and every member of the Goenka family. He is the person most sought after. Extra sharp and smells all the happenings well in advance. He has been entrusted with a lot of responsibility and footing in Goenka Group of Companies by Devji Dada and Rehmat Zakaria who believe him to be the only one who can handle the family feud. He is the one who will control the entire scheme
Age: 75
He is "Bhisma" of Mahabharata. In our story he is the elder son of Shri. Shantilal Goenka & Ambika. Ambika died when Devrath was just 10. Shantilal married Savitri, his second wife. Savitri gave birth to Hemraj, Devji was highly regarded by Hemraj. Devji was an intelligent boy looking after all the commercial affairs of Shantilal. On the death bed Shantilal took promise from devrath to take care of Hemraj. Devji gave all his life for Hemraj and in the process never got married, responsibility meant everything to him.
Now Devji is the eldest member of the family looking after Goenka Group's business. Very influential, and a man of his words, people don't dare to speak with him eye to eye. He is very healthy and has a strong personality. With the help of Rehmat Khan, the legal advisor of late Shantilal, Devji made huge growth of the family business. After the death of Hemraj, Devji strived for the evenhandedness that DharamDayal and his family should get.
The other colour of his portrayal that goes parallel to Bhisma is, say for example he is also helpless for some reason when Mansen, wants to keep Dharam apart from their family.
REHMAT ZAKARIA
Age: 58
He is "Vidur" of Mahabharata. Rehmat Zakaria, the legal advisor of Shantilal, is very sharp, smart and a very kind hearted person. "Faithfulness is his dictum" and right from establishment he was involved with Goenka group business and family matters. Today he is not only legal advisor but also a judgment maker with respect to any matter whatsoever in the family too. Rehmat Zakaria smells the happenings before they happen through his network, set of contacts, and associate manpower. (Similar to how Vidur handled "Lakshagriha" matters in Mahabharata).
For Mansen (Dhutrashtra) & Yuvraj (Duryodhan), he is the only big stumbling block whenever they think about the ownership of Goenka group of companies & other related matters. Kumud used to tie rakhee to him & hence giving the impression of national integrity, he always tries to keep harmony in the family particularly between the two brothers Mansen and Dharam and eventually their sons/daughters & bahus...
A very highly regarded person by the family and a very important person when it comes to a vital assessment... Rehmat Zakaria, Devji Goenka and Keshav are the TRIO, the wall of impartiality when controversy arrives. He forms one of the major standing pillar in the family. The main element of his portrayal is loyalty towards the family. He loves children of Goenka family…(Dada-pautra relationship) even though being Muslim by religion he knows the "Geeta" very well. He has a very neat Urdu pronunciation.
HEMRAJ
Age: 60
He is the combination of Vichitrayavirya and Chitrangad (son of Shantanu in Mahabharata) After the death of his father Shantilal Goenka, Devji took the responsibility of bringing up Hemraj, Hemraj with great help of Devji and Rehmat Zakaria could buildup the mammoth empire of Goenka group of companies. Hemraj, before his marriage with Kumud, had an affair with Rajeshwari the "Nrityangini" of "Gharana".
But due to his fathers objection he could not marry Rajeshwari and eventually married Kumud, daughter of his father's business associate. Hemraj never told anybody about Rajeshwari and his illegitimate son Dharam... Hemraj had a son Mansen (Dhrutrashtra) through Kumud. When he came to know about Dharam through Rajeshwari he decided to change the WILL. Everybody including Mansen were shocked when they came to know about Dharam. Hemraj wanted his son Dharam and his family to come and stay in Goenka House but Mansen was completely against that.
Mansen tries to eliminate Hemraj with the help of Khushaldas mama (Shakuni). Hemraj dies in a gas leakage "accident". Keshav has a strong feeling that Hemraj was murdered and the offender was Mansen. Now before his death even Hemraj had strong worries against Mansen so he had written a letter signifying so and left it in his private locker.
He is very soft spoken and introvert. He constantly carries the guilt of not having done justice to Rajeshwari.
KUMUD
Age: 70
Her character is a blend of Ambika/Ambalika of Mahabharata. She is Hemraj's wife, and is a decidedly religious, lovable woman. After marriage she has supported her husband in every facet. She believes in one thing - the female is the only factor that pedals the family, the one who binds the family with diverse relationships and female again is the only factor that could destroy the family.
