Dilli chalo

Nadira, the producer of Main Dilli Hoon which, by the way, is made in Mumbai, is well known for her contribution to Hindi theatre. She describes the serial as a tribute to the 50th year of Indian independence. quot;We have been planning this serial for a year. We both thought that this was the best offering we could make on this occasion,quot; she says.

Television is not a new medium to the Babbars. Before they migrated to Mumbai in 1980, they had done some work for Doordarshan in Delhi. Nadira has also directed a serial called Titilliyan in the late eighties, while Raj has worked for the Chopras in the initial episodes of the Mahabharat. quot;As an actor, I have been comfortable with all kinds of media from theatre, to radio, to cinema, and television. In fact, I have been thinking of doing a serial on this subject for the last eight years. It is an effort to create an awareness of our past 8212; our culture, language and music,quot; explains Raj.

This is not the first effort at tracing our nation8217;s evolution and history. Shyam Benegal8217;s Discovery of India based on Nehru8217;s celebrated book also looked at the birth of the Indian nation. quot;Our serial is nothing like Discovery8230;. We are not merely tracing the history, but our cultural roots. And we are looking at some of the landmark events and figures which have influenced the Indian subcontinent 8212; from Mahabharata to Bimbisara and Ajatashatru, Chanakya and Chandragupta, Ashoka, Prithviraj Chauhan, Allauddin Khilji, Akbar8217;s empire and his nine gems, Shahjehan, Shivaji, the 1857 mutiny, and finally the struggle for independence,quot; says Chopra.

quot;We are trying to create awareness about the great Indian heritage among the mass audience,quot; adds Raj. A serial from the Chopra stables will naturally be mounted on a grand scale. In keeping with the Mahabharata tradition, Main8230; promises the same grand sets and lavish costumes. But with the various constraints of commercial TV, there is always a mixing fiction with fact to cater to audiences used to a certain style of presentation. quot;History is basically a point of view 8212; that of the rulers or travellers who have chronicled it. And every story evokes certain kinds of images in the minds of readers or viewers. So we have to fictionalise to an extent, to appeal to all sections of audiences. quot;People have an image of a king and the way he dresses, walks and talks. And our depiction of a king should be in keeping with this popular perception. But we are not playing around with facts,quot; insists Raj.

To retain the authenticity of historical facts, the Babbars have a team of experts and researchers, who are doing the spadework for this magnum opus. Raj Babbar plays the part of King Yayati, with a new actress, Geeta Gore as Shukracharya8217;s daughter, Devyani, in the first seven episodes, while each of the other stories will have a different set of actors appropriate to the various historical characters.

For the moment the newly founded Babbar Visuals is sticking to just one programme. quot;We are concentrating on this serial because it is a very big project,quot; says Raj.