The Queen Of Kandy - Article

She's been there and done that. Her no-holds-barred smile and her loud cry of "kya scene hai!" in many ways mirrored the cable television boom in the early 90s. And now, after many movie cameos and bit appearances on the telly, Archana Puran Singh has found a special space on the small screen again, as the host of Kandy Floss.

Part of Sony's Shukar Hai Shukravaar Hai campaign, the Friday night show from the house of Ektaa Kapoor claims to lay bare the behind-the-scenes activities of popular small-screen stars. And right from its premiere, the show has been in the news for all the "right reasons".

First there was Shweta Tiwari (Prerna of Kasautii Zindagi Kay) calling her co-star Cezanne Khan (Anurag) a "dog" in one episode. Then there was another guest Urvashi Dholakia (Kasautii's Komolika) walking out in disgust when the other guest kept describing husbands as "gods".

"The whole industry is very tickled about the show," Archana tells Metro. "Kandy Floss is the first show catering to TV personalities at a time when I feel Bollywood is starting to slip. The telly people have always been poor cousins of the filmi folk. Here, for a change, they are the ones being gossiped about. And now it has become a status symbol to be discussed on the show."

When Archana was first approached by Ektaa for Kandy Floss, she wasn't convinced. "I thought to myself, 'Oh no, not another show'," she admits. "I had done a lot of talk shows and film magazine shows on television. I am not called the Queen of TV for nothing. So this coming from the Balaji house, I was sceptical. But Ektaa had hidden many aces up her sleeves. She knew, just like with fiction shows, she was about to change the face of non-fiction shows on Indian television."

But there have been allegations that much of the content of the show is doctored and tailored to whip up a controversy. "That's what the media are saying because it's so shocking they can't believe it," pat comes the Archana reply. "The fact is that we edit out portions to stop it from being too scandalous. Today, youngsters do not care about what they say on camera. So, at places we have to tone down the content by beeping or cutting out portions."

What Archana herself brings to the show is a whole lot of credibility. "The audience is used to me as an insider who is always ready to spill the beans," she laughs. "I am there to share inside information with everyone. See, why the show works is because there are many people from small towns who are so very intrigued by the world of stars. So, Kandy Floss is like meeting their voyeuristic fascinations. At the end of the day, it's good ol' harmless gossip."