She is exceptionally tranquil, calm, gorgeous, affectionate & warm with family members. She was intolerably shocked when she came to know about Rajeshwari and her husband's relationship with her, but instead of raising issues on this matter she behaved very prudently and remained mute. This was an especially constructive decision and due to this her respect among family members amplified...
She shares a very nice rapport with her bahus(Gunvati Gandhari) & Shakuntala (Kunti). She is aged 70 now, grandmother of today's generation but due to her contemporarily accepted wisdom she still is at par with young ones. She is very pleasant, entertaining & emotional and has a jingle "Hari hamesha harabhara rakhe".
RAJESHWARI
Age: 68
Rajeshwari is a "Nrityangana". Hemraj fell in love with this girl and through consummation of their relationship she conceived a child whom she named Dharam. But as a result of Hemraj's father's decision she couldn't marry Hemraj. She brought up Dharam in a village but still gave him superior education, attitude, manner & culture. She died when Dharam was just 12.
MANSEN
Age: 49
He is Dhutrashtra of Mahabharata. One of the most important characters in our story, he is very arrogant, short tempered, an egoist, jealous by nature, always insecure. He faces a typical eye problem. (his eyes keep watering).
He believes that he is the only person after Hemraj who will get all assets, chattels, and property including Goenka Group of Companies. But he is furious and highly disturbed when he comes to know about Dharam, his illegitimate brother. Later through his brother in law Khushaldas, he comes to know about Dharam's share in the Goenka's group of companies. Unless Dharam signs the papers Mansen will not get his share of belongings.
He gets completely insecured when he comes to know about his father's plans of getting Dharam to their house. In his anger he plans, along with Khushaldas, to get rid of his father. He is successful in doing so and has no regrets for the same. However ultimately he receives only half the share and through out his life keeps a grudge of it.
Yuvraj, Aksh, Vikram and Vishakha are his children. Mansen is very possessive about his son Yuvraj. He always wished that his son Yuvraj should inherit the entire Goenka Group of Companies but it wasent possible because of half share of DharamDayal. Mansen gets delight on Yuvraj's thought of insulting & throwing out DharamDayal & family.
GUNVANTI
Age: 45
She is "Gandhari" of Mahabharata. Gunvanti got married to Mansen and shared a very good relationship with Kumud (her mother in law) but a very grave relationship with her husband Mansen, particularly when she finds pessimistic stance of Mansen in Dharam's case. Gunvanti is also very kind to her daughter in law Shefali (Yuvraj's wife), Nisha (Vikram's wife) but shares a bitter relationship with Kamini (Aksh's wife) which is because of Kamini's nature.
She is humane towards Shakuntala (Kunti). They have a special kind of relationship between them, (devrani-jethani) which was not high lighted in Mahabharata. Kumud, Shakuntala & Gunvanti at one point of time show alike kind of feelings. Gunvanti has earned respect from Shakuntala and her children because of her good nature.
Basically, the fights between Mansen and Dharam and their son have never affected the relationship between their wifes. This has helped in keeping the house together. This depicts the potency of female characters in Mahabharata and in our serial too.
At one point of time her husband Mansen decides to live apart from Dharam and his family, but Gunvanti opposes this, there by leading to a war of words between her and Mansen. Gunvanti basically believes in truth & certainty but has to follow her husband at times and there by can't poise herself between truth and untruth.
DHARAMDAYAL
Age: 50
Occupation: Director and Chairman of all the companies of Goenka Group of Companies.
Pandu of Mahabharat.Dharam had lived the first 21 years of his life in poverty with his mother in a remote village. He got married at a very early age of 20 years, very soon after his mother died, with Shakuntala. Shakuntala was about to commit suicide, since she was kidnapped and raped by Dinkar Rai, when young Dharam saved her and later on got married to her.
He is a great Vishnu Bhakta and used to sing bhajans at the village temple through out the day. He is very honest and firm and a strong believer of karmic theory. Even after marriage, he paid very little attention to bread winning and passed most of his time singing Bhajans at the village temple. It was because of this closeness with the Supreme that he and his family never went without their daily bread.
His wife Shakuntala was pregnant with their first child when an earthquake rocked their village and everything was destroyed. Sitting on the temple footsteps with his pregnant wife, the now homeless Dharam was still optimistic about life since he had two mega-supports - one his wife and the other - Lord Krishna, whom Dharam always believed to be with him.
He was soon called to Mumbai to sign the Power Of Attorney. The next thing he did, as he became Dharam Dayal from Dharam, was to adopt his whole village. Fifty years have passed since then. He has witnessed the changing world with his graying hair. Today his sons have expanded his empire to sky scraping heights. But two things remain unchanged: Dharam's love for Shri Krishna and Mansen family's bitterness towards Dharam's family.
SHAKUNTALA
Age: 48
Retired from housework.
Kunti of Mahabharat. When women in rural India are kidnapped and raped they tend to commit suicide. Unfortunately, same thing happened with Shakuntala - A person named Dinker Rai kidnapped and raped Shakuntala before she could escape from him.
She was about to kill herself when Dharam stopped her from doing so and accepted her with her child. She gave birth to a son and requested Dharam to let her not keep him, since he (Suraj) will be a living sign of her painful past. DharamDayal could not permit such injustice done to the child since he found it a case of history repeating itself. But, being constantly persuaded by his wife, he had to agree to the decision of leaving the child in an Ashram (Orphanage).
Today Shakuntala is the woman of the house. She is greatly respected by all her children and daughter-in-laws. She never misses her daily pooja. She has become a little strict with her children as the years of trials and tribulations at her young age stand behind her. Her life takes an unforeseen twist when she meets her son's greatest competitor in business that is no other than her own illegitimate son Suraj.
SATYAJEET
Age: 23-24
Occupation: Managing Director, Goenka Finances & Securities Ltd. (A BSE Bull) has a weakness for gambling on the stock markets.
Yudhistir of Mahabharat.He was born in Mumbai, which is his permanent residence. Lives with his parents, DharamDayal and Shakuntala. He has two younger brothers and twin younger sisters. As a young boy he'd been to DES School (Drona Education Society) with his kin and cousins. Since then, his family have had always maintained this financial status. He was bright, but a little introvert. Did his MBA in finance after obtaining a BA in political sciences. Met his wife Manasvi in college.
Honesty has always been his policy in life, be it at home or at work. Rises early in the morning with the first ray of the sun. He is a voracious reader. 'To thine oneself be true' is his worldview. He adheres to religion, but does not blindly follow any rituals. The younger generation finds him a bit orthodox because of his strong anti-allopathic, anti-McDonald-isation, anti-booze views.
Hardly ever does he lose temper. Is a good listener and in a conflict, always tries to understand the opposite person's point of view. Is very much dependent on his wife, with whom he gladly discusses his economic as well as social issues. He even does his business by heart. He is generally contended with his life, except for one thing - he wants to put an end to the ongoing business conflict with his cousins.
It was because of this conflict that he choose to stay away from the main business lineage of mines, although he is often dragged into it: for two main reasons: He is the eldest and the most respected one and secondly, owing to his immense knowledge in finance law. He's lately been put on the board of directors of the Bombay Stock Exchange.
He puts complete faith upon his employees and is considered the best paymaster in the market. Yet he blindly trusts only one man - Keshav, a director of Goenka Group of Ind. They have been to college together.
SHAKTI
Age: 22-23
Occupation: Managing Director, Goenka Mines & Metalwork's Ltd.
Bhim of Mahabharat.Though a resident of Mumbai, keeps travelling through the country for work and to buys lands. He is possessive about all that belongs to him. He disliked education for the way it was imparted though he obtained full marks in Geography.
He didn't fare well in his languages, Math and Science. He also failed once because of sabotage implanted by his cousin Yuvraj, whom he hates today. He was so furious that he along with his goon-type friends could have beaten up Yuvraj and Aksh. He'd developed a bitter note against his cousins. So he was sent away to Oxford for further studies in Social Science. He was offered a scholarship by the MIT, which he declined and went ahead to start his own company.
By that time a giant industrialist Ford Kafka was engulfing all the small companies that came his way. Ford's sister Kate (Catherine Kafka), the CEO of the Company fell in love with this young genius. Their friendship amounted to a physical closeness. By that time Shakti had already beaten the giant company of Kafka in business. He got married to Kate and returned to India.
Today he runs one of the biggest Mines & Metal works companies in India, thanks to his profession; he has strongest contacts with the underworld as well as the CBI. He is too strong for any one to come his way. Shakti always knows what he wants and how he is going to get it. He loses his temper very easily. His assets are his people. He is neither diplomatic like his brother Arjun, nor does he give a damn to what society thinks. Never goes out his way to build a relation. He is as carefree as a storm. Yet he always withheld within Satyajeet's orders, since he respects him a lot.
Shakti, however intelligent, does consult his younger brother Arjun in crucial matters. Shakti's main war is with Yuvraj, who's the only equal to him in his sense of targeting and locating a mine. He treads in regions where no man dares to go. Even the toughest of his mineworkers won't dare to stare him in eyes.
ARJUN
Age: 22
Occupation: Managing Director, Goenka Software Solutions Ltd. (A Computer Geek).
Arjun of Mahabharat.Youngest brother and the most adorable of all. As a young boy he'd been to DES School (Drona Education Society) with his kin and cousins. He'd developed a bitter note against his cousins since school days.
Yet he always withheld himself within Satyajeet's orders, since he respected him a lot. He was the brightest, the naughtiest and also the most adorable kid at the school. By the rule of the naughtiest child made the class-monitor; its perks privileged him. Did his post - graduation in Computer Science after obtaining a B.Sc. Very Diplomatic. Always strikes the right arrow at the right time and at the right place. Even when unaware of the situation, operating in the dark aims at the right place. It is because of these characteristics of Arjun, that he is entrusted the position of MD of the most important company in the Goenka Group of Companies.
Arjun, with the assistance of his best friend Keshav, handles a vast business and an intense cutthroat competition. Both his brothers and sisters trust him. He often consults Satyajeet in matters of law and finance. Though it is Shakti who comes handy in cases where blowing up the opposite party's empire becomes inevitable.
On the hidden hand, he pirates software, hacks networks, spreads viruses to sell the anti-virus for the same and most importantly runs a cricket bookie network throughout India. Basically, he could be convicted of any computer crime that law can think of. Arjun's main war is with Suraj Kiran, who is equally good in computer software. Unlike Satyajeet, he is very pratical with business.
Arjun after he loses out Shefali to Yuvraj falls in love with Bhoomika. He loves music, dance and plays drums. Anyone else would find him arrogant, but is humble towards friends and family. Aims high in life and wants to win back the shares of directorship of the glass manufacturing company that his uncle had unlawfully taken away from his father. He is born to conquer.
SHRUTI
Age: 19
Occupation: Model
Born with a golden spoon. Contended in life. Living on the edge. Wasting no space. Yet, very down to earth. Introvert in a way. She has done many advertising assignments only for her sister-in-law Manasvi's textile company. Is looking forward to act in films. She is very pretty, but is too modest to make it her selling point. She is a shareholder in all the companies of her brothers. Everybody loves her calmness and likes to be with her. She hates just one man in her life - Yuvraj's maternal uncle, Khushaldas mama.
PREETI
Age: 20
Occupation: Astrologer.
She is outgoing, well-read and has learnt astrology as a science. Satyajeet consults her before undertaking a new project. She is a shareholder in all companies of her brothers and is the Director of Manasvi Textiles Company. Her predictions have proved to be quite accurate in many a cases. She is also a numerologist and is consulted by the busy bees mainly from politics and films. Manisha, a cousin of Yuvraj has recently contacted her.
MANASVI
Age: 23 Occupation: Housewife.
Manasvi, Satyajeet's wife was his college-mate. She comes from an upper middle class family and is well educated. Though she is a housewife, she holds a directorship in the family's textile mills and is a MD of the same. She has always had an inner need to become a businesswoman, which she eventually becomes. She has her own identity and takes her own decisions.
Unlike her husband, she is in favor of the business conflict between the two families. She is quite outgoing, thanks to her standard of education. It is because of her such modernistic views that she comes in conflicts with her brother-in-law Yuvraj & his family. She respects her mother-in-law Shakuntala and is supported by her dev-rani Bhoomika who admires her a lot. Being a classmate she's always been very close to Keshav.
BHUMIKA
Age: 20
Bhumika becomes the beautiful wife of Arjun. She is innocent, vulnerable and a bundle of energy and goodness. She is Keshav's sister and Vasudeo's daughter. She is very conscious of the fact that she is a daughter of the servant of the family and is initially unable to express her love to Arjun. She admires and supports Arjun in all he does and even gets ready to accept Shefali as Arjun's wife. She has a very good sense of maintaining relations with people. She loves to cook. She is very close to her mother-in-law and admires Manasvi a lot.
YUVRAJ
Age: 24
Occupation: Managing Director, YUVRAJ Group of Companies.
Duryodhana of Mahabharat.He is the eldest son of Mansen Goenka. He inherits his father's bitterness and hatred towards his uncle, DharamDayal and his cousins. He has two younger brothers. Mansen gave his sons the best education one can receive at the DES.
He is much more possessive than anyone in his whole family is. At school, he would always try die-hard to beat Shakti at studies. There would always be a cutthroat competition between the two. It was only when Shakti failed, that his mission was accomplished. Worse for him, Shakti was sent abroad for studies. With the assistance of his best friend Suraj, guidance from Devji Dada and an uninterrupted political support from his maternal uncle Khushaldas mama, Yuvraj runs the Durlabh group of companies which include his Mines & Metal-works, garment-works and a newly established software-solutions company.
However foolish it may be, Yuvraj still wants to avenge the injustice done to his father. Devji Dada, who is fully aware of the situation, has tried many a times to convince him that the injustice, if any, is an old issue and there's no point in fighting over it. Devji Dada has even tried to persuade him with his resignation, which he would never accept. His, with all comfort, puts his foot on Devji's weak toe by emotionally instigating him that without him, his goodwill will fall and that would be doing further injustice to his family.
Yuvraj is dead sure that Dada will never put down an old promise to his dead brother - a promise that everyone is well aware of. Though Devji well aware of Yuvraj's ill intentions, has put it in clear words that he would quit the company the day he discovers that any harm is being done to Satyajeet or his family. Time and again has Yuvraj had promised so. Time and again has he broken his promise with a convincing alibi.
Yuvraj with the help of Kushaldas mama frames Arjun and portrays him as the bad guy who has cheated Shefali and her father. He marries Shefali and hopes to own Shefali's fathers wealth sometime in future.
AKSH
Age: 23
Occupation: He is a college dropout and assists his Khushaldas mama. He is on police record.
Dushashana of Mahabharat.The cradle is a mirror to a man's life. Failed in high school, Aksh even attempted to bribe the teacher with his signature calmness! Worse, he broke into his college principal's cabin to inquire if he could leave college early that day to watch a movie. He seldom loses his cool like his eldest brother. He handles the worst of situations with imperturbable coldness leaving his opposition in bewilderment; he uses people against people. Yet he just goes out of control for anyone once he is pushed to lose his temper.
VIKRAM
Age: 21
Occupation: Share Broker.
His brothers have always labeled him as a dimwit, though he is not exactly as dumb. He is just too simpleton in comparison with anyone in his whole family. He has always preferred Satyajeet to his own brothers; he has learnt from him and runs a small brokerage firm, by himself. Though he holds a considerable number of shares in Yuvraj Group of Company. He never cashed his power. His father and brothers always disliked him. He has always felt a repulsion against his uncle and is attached to his mother a lot.
SURAJ KIRAN
Age: 25
Profession: Director, Yuvraj Group of Companies.
Suraj Kiran is Shakuntala's whom she gave away at an orphanage immediately after he was born. He was then adopted and brought up by a person called Kiran Apte. Kiran Apte happens to be working as an employee in Mansen's company. Suraj got his education from a local government school. After securing high marks at board, he went to one of the best colleges of Mumbai for further studies.
Today, he is a Director in all the companies of Yuvraj and is also his most loyal friend. He is truthful to his work and his people. He likes to be as honest and transparent as he could. He is the one who makes sure to announce bonus and pay-raise for the workers of his companies every year. Of all the companies, he manages and runs the Software Solution Company. This is one thing that puts him among one of the most proficient entrepreneurs of the country. He is the only guy who can give Arjun a run for his money.He loved Mansvi in his college days and is shocked to find that she is the daughter in law of the Goenka House.
KHUSHALDAS MAMA
Age: 53-55
Occupation: 12 % shareholder in Yuvraj Group of Cos. also into politics - opposition. (Constantly suffers from common cold).
Shakuni mama of Mahabharat.Feels that his sister has been deceived by being unjustly married. Keeps the fire going by his cunning and diplomatic brain. Wants his nephew to destroy the Dharamdayal and family.Yuvraj has always financially supported him for his political purposes. Aksh has joined him and is learning diplomacy under him. Devji Dada completely disapproves of his being a part of the Yuvraj Group and dislikes his mere presence in his family. Khushaldas mama is well aware of everyone's weakness and makes everyone his dices.
MONISHA
Age: 23-24
Occupation: Director, Shrinathji telefilms ltd. (Khushaldas Mama's daughter) Foster sister of Durlabh.
Monisha is a self-made businesswoman with a little backing. She is short tempered and has achieved more success early in life. She is intelligent and self confident, but not completely self-reliant. She has a constant fear of failure at the back of the head making her very insecure. She indulges into ritualistic practices. She spends a fortune on astrologers, numerologists and pundits. Basically good, but lost. To make it worse, she is in the company of Yuvraj, who will eventually kill any innocence left in her. Made an empire in the entertainment industry by introducing loads of new faces and minting on them.
VISHAKHA
Age: 20
She is Dushala of Mahabharata. Dushala was Kaurava's sister (child no. 101). Vishakha, in our serial is a reflection of youth. She loves to attend discos, partys out whole night with her friends, a vivacious, sparkling kind of a girl & is fond of dancing, swimming, playing snooker etc.She is a positive soul and does bear grudges against her step brothers and sisters.
She lies whenever needed, fabricating minds and there by creating a chaos & mess which eventually makes her endure. She is bold and audacious in taking decisions. Her identification is in her clothes, style and attitude. (She changes her clothes thrice a day.) She is "popularly" known as Miss India Goenka.
NISHA
Age: 21
She is Vikram's wife. She is a professional in aerobics & fitness and a beautician. She has her own beauty parlour. Her husband Vikram is completely different from his brothers Yuvraj and Aksh. Nisha loved him and they got married. Nisha is a very kind hearted and innocent person. Anybody can take advantage of her personality. Amongst others, Kamini is the first one to do so. Nisha and Vikram have very friendly kind of relationship but due to Kamini, Nisha doubts Vikram to be having an affair with his secretary Nikita. Keshav who knows the fact introduces Nisha to practical, true-life information.
Nisha shares a very good bond with Devji Dada, Rehman Chacha & Kumud Dadi. She enjoys cooking & loves to prepare different varieties of dishes for Devji Dada. Nisha has got a very unusual manner - she believes in reki and is a fatalist when it comes to believing in God. Under a dispute state of affairs she prefers to relinquish rather then fighting against odds. Fundamentally a very endearing character.
KAMINI
Age: 23
She is Aksh's wife. Kamini is a gray character, more on the blacker side. She is selfish, jealous, diplomatic and very sarcastic. She always takes benefit of any situation in any way she can. When Katherine (Shakti's wife) comes to know about her ill doings, Kamini plays dirty tricks and makes Catherine leave the family. She does her best to ruin the family relationships.
SHEFALI
Age: 23
She is Duryodhana's wife Bhanumati of Mahabharata, Yuvraj's wife in our serial. Infact she was presented with Arjun's proposal for marriage but Yuvraj with the help of Khushaldas mama had turned the tables around.
Shefali has done her MBA from Oxford University. She is the daughter of a very popular businessman, Shiraj Khandewal. She is exceedingly smart, confident, proud elegant and an upmarket girl, bright, intelligent and a professional woman. When she finds out that Arjun was framed by his stepbrothers she vows to help Arjun establish himself again.
KESHAV
Age: 22
Keshav is Krishna of Mahabharata, the protagonist of our serial. He is Mansen's servant Vasudeo's son. Brilliant, intelligent, smart, handsome, mature, lovable yet very very diplomatic and having a very good relationship with each and every member of the Goenka family. He is the person most sought after. Extra sharp and smells all the happenings well in advance. He has been entrusted with a lot of responsibility and footing in Goenka Group of Companies by Devji Dada and Rehmat Zakaria who believe him to be the only one who can handle the family feud. He is the one who will control the entire scheme
Mannat Har Khushi Paane Ki
Kabhi Neem Neem Kabhi Shahad Shahad